afraid to die?

[GMScud]

I am terrified of death. I've lost several people close to me from various reasons- killed by a drunk driver, cancer, suicide (the worst)... Funerals never get easier to go to. But I suppose as you age your perspective on death changes. As life moves on and you gradually achieve your goals, I would hope a sense of satisfaction continually grows inside. Personally, if I fall terminally ill in my 70's or 80's, it will be easier to accept if I can look back on a happy family (wife, kids, grandkids), a productive career, and a good, honest life with plenty of joy in it, then I will probably be at peace. I can think of nothing worse than being diagnosed with something terminal at a young age and knowing you'll never have a chance to experience some of the great joys in this world.

Be healthy everyone!

Man, this thread is pretty morbid...

[saden1]

If you fall from 30,000 feet you need supplemental oxygen otherwise you will defiantly pass out.

[RobH4413]

Originally Posted by BigSKINBauer

Well, you're right that it doesn't really have an evolutionary benefit, so it makes you wonder... Is it just a type of Mercy that is given to us from god? If death is a euphoric experience it seems like a big coincidence. It could just as easily be the exact opposite and be the most dreadful thing ever going on in your head.

Yeah, I'm not a big religious person, but at the same time I see some pretty strange stuff. I've also had some pretty insane experiences with intuition and things of that nature. This is just one example that messes with my head.

I'm pretty much the textbook agnostic. I think objective truth is unattainable, and that's what makes a lot of life so frustrating. There is no real way to KNOW in the true sense of the word that anything concrete exists. That's why death is so scary, but interesting.

[dmek25]

great thread. i am not afraid of death. but i hear you Matty with the nursing home thing. when i used to drive truck. nursing homes were on my route. some of those homes are so run down, and poorly managed, i rather live in my car. and some of the stuff you see....

[Riggo44]

There's a nursing home by my house that let a old man with Alzheimer's walk away last year. They still haven't found him! Then last month this. Sign Up
From the outside the place looks normal. Thank God there trying to close them down.
But back to the point,yes I am afraid to die and your right. Dieing in a nursing home where no one cares about you would really suck.

I just really don't want to die period.

[love them hogs]

I feel like i have come to grips with my own mortality a long time ago.Ever since I started high school someone close to me has died or been murdered.It felt like every year I had to go to one or two funerals and it just numbed me to it I guess.It went on for about four or five years and then just stopped.


I have learned that there is truly only one thing in life that is for sure , and that is that one day you and me will be dead.So you better make sure that all the people in your life know how much you love them everyday.Not just when you get around to it,everyday.

On a related note, how do you guys feel about viewings?Personally I dont want everyones last image of me to be my body in a casket.Everytime I think of the people I have lost in my life,no matter what memory I recall of them, the image of them dead in thier casket inevitably comes.I just dont want to be remembered like that.

[djnemo65]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

I'm not religious, so I don't believe in an afterlife really. But there's so little we know about Neuroscience, that who the hell knows what goes on in your brain when you die.

If chemical imbalances can cause depression, bipolar disorder, and stuff like that, what happens chemically when our brains cease to get oxygen and carbon dioxide builds up? I mean, we know the brain tissue dies, but we don't know how the brain reacts to that chemical change. Does it release a signal making us think there's a white light? Does it release a signal feeling like endorphins? Hell, for all we know, a dying brain's chemical changes could release us into a vivid world that seems like heaven. For all we know, heaven could be inside our own minds.

That's what is so trippy, to me. We have no idea what our brain's going to do when we die. Will it do anything, and if so, how long will it last before the screen goes totally blank?

It's actually possible to take a synthesized version of the chemical your brain is thought to secrete prior to death. My friend took it and said he saw pearly white gates. He said it was 20 minutes that felt like about 8 hours.

Dimethyltryptamine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[jsarno]

Well, am I afraid to die, no. Am I ready to die, absolutely not. I have not acheived enough to be considered a successful life. I firmly believe that there is a heaven, therefore I am not afraid of going to a better place.

The ignorance of death is unsettling though. Whatever our endevours, we know where we're going and where we've been (for the most part), in death, we don't have ANY clue. Will I be there with my dogs? Will my friends be there? Will it be a heaven for everyone, or will it be individualized for me? Will I still enjoy the simpler things in life, like watching the Skins beat the Cowboys, or will it be an entirely different life? It is natural to fear what you do not know. I have worked on myself to not fear it, but be more accepting. No matter what, we all have 1 thing in common, we will all die. It's a part of life. I accept this fact...I had 17 friends die in between my junior and senior year in high school. If I had to guess, I'd say I've been to about 40-50 funerals in my life. This helps me to understand death better, and I beleive that life tries to shelter you from death. It's GOING to happen. Sometimes it's not fair...in fact, a lot of times it's not fair. That's why you live life to the fullest when you can. I refuse to be 60 years old and look back and say "I wish I...." This is why I vacation someplace I have NEVER been at least once a year. Last year we went to St. Thomas / Nassau Bahamas / St. Maarten, we went to Cozumel / GeorgeTown Grand Cayman / Jamaica / and Labadee this year, and next year, we're going to Hawaii. I've been to all but 9 states, and I am determined to go to all 50 before I die, and visit as many countries as possible (I've only visited 9 at this point). I don't want to have any regrets. I've tried all sorts of things...stupid or not. I ride motorcycles, I raced ATV's, I've bungee jumped, I have sky dived, I have swam with Dolphins, I have swam and fed sting rays, I have swam with wild giant turtles, I have tamed class 4 rapids, I have climbed mountains, I have skiied where no man should have, I have braved a hurricane (Ok, it was dumb, but I got stuck in hurricane Charley in N. Fort Myers), I have been at baseball's biggest parade (2004 red sox world series championship parade), I have gotten alcohol poisoning (that hurt), I have broken approximately 50 bones in my life, I have driven a vehicle to 175MPH, I have ice skated in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico, and I have loved with all my heart and with no safety net. I purposely live life with no regrets, and if I die trying something, at least I tried it. Life is too short to live in fear, life is meant to be lived.
Sorry to ramble...point is, we live our lives trying not to get hurt, or in some sort of fear in the hopes that we will live a year longer. Well, I'd rather try everything I could, and live life and miss out on 5 years of life than to live a boring meaningless life. I don't fear death, cause there is nothing to fear. I love this expression "the only thing to fear is fear itself". It's so true.

