A Healthy Scare - How autopsies changed my outlook on health.

Some people don't know this about me but I was a criminal investigator for five years. During that time I witnessed numerous autopsies. This Halloween I wanted to talk about my experiences and how what I witnessed changed my outlook on my own health forever.

First of all, the jokes about cops and donuts aren't entirely untrue. While most of my colleagues would have preferred bagels and cream cheese to eclairs, cops are always eating. With a few exceptions most people in law enforcement eat out a lot. Large portions of high fat foods and "quick" foods are mainstays. Even though most officers look strong and healthy, outward appearances can be deceiving.

Whenever I attended an autopsy I always had a sense of uneasiness. That might seem obvious. However, it wasn't the visual aspect that bothered me. I always felt as if the autopsy itself was a great violation. This had nothing to do with my personal, spiritual, or ethical beliefs. The procedures were always conducted professionally and with cause.

Take a moment and think about your body. Most of us were taught that we own our body and no one else has the right to touch our body without our permission. After we die, our body is left defenseless. I think the protector in me instinctively disapproved of the practice even though rationally I knew it was a necessary and justified.

An autopsy is a thorough examination of a corpse. The purpose is to determine the cause and manner of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that may be present. Did you ever hear a story about a person dying in a car crash and afterwords an autopsy showed that they only had months to live anyway. It's amazing how out of touch we can be when it comes to our own bodies.

The first autopsy I observed was of a healthy young man who had committed suicide. The purpose of the autopsy was to rule out foul play. Not only is the decedent (corpse) cut open as you would expect, but organs are removed, weighed and samples are taken.  The liver, for example, is removed, weighed, rinsed, and placed on a butchers block. The doctor then uses a cleaver to chop off small pieces and places samples in baggies. The scene resembles a butcher at a meat market; white apron and all.

The doctor took great care and pride in educating me. He showed me most of the organs. I held the heart, lungs, intestines, brains, and yes even the testes. The doctor concluded that death was instantaneous and had the victim been found immediately he would have been an excellent donor.

This first experience at an autopsy made me realize that even if you think you have nothing, If you are healthy, you have all you need to survive anything. And for all the people in this world who are fighting disease, struggling with their own bodies, to take for granted a healthy body is such a shame. My grandmother has always said that the only two things worth worrying about in life are illness and death. I believe she was right.

A number of the autopsies I witnessed involved geriatric people. many of which had diseased and failing organs. I observed many dirty lungs, fatty hearts, and damaged livers. It doesn't take years of medical school to identify these things. They are very obvious.

As part of many, but not all autopsies. The cranium is evaluated. A saw is used to cut the skull open around the circumference, the face is quite literally peeled down. In a case study that I witnessed at a conference, a girl suffered from an eating disorder and denied herself water because it made her feel bloated. Ultimately she died of dehydration and after seeing photographs of her brain, I will tell you it's like nothing I have ever seen. Drink water. If you don nothing else today... drink a glass of water.

Finally, I want to tell you that that death is very unattractive. No, it's not supposed to be good I realize this. Still I have a beautiful thought about death where I am like Snow White, peaceful, serene, carefully laid in a glass box surrounded by nature. Once we die, our body loses its warmth and color, no sucking tummies in or good posture. We are hairy bags of water and once the water escapes we are even worse.

About half of the autopsies I attended involved obese people. As the doctor makes the main Y-incision it is truly disgusting. If you have ever seen a film of a whale being cut open, it's a lot like that. I am not exaggerating. There is an entire layer of fat, several inches deep.

When I was 13 I worked at a movie theater. I was a popcorn girl. You know how to make the popcorn really good? You give the oil pump and extra pump or two. We used buckets of coconut oil. When you opened a bucket it was the most disgusting artificial orange color you ever saw. It had the consistency of lard. It also is exactly what your fat looks like inside your body. 

WARNING! This Link is an autopsy photo that I found that gives some idea of what the fat looks like. It is NSFW or for children and if looking at a dead body that is cut open is something you find offensive, do not look.

If you lost everything you have, all that you would be left with is your body. So what would you be left with? Witnessing autopsies has been a blessing in that they have made me appreciate the importance of good health. Autopsies also remind us that beauty is only on the surface.

Comments

[Eugene]

Hi. My name is Eugene Gershin. I'd like to welcome you to Obadiah Shoher's blog, Samson Blinded: A Machiavellian Perspective on the Middle East Conflict.

Obadiah is a pen name of a politician. He writes extremely controversial articles about Israel, the Middle East politics, and terrorism.

Obadiah advocates political rationalism instead of moralizing. He is economic liberal and political conservative.

Google refused advertising our site and Amazon deleted reviews of Obadiah's book. Nevertheless, Obadiah’s is the largest Jewish personal blog, read by more than 100,000 people monthly. 210,000 people from 81 countries downloaded Obadiah’s book. The blog was voted the best overall in People’s Choice: Jewish and Israeli blogs Awards, received Webby Honoree and other awards.

