Hospice nurse shares three issues about loss of life she finds ‘mindblowing’

A hospice worker has shared three of the most surprising things that happen when someone dies.

Julie McFadden, 41, has her own Youtube channel where she chats openly about her experiences to help make people “less scared” of death.

In a video titled ‘What surprises me about the end of life and why it matters’, Julie says: “The point of this video is to bring you comfort and education about end of life. When I was a new hospice nurse, even these things surprised me.”

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Julie then revealed three facts about death that many might not know – including the way the mind and body prepares itself to die.

THEY CAN HEAR US

“We do believe they can hear us”, says Julie.

She says the hearing sensor on the brain is the last to shut down – and suggests speaking to loved ones like they are there, even when they are dying.

This is sometimes known as the breaking down of the unconsciousness wall.

This will be a relief to people who may feel they have left it to a loved one’s final moments to say what they want to.

However, Julie also says this means people should be “respectful” and not argue.

She says: “Please don’t argue, or don’t talk about them like they aren’t there because we do believe they can hear you. As a hospice nurse, I always try to speak to the people who are unconscious like they could answer me back.”

Julie, who previously worked as an ICU nurse, says she has spoken to people who came out of comas and said they “could sense” what was going on while they were asleep.

She added: “And we do think this is the same for the dying person. So really at the end of life it’s just about comfort and creating an atmosphere and environment that’s comforting for them.”

DEATHBED PHENOMENA

Julie describes this as the ‘deathbed phenomenon’, which is used to describe what someone experiences just before they pass away.

Julie says this is “mindblowing” to her – even eight years later.

This phenomenon includes something called ‘deathbed visioning’ which usually involve people who see loved ones who have already passed, according to Julie, and are different to hallucinations caused by psychosis or delirium.

She also says ‘terminal lucidity’, also known as ‘the rally or the surge’, which is when someone who looks very ill suddenly gets a burst of energy and look like they’re getting ‘better’,

Some believe the phenomenon is caused by a burst of cortisol or other hormones that makes people “perk up” in their final days, but Julie said we don’t know why this happens.

While she described the phenomena as “shocking” and “unbelievable”, she also said it was “comforting.”

She said: “I feel like it’s important for me as a hospice nurse to educate the general public that these are things that actually happen. We don’t know why but they do.”

DEHYDRATION

Bizarrely, Julie said being dehydrated can help someone die a more peaceful death.

“I will educate about this until the cows come home”, she said, adding that this was “amazing”.

She said: “A dying body cannot handle the hydration a living, well body can.So if we try to hydrate a dying body at the end of life, they will become fluid overloaded.

“The fluid will not stay in the veins. It will seep out and cause swelling, and then eventually cause respiratory distress.”

Julie said when it’s time, the body will help us die by keeping us dehydrated.

“The more dehydrated you are the better you will feel,” she said.

“You’re going to go into ketosis and your body will release endorphins that will give you a euphoric pain and help start dulling pain and make you actually feel good.

“That’s what I have witnessed as a hospice nurse that I would not have believed as an ICU nurse.”

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