Nervous around dead bodies?

[sike08]

I work in my school's (comm college) bio lab and we have just received out first cadaver (male). It was on Friday, I am cleaning out the morgue when I hear my supervisor's voice ushering a rep from the cadaver company towards my way with the body. Little did I know, I was going to be the one helping to load him off his transport gurney and into our body bags and exam table. Mr. suit and tie rep unbags our man and asks ME to grab his shoulders and lift him onto our table. Not only was this the first time I have touched a dead body, it was the first time I have seen one. As you can imagine, this is quite the experience. I looked forward to this day for the longest time but as soon as I looked into the old man's face I felt this rush of anxiety, stress, and eerieness.

I haven't stopped thinking about this moment and it makes me wonder if I am really ready for the even more intense human body experiences I will have to encounter.

Did anyone ever feel this way with their first body? How did you overcome it? Does this eerie feeling of death and the human anatomy become less intense with more exposure and experience?

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[Artimacia]

I shadowed a medical examiner last semester (through one of my professors who is one of the county's forensic anthropologists). When I walked in, the body was split wide open, and this was my first time being around a dead body in this sense (not like a funeral or anything). I got used to it while there, the doctor was explaining everything he was doing and each part he was taking out and what they do after the autopsy. My professor told me to prepare for the worst, because she didn't know if it was a car accident victim, a murder victim, or even my own family or friend (if they had died during that time). Luckily for me it wasn't a brutal death. She told me that if I feel uneasy afterwards and need someone to talk about what I saw, to call her. I felt ok, but every now and then the thought of death bothered me for a few minutes but after time passed I felt fine. It wasn't a huge bother or anything, but it eventually goes away.

 

[sike08]

See, I dont have a problem with the insides of the human body, its merely the appearance and feel of death of the outside of the body I guess. Sometimes, I get the zombie feeling lol.

 

[SirGecko]

You keep the face (and sometimes hands) covered when you aren't dissecting the face and that usually helps most people to not be weirded out by dissecting. Also most people do get over any qualms they might have had on their first exposure fairly quickly.

 

[armybound]

You keep the face (and sometimes hands) covered when you aren't dissecting the face and that usually helps most people to not be weirded out by dissecting. Also most people do get over any qualms they might have had on their first exposure fairly quickly.

Or you can keep the face uncovered all the time and just get used to it.

I was nervous around cadavers at first, but once you start cutting it all goes away. You get used to it pretty quickly.

 

[schrizto]

I think the reason you were anxious was because you were caught off guard and wasn't expecting it.

I toured my state medical school's anatomy lab and they had dead bodies and preserved dead fetuses, but it didn't make me extremely nervous because I was expecting to see them.

 

[orthomyxo]

I always wonder what my first experience with a cadaver will be like, and it makes me kind of uneasy. This doesn't apply to a morgue, but with dissections, I'll just think to myself: they wouldn't be here if they didn't want to be.

 

[MossPoh]

You get over it. Most people are a little uneasy the very first time. During dissection, it is actually a bit of a relief when you get start getting through head and neck anatomy. It becomes much easier to disconnect yourself from that "Oh crap, this is a human being" feeling. I did have a few little weird existential moments when I was sawing a head in half with a hacksaw.

 

[jvesco22]

"Yall wanna see a dead body?"

"Aye yo, Gimme my brotha's ball back!"

 

[LiveUninhibited]

I actually saw my first one the other day during an interview tour. I mostly felt sad and fascinated, but I didn't see the face or touch it. It looked like it was a middle-aged female.

 

[dw2158]

I actually saw my first one the other day during an interview tour. I mostly felt sad and fascinated, but I didn't see the face or touch it. It looked like it was a middle-aged female.

i also saw one at an interview last week... it was pretty unnerving, because they had the head sawed open and stuff. but even after looking at it for about 3 minutes, i started to breathe easier.

 

[kami333]

Most people get used to it pretty quickly.

First one I saw was being prepared for tissue (bone) harvesting, it reminded me more of like a turkey leg.

One thing I haven't gotten used to are mortuaries and embalmed bodies. I used to work in cornea donation so I would sometimes procure eyes at mortuaries and it was very creepy when there were several bodies in the prep room and they would be all dressed up/made up like they could sit up and talk to me at any time.

