This is what it feels like to die

LONDON. KAZINFORM - The American Chemical Society has released a slasher video in time for Halloween. What happens in your brain as death (an axe-wielding fiend) approaches? Fear triggers the thalamus, the brain's switchboard. Danger calls.Fear courses through your bloodstream via glutamate, the hypothalamus gears up for fight or flight. The adrenal glands ramp up adrenaline and cortisol, the liver liberates glucose in a sugar rush. The axe plunges into your torso. Intense pain, you bleed out, your heart stops. But the movie hasn't ended. If there's no major head trauma, your brain's electrical activity surges as the music builds. The screen flickers. The credits roll.

Most of us will die in somewhat different circumstances. What will it feel like? Perceptions are gleaned from presumed near-death experiences (NDEs): we'll float above our lifeless bodies, loved ones nearby, a bright light beckons. A study of 140 cardiac arrest survivors reported that 9% had self-perceived NDEs; Some joyous, others less so: burning ceremonies, dragged through water, bodies in coffins. Mercifully, 22% reported "a feeling of peace or pleasantness". Can we extrapolate this to how dying feels? Probably not. Most NDEs can't be externally validated: they could have happened after resuscitation rather than during dying. Or they might represent memories created to fill amnestic gaps, The Guardian reports. Alex Malarkey's book The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven, co-authored by his father, detailed his car crash aged six en route home from church. His spinal cord was severed. During a two-month coma, Alex encountered angels, Jesus and the devil: "When I arrived in heaven, I was inside the gate. The gate was really tall, and it was white. It was very shiny. Everything was brighter and more intense. It was perfect." But within five years came the truth: "I said I went to heaven because I thought it would get me attention," Alex wrote. "I did not die. I did not go to heaven." The book was pulled by its publishers. A 2007 New Scientist feature explored the topic of how it feels to die via emerging scientific evidence and survivor narratives. Little was left to the imagination. During death by drowning, you'll gasp for air, arms flailing for 20-60 seconds before you hold your breath for up to 90 seconds, coughing and spluttering. There's a tearing and burning sensation as your lungs fill up with water. Then emerges tranquility as consciousness is lost. With blood loss of 1.5 litres, you'll feel weak, anxious, thirsty and confused before the lights go out. Being burnt to death has its own signature: laboured breathing as the airways burn and, as you might expect, intense pain. Carbon monoxide poisoning leads to headaches, drowsiness and unconsciousness within minutes. As for decapitation, consciousness can persist for up to seven seconds after the spinal cord is severed. Of course, the only people who can tell us what dying really feels like are those who have been there. I'd rather they don't get in touch with me with feedback though. That's best left to the imagination.