Cadavers: Do you ever get used to the smell???

[Mariko]

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I am a pre-med and I just got back from a Gross Anatomy conference at UCSF where Med students gave us brief anatomy lessons. This was my first exposure to cadavers and I found them very facinating. I really view this as the ultimate final gift that a person can give and I respect the use of them because I realize--now especially-- how necessary they are to a medical education.
However I was in there for about 40 mins, touching organs and muscules and looking at different cadavers; then we got to one cadaver in particular and the smell of the phenal/formalin started to really get to me and I started feeling nauseous and dizzy. I had to step out. 😳 I really don't think that this was a psychological response; I think it was due to the fumes.

Has anyone else had this problem? And if so, do you get used to the smell??
Are there any med students out there who have NOT gotten used to the smell? What do you do?
thanks! 😀

 

[!dr_nick!]

by the end of the first month i was practically eating my lunches in there. Its really not that bad.

 

[skypilot]

They dry out and get less smelly as the semester wears on. That is unless they get mold into them.

 

[thackl]

I still hate it.

 

[medstudent2008]

It really doesn't bother me. There is one body that smells bad but only if you get too close. We have fabric softener mixed in with the cadaver soaking solution to help with the stench.

 

[Jeffy]

For men, I'm sure that it's like getting used to the taste and smell of she-juice.

 

[fielight]

like everything else, you get used to it. also some bodies tend to smell more "rancid" than others, so it's kind of a luck thing which one you get.

 

[Bad Mojo]

As far as anatomy goes, I've been blessed with a terrible sense of smell. The smell in the lab hasn't bothered me at all, only the way that your clothes and hands (even w/ gloves) smell for awhile afterwards. Today was the removal of the GI tract and, once again, I failed to notice any smell.

 

[felipe5]

every cadaver seems to react a little differently with the preservative and thus will have its own distinctive smell. To me, they all smell horrible, even though it is a tolerable stench. Don't worry, you'll be fine.....just wait until you get splashed in the face with some cadaver-juice

 

[Mariko]

Thanks everyone!
It's good to know that I'm not the only one who thinks that the stench is awful but that people just get through it anyway.

I've heard that Vick's Vapor Rub helps when you smear some of it under your nose before lab (??)

 

[dancinjenn]

I agree, some of the cadavers smell much worse than others, one lab table was even told not to open their abdomen because the cadaver had died from bowel perf/sepsis and the instructors knew that it would be a horrific smell if that particular ab was opened.

There are some people who are also genuinly allergic to some of the molecules, then you can wear a biohazard face mask. Still others in my class wear the regular white dust masks which they say seems to help. The cadaver that I work on isn't too bad, however some dissections are just more smelly than others. I have also heard of some people taking peppermint (or some other good smell) oil and dabbing it underneath your nose...that way you smell peppermint and not formaldihyde.

 

[roja]

You get to where you don't even notice it after a while.

 

[lilmo]

every cadaver seems to react a little differently with the preservative and thus will have its own distinctive smell. To me, they all smell horrible, even though it is a tolerable stench. Don't worry, you'll be fine.....just wait until you get splashed in the face with some cadaver-juice

one of my tank mates totally took it in the face the other day. my best advice, don't chew gum in cadaver lab. you might get used to the smell, but non-medschool peeps will still smell it on you when you get out of lab. it makes a great perfume. i've found it attracts cute md-to-be's.

 

[erin682]

I still haven't gotten used to the smell. I've had to step out more than once because it bothers me so much. Our lab keeps getting worse to, I'm not sure why. Some people it doesn't seem to bother but once this semester is over they won't be able to pay me enough to go back in there.

 

[Jeffy]

you might get used to the smell, but non-medschool peeps will still smell it on you when you get out of lab.

Good to know. So do you have to shower everytime you get out of gross lab if you wanna go out that night?

 

[eatapita]

I am a pre-med and I just got back from a Gross Anatomy conference at UCSF where Med students gave us brief anatomy lessons. This was my first exposure to cadavers and I found them very facinating. I really view this as the ultimate final gift that a person can give and I respect the use of them because I realize--now especially-- how necessary they are to a medical education.
However I was in there for about 40 mins, touching organs and muscules and looking at different cadavers; then we got to one cadaver in particular and the smell of the phenal/formalin started to really get to me and I started feeling nauseous and dizzy. I had to step out. 😳 I really don't think that this was a psychological response; I think it was due to the fumes.

Has anyone else had this problem? And if so, do you get used to the smell??
Are there any med students out there who have NOT gotten used to the smell? What do you do?
thanks! 😀

Everytime I walked into the lab, I instantly gagged for the first couple of minutes. But after that, you get used to the smell.

Chewing mint bubble gum makes getting through it easier.

