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Did you know how doctors in the 19th century described the phenomenon of terminal awakening?
Terminal lucidity refers to the sudden return of consciousness, mental clarity or memory recovery in some patients with severe mental or neurological diseases just before death. Since the 19th century, many doctors have reported this phenomenon, making it an interesting area of research. The phenomenon of terminal awakening makes people think about whether there is an inherent mechanism for the recovery of the mental state at the final moment of the body? What message do these phenomena convey?
According to a review by historian Mihai Nahm, the phenomenon of terminal awakening has been recorded in a variety of progressive cognitive impairment diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia, brain tumors, stroke, Meningitis and Parkinson's disease, etc.
According to medical literature, terminal sobriety sometimes allows previously speechless patients to regain the ability to speak or to recognize relatives and friends they have lost the ability to recognize. This phenomenon usually occurs hours or days before the patient dies. It is important to note that it is not limited to patients who are about to die. In some cases, the patient may even survive afterwards. This situation is known as It’s called “paradoxical sobriety.”
According to reports, in 2018, a group of researchers at Dongguk Hospital observed 151 patients and found that 6 of them experienced terminal awakening, and these patients had different reasons for admission.
The difference between terminal awakening and "paradoxical awakening" is that the latter is a general recovery of consciousness and does not only occur before death. A 2020 study on paradoxical wakefulness showed that only 6% of cases survived a week after regaining consciousness, which further supports the close connection between the terminal wakefulness phenomenon and death. Today's medical community's understanding of this phenomenon is still limited, and there is a lack of clear scientific mechanisms to explain the reasons behind it.
“The phenomenon of terminal lucidity presents ethical challenges because, in some cases, patients may not be able to provide informed consent.”
Doctors and scholars in the 19th century had different explanations for the phenomenon of terminal awakening. Some of them suggested that patients may temporarily regain consciousness due to a sudden excitement of brain nerves. For example, American doctor Benjamin Russ proposed in 1812 that nerve excitement caused by pain or fever may be one of the reasons for awakening before death. In addition, the German Carl Friedrich Budach mentioned in 1826 that changes in brain morphology after death may also be a factor affecting wakefulness.
“Many family members feel an opportunity to resolve unresolved matters when witnessing the final awakening, and this phenomenon sometimes leads to deeper spiritual connections.”
Contemporary research has further explored the phenomenon of terminal sobriety, but ethical considerations are emerging. Deep sedation is often used to relieve patients' discomfort, but it can deprive patients of their final opportunity to communicate with their families. In families, some members may look forward to these lucid moments that will continue, only to feel lost and confused when faced with death.
Research on the phenomenon of terminal sobriety not only stops at observation and recording, but also involves considerations of quality of life and patient rights. With new research progress, more mysteries of this phenomenon may be solved in the future. Terminal awakening is not only a physiological phenomenon, but also an extension of psychological and social significance. These sudden awakenings make us think deeply: What happened in the last moments of life?