 

[richse]

We're just finishing up anatomy at my school and I felt this way for the first few dissections (only about a week). After that I got used to the body and the smell surprisingly fast, IMO. Other people in my class seemed to have similar experiences. I wouldn't worry about it too much, the key is to get in there a lot and see everything. That will help with your grade and acclimation to the body/lab. On the other hand, if you think that it will be a real problem there are schools that do prosection so you would have a lot less cadaver interaction. I prefer the experience of dissecting and trying to find things but some people swear its just a waste of time.

I work in my school's (comm college) bio lab and we have just received out first cadaver (male). It was on Friday, I am cleaning out the morgue when I hear my supervisor's voice ushering a rep from the cadaver company towards my way with the body. Little did I know, I was going to be the one helping to load him off his transport gurney and into our body bags and exam table. Mr. suit and tie rep unbags our man and asks ME to grab his shoulders and lift him onto our table. Not only was this the first time I have touched a dead body, it was the first time I have seen one. As you can imagine, this is quite the experience. I looked forward to this day for the longest time but as soon as I looked into the old man's face I felt this rush of anxiety, stress, and eerieness.

I haven't stopped thinking about this moment and it makes me wonder if I am really ready for the even more intense human body experiences I will have to encounter.

Did anyone ever feel this way with their first body? How did you overcome it? Does this eerie feeling of death and the human anatomy become less intense with more exposure and experience?

 

[Music MD]

You will get used to it quickly. You will begin to think of the cadaver as unhuman pretty much immediately after you begin cutting. Covering the face and fingers helps. Expect a few healthy thoughts about our mortality as humans, wondering where the cadaver came from and what he or she did with their life, etc.. these thoughts are pretty normal. Just don't dwell on these things too much and make it a bigger deal than it is, especially prior to starting school. You'll likely feel much different in the lab when you are expecting it, first of all, and when you are in there with your classmates trying to learn.

 

[SirGecko]

Or you can keep the face uncovered all the time and just get used to it.

I was nervous around cadavers at first, but once you start cutting it all goes away. You get used to it pretty quickly.

At my school at least they tell us to keep the face covered mostly out of respect for the cadaver. (genital region as well)

But yeah most people really don't have an issue with dissection once they get started.

 

[Artimacia]

When my mom was in school for nursing, she took gross anatomy and dealt with cadavers. She told me that if I ever feel uneasy around them, think of them like they are just models/dummies. Try to think of them as not real people (gross anatomy more so than in a morgue). Granted, not the most respectful thing I guess, but makes you less uneasy.

Also, for a lighter view on all of this, read the book Stiff by Mary Roach. Interesting yet funny way to look at studying bodies.

 

[AMEHigh]

You will get used to it rather quickly because honestly you really don't have a choice.

I think most people were nervous for about the 1st 2 minutes we were in lab, but after that it becomes an everyday thing.

Once you start with your dissection, sometimes it's easy to forget about the person you're working on and just focus on what you're trying to learning.

 

[GH253]

Did a cadaver dissection years ago while in community college. My advice is to try not to personify dead bodies. There is no such thing as a dead person. A dead body is just inanimate matter in the shape of a human being. You will probably come to think in those terms, consciously or not, after you get used to being around corpses.

 

[sustentacular]

I shadowed a medical examiner last semester (through one of my professors who is one of the county's forensic anthropologists)....

Is your professor Heather Walsh-Haney?

Most people get used to it pretty quickly.

First one I saw was being prepared for tissue (bone) harvesting, it reminded me more of like a turkey leg.

One thing I haven't gotten used to are mortuaries and embalmed bodies. I used to work in cornea donation so I would sometimes procure eyes at mortuaries and it was very creepy when there were several bodies in the prep room and they would be all dressed up/made up like they could sit up and talk to me at any time.

Have you had the opportunity to touch an embalmed body? They feel like clay, almost like if you were to pinch their skin it would stay that way.

We're just finishing up anatomy at my school and I felt this way for the first few dissections (only about a week). After that I got used to the body and the smell surprisingly fast, IMO. Other people in my class seemed to have similar experiences. I wouldn't worry about it too much, the key is to get in there a lot and see everything. That will help with your grade and acclimation to the body/lab. On the other hand, if you think that it will be a real problem there are schools that do prosection so you would have a lot less cadaver interaction. I prefer the experience of dissecting and trying to find things but some people swear its just a waste of time.