Just a warning. I could not eat pork for a couple of months when I had gross lab. Everytime I smelled pork, the cadaver smell came back up my nose.

 

[Taurus]

You'll get used it because you'll lose your ability to smell.

 

[erin682]

Good to know. So do you have to shower everytime you get out of gross lab if you wanna go out that night?

Yes, definately. I do it automatically anyway because I can still smell it on myself.

 

[chameleonknight]

Yes, and just buy a cheap pair of scrubs or nasty t-shirt or something to THROW AWAY or BURN at the end of semester.

 

[kappasigMD41]

I am a pre-med and I just got back from a Gross Anatomy conference at UCSF where Med students gave us brief anatomy lessons. This was my first exposure to cadavers and I found them very facinating. I really view this as the ultimate final gift that a person can give and I respect the use of them because I realize--now especially-- how necessary they are to a medical education.
However I was in there for about 40 mins, touching organs and muscules and looking at different cadavers; then we got to one cadaver in particular and the smell of the phenal/formalin started to really get to me and I started feeling nauseous and dizzy. I had to step out. 😳 I really don't think that this was a psychological response; I think it was due to the fumes.

Has anyone else had this problem? And if so, do you get used to the smell??
Are there any med students out there who have NOT gotten used to the smell? What do you do?
thanks! 😀

I was used to the smell until December, when they started smelling more and more funky everyday. Needless to say, I didn't spend as much time down there for the last block.

 

[lilmo]

Good to know. So do you have to shower everytime you get out of gross lab if you wanna go out that night?

if only i had time to go out during anatomy blocks🙁 that said, i'm sure cloud of smoke at the bars will cover the smell right up. plus, the smell is a great way to prove that you are indeed a med student and not just pretending to be one.

 

[Jeffy]

plus, the smell is a great way to prove that you are indeed a med student and not just pretending to be one.

A-Ha! There we go, that's more up my alley. People wouldn't believe me otherwise 🙁

 

[DrBuzzLightYear]

if only i had time to go out during anatomy blocks🙁 that said, i'm sure cloud of smoke at the bars will cover the smell right up. plus, the smell is a great way to prove that you are indeed a med student and not just pretending to be one.

speaking of which, did anyone here ever take their dates to the anatomy lab?

 

[felipe5]

speaking of which, did anyone here ever take their dates to the anatomy lab?

I highly doubt it........there's much better ways of exploring anatomy with your significant other than digging through a cadaver and getting juice up to your elbows 😎

But, one time, Lilmo and I got it on during a latenight sesh in the lab....i guess the fumes must be an aphrodisiac

 

[thewebthsp]

nope, never really got used to it. oh well

 

[docquaker]

you get used to the smell, but the fumes can get to your eyes sometimes. wear goggles.

i think looking at the fat is far worse...

 

[lilmo]

I highly doubt it........there's much better ways of exploring anatomy with your significant other than digging through a cadaver and getting juice up to your elbows 😎

But, one time, Lilmo and I got it on during a latenight sesh in the lab....i guess the fumes must be an aphrodisiac

most have been such a latenight sesh that you were dreaming.......... 😀

 

[macdown]

I wouldn't say I got used to the smell, but now when ever I smell wheat thins I think of anatomy.

 

[artemis]

I got used to the smell pretty well, but chewing gum in gross lab makes me so sick, I have to spit it out the second i look at the body. For some reason, the consistency of the gum in my mouth and the look of the cadaver flesh on the table, are strangely similar..... 😳

 

[Mariko]

Ok... got it.
No gum; wear goggles; rub vicks under my nose; burn my t-shirt; stay away from pork and wheat thins, and lure cute premeds into the lab for latenight rondevous.

I'm feeling better already. 🙂

 

[Siggy]

Don't forget that powerbar for a quick bite to eat between cuts.

 

[phoenixsupra]

I asked that question to my instructor. He said that when his kids were young they loved the smell. "It smells like daddy". 😀

Smells bad but it's no big deal. Just makes for a handy icebreaker conversation with all the scary strangers that surround you. 😉

 

[felipe5]

Ok... got it.
No gum; wear goggles; rub vicks under my nose; burn my t-shirt; stay away from pork and wheat thins, and lure cute premeds into the lab for latenight rondevous.

I'm feeling better already. 🙂

and that my friend, is the secret to doing well in anatomy. Screw mnemonics, flashcards, and well, studying all together

 

[lilmo]

and that my friend, is the secret to doing well in anatomy. Screw mnemonics, flashcards, and well, studying all together

dude. that's some great advice. if only i were as dedicated as you. but alas, i am forced to study long hours, and make page upon page of flashcards.

 

[!dr_nick!]

man, i cant wait till next semester when my the tissue in my nose can re-epithelialize.