Please help us spread Obadiah's message, and mention the blog in one of your posts, or link to us. We would greatly appreciate your comments at www.samsonblinded.org/blog

Best wishes,

Eugene Gershin

Jewrusalem.net – Israeli Uncensored News

[Dizzy Dee]

Thanks for sharing, I also love to watch shows like CSI. I didn't know that fat was orange though! Really interesting post :)

A friend of mine is a beauty therapist, and was recently asked to do the makeup of a family friend who had passed away.
It was a young girl that she knew, and since the girl had died from a drug overdose, she figured that she might as well help them out, cause she wont be seeing any blood or guts (excuse the expression).

Anyway, she said it was horrific and would never do it again. Aparantly the skin loses all its elasticity, and though obvious, I never realize this! She said that after applying the foundation, she had to pull the face to look normal again, everything was just contorted.

That's just so bad, and I must say that I'm thankful to have a job where I can sit and stare at a computer screen for 8hrs / day.

[Jason - GorillaSushi]

SO gross but so hard to turn away from. Pictures are one thing but I often wonder what my real life reaction would be.

[kristinaQ]

Wow... that photo doesn't even look real, that's how gross it is. I would never be able to cut dead people open and examine their remains for a living.... Well I guess one could get used to it after a while... either way, I give you props for being able to observe all those autopsies.. not something everyone can do.

[RennyBA]

Sounds like a hard experience, but also something one grow from and after all would not be without.

[Kimchihead]

The first time I smelled a ripe corpse, I thought I was going to lose my lunch. How in the world do you get used to the smell?

[Leo]

I think it's that kind of potential desecration that makes me uneasy about being an organ donor. I do it because I know it's the right thing to do and if in death, I can save a few people, so much the better. The idea of someone messing with my body (without my permission) is frightening.
I'd also rather have my remains cremated.
I have to admit to a morbid fascination though, I'd like to observe an autopsy some day. Just to see if I could keep my lunch down. Considering my gag reflex works overtime in some public washrooms . . . I doubt it.

[kia]

thanks for sharing! great post!

[Bart]

That photo is ... unsettling. But as others mentioned, the smell is hard to take, and I believe that's the worst part.

I think you bring up a good point - we often don't acknowledge the damage we do to our bodies. Out of sight, out of mind.

However, I don't think beauty runs skin deep. There is a strange beauty about how the body is put together.

[Z.Z. Bachman]

The writers and moderators at ZardozZ News & Satire search constantly for interesting feed content and we came across your site today. We would like to invite you to add your site to our blogring as your material appears interesting and aligned with our readership. If you are interested, you can find further information at the ZZ OpenRing. This is not meant as spam but as a sincere invitation. Hope you'll join us...
--- ZZ Staff

[sandi]

This is a good article! I have worked in a hospital lab and was always tempted to watch! But never did. I have done teleconferences to resident pathologist that had graphic stuff in the film, but no smell!

I like your article, it makes one think about life! My Life!

Sandi
aromatherapyexperts.com

[Jebs House]

I'm not sure what the hold-up is... maybe they have re-thought their stance on how this is going to actually make the company any money. Or perhaps their lawyers pointed out the liability of providing agents a platform to stick their feet in their mouth. Whatever it is, it's hardly something I'd claim as being "Well done".
www.jebshouse.com

[Natural Baby Products]

What happened to the blog? Why is it dead?
I love natural and healthy...

[Natural Baby Products]

What happened to the blog? Why is it dead?
I love natural and healthy...

[Natural Baby Products]

What happened to the blog? Why is it dead?
I love natural and healthy...

[Natural Baby Products]

What happened to the blog? Why is it dead?
I love natural and healthy...

[yumi]

Asking

Nice to meet you.

I want to exchange information on diet and health and beauty and yoga and others with you.

I linked your sites.
Please link to this site.
http://healthy-diet-food-sports-weight-loss.blogspot.com/

My best regards.

[Forex Trading]

Best Places to Make Money Online, Best Forex Trading Strategies to Win. Learn How to Trade Forex Online. Traders Ratings & Reviews of Top Online Forex Brokers.

[Gaje Master]

My son was killed last year and they were going to perform and autopsy but decided against it. I watch a lot of crime shows and I know that they are nothing like the real thing but I don't know if I would have been able to deal with my son being cut up like that. The reason they decided against the autopsy was because he had suffered from severe trauma to the head, the result of a vehicle backing over him in our driveway by a woman who was turning around. The did however have to do a lot of cutting on the top part of his head and till this day it makes me sick to think about it.

[personal trainer]

I remember back in college anatomy class when we went to examine the cadavers. It gave me the feeling you describe except I was only in there for a couple hours a couple times per week.

It made me really appreciate my life and I wish I still had that feeling every day because it would make me do more things, talk to more people and just appreciate everything I do throughout the day.

[personal trainer]

I remember back in college anatomy class when we went to examine the cadavers. It gave me the feeling you describe except I was only in there for a couple hours a couple times per week.

It made me really appreciate my life and I wish I still had that feeling every day because it would make me do more things, talk to more people and just appreciate everything I do throughout the day.