My first experience with a cadaver was in undergrad in gross anatomy, we weren't dissecting but used the bodies for exams and studying. To make the tissues more pliable they would spray the bodies with fabric softener.. to this day I still can't use Downy in my laundry.

At my school at least they tell us to keep the face covered mostly out of respect for the cadaver. (genital region as well)

But yeah most people really don't have an issue with dissection once they get started.

I think I would be a little annoyed if I was told I had to keep the face covered, that brings far more ritual into the process than is necessary.

Did a cadaver dissection years ago while in community college. My advice is to try not to personify dead bodies. There is no such thing as a dead person. A dead body is just inanimate matter in the shape of a human being. You will probably come to think in those terms, consciously or not, after you get used to being around corpses.

This.👍
Just don't look at them as though they're even "real". Don't think about their lives, or their deaths, or their loved ones. This sort of mentality may take practice so if you're worried about your nerves try and get more experience (cadaver lab, hospital or forensic autopsy, etc).

 

[ThaliaNox]

On my first day of gross anatomy, two people passed out. They're both fine in the lab now. Even if you have the worst reaction the first time you see a cadaver, it doesn't mean you're going to be a bad doctor, or even that you'll never be a surgeon or that you'll always pass out at the sign of blood. It takes some getting used to. Try not to worry about it too much right now. It'll happen or it won't, and either way you'll be fine.

 

[vpersan]

In high school we went to a cadaver lab and saw lots of dead bodies. It didn't bother me one bit. I guess I didn't really think about them as dead bodies, but more as learning tools (haha tools). I thought it was awesome... Most people lost their appetite at the sights and smells, but it didn't do anything to mine. Hmm...

 

[Bacchus]

I knew well ahead of time that I was going to be apprehensive about my cadaver lab here at PCOM. My view on death is unexplainable to many and irrational to others. With that said, it does get easier. There will be days where you've been in the lab for 15 minutes and are ready to leave. There will be other days when you'll walk into lab and before putting on your labcoat tell your group, "I'm cutting today." Its kind of strange the relationship you form with your body. I would say the large majority of my class has named their cadaver. It may be a dead body, but you do not need to lose the humanistic approach to the dissection. This is your first patient. We may laugh sometimes at the situation we're in, the mess the body presents for us, or the insane tasks we're about to undergo, but we all know that we're truly gifted for having the experience.

Its been 8 weeks worth of lab now and I still am not completely comfortable with what I'm doing. Its natural. We're taught in the states that death is a bad thing we should push to the side, but you can't push your cadaver to the side. Take it day by day. Use your body stockings well... just expose the area you're to dissect for the day. Don't remove the head stocking until absolutely necessary. Don't be afraid to not dissect. When we dissected the face I stood back, read the directions to my group, and never picked up a probe, scalpel, or forceps.

Just breathe.

 

[ThaliaNox]

I just wanted to state my emphatic agreement with Bacchus. The cadaver is your first patient. Treat it with respect. Just because treating your cadaver as an object makes the class easier for you doesn't mean it is the right thing to do. Think of how you would want your grandmother or grandfather treated if they donated their body to your education. My school is very harsh with anyone disrespecting the cadavers... and their definition of disrespect is very strict.

 

[Infinitydrop]

This is such an interesting topic. Although I don't really whats more scary, being unnerved by the dead bodies, or getting used to it to the point where you don't care anymore.

 

[Moosecakes]

Watch videos of it online before hand. (Autopsies and the like), itll give you more of an idea of what to expect and sort of desensitize yourself to it. wont be bad after a few sights. Good luck!

 

[Hurricane95]

You get over it real quick. After a while, the muscles start to look like chicken and the fat starts to look like scrambled eggs, and the formaldehyde.....makes you oh SO hungry. Those are my most vivid memories of anatomy lab...the burnt-plastic-like smell of the preservatives and the insatiable hunger. I would rush out of lab and look for whatever club was meeting to attack the free food. No kidding.

 

[armybound]

This is such an interesting topic. Although I don't really whats more scary, being unnerved by the dead bodies, or getting used to it to the point where you don't care anymore.

You should read a book like Rotations. It's very common for physicians to stop seeing people as human beings and start seeing them as anatomical relationships, clinical conditions, or just some horrible thing stopping them from getting some sleep.