[KLHJ2]

Originally Posted by jsarno

Well, am I afraid to die, no. Am I ready to die, absolutely not. I have not acheived enough to be considered a successful life. I firmly believe that there is a heaven, therefore I am not afraid of going to a better place.

The ignorance of death is unsettling though. Whatever our endevours, we know where we're going and where we've been (for the most part), in death, we don't have ANY clue. Will I be there with my dogs? Will my friends be there? Will it be a heaven for everyone, or will it be individualized for me? Will I still enjoy the simpler things in life, like watching the Skins beat the Cowboys, or will it be an entirely different life? It is natural to fear what you do not know. I have worked on myself to not fear it, but be more accepting. No matter what, we all have 1 thing in common, we will all die. It's a part of life. I accept this fact...I had 17 friends die in between my junior and senior year in high school. If I had to guess, I'd say I've been to about 40-50 funerals in my life. This helps me to understand death better, and I beleive that life tries to shelter you from death. It's GOING to happen. Sometimes it's not fair...in fact, a lot of times it's not fair. That's why you live life to the fullest when you can. I refuse to be 60 years old and look back and say "I wish I...." This is why I vacation someplace I have NEVER been at least once a year. Last year we went to St. Thomas / Nassau Bahamas / St. Maarten, we went to Cozumel / GeorgeTown Grand Cayman / Jamaica / and Labadee this year, and next year, we're going to Hawaii. I've been to all but 9 states, and I am determined to go to all 50 before I die, and visit as many countries as possible (I've only visited 9 at this point). I don't want to have any regrets. I've tried all sorts of things...stupid or not. I ride motorcycles, I raced ATV's, I've bungee jumped, I have sky dived, I have swam with Dolphins, I have swam and fed sting rays, I have swam with wild giant turtles, I have tamed class 4 rapids, I have climbed mountains, I have skiied where no man should have, I have braved a hurricane (Ok, it was dumb, but I got stuck in hurricane Charley in N. Fort Myers), I have been at baseball's biggest parade (2004 red sox world series championship parade), I have gotten alcohol poisoning (that hurt), I have broken approximately 50 bones in my life, I have driven a vehicle to 175MPH, I have ice skated in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico, and I have loved with all my heart and with no safety net. I purposely live life with no regrets, and if I die trying something, at least I tried it. Life is too short to live in fear, life is meant to be lived.
Sorry to ramble...point is, we live our lives trying not to get hurt, or in some sort of fear in the hopes that we will live a year longer. Well, I'd rather try everything I could, and live life and miss out on 5 years of life than to live a boring meaningless life. I don't fear death, cause there is nothing to fear. I love this expression "the only thing to fear is fear itself". It's so true.

I share your Outlook on life, I just wasn't going to write it like you did. Good Post.

[jsarno]

Originally Posted by angryssg

I share your Outlook on life, I just wasn't going to write it like you did. Good Post.

Thanks...I know it was long winded, but I feel too many people are content to man the sidelines. Not me!

[ArtMonkDrillz]

Originally Posted by love them hogs

On a related note, how do you guys feel about viewings?Personally I dont want everyones last image of me to be my body in a casket.Everytime I think of the people I have lost in my life,no matter what memory I recall of them, the image of them dead in thier casket inevitably comes.I just dont want to be remembered like that.

I HATE them. I would hate to have a bunch of people gawking at my corpse, with that stage makeup on.
That's one part of the grieving process that I don't really understand.

[Sammy Baugh Fan]

My answer is simple and to be expected if'n you have read many of my posts.

I'm not afraid to die. I've looked it right in the face once already and didn't blink. I have Faith in Jesus Christ and after I die I will get to worship Him forever.

Jesus...Not just for Sundays anymore!
peace
<><

[Sammy Baugh Fan]

On the note on Viewings remember last year or so when the Steeler Fan died and had them set him up in his lounge chair with his jersey on and a remote in his hand. lol That's pretty cool.

No viewing for me. Cremate me and give each of my good friends a Dime Bag of me. Trust me...I'm good chit. lol

peace

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by jsarno

Well, am I afraid to die, no. Am I ready to die, absolutely not. I have not acheived enough to be considered a successful life. I firmly believe that there is a heaven, therefore I am not afraid of going to a better place.

The ignorance of death is unsettling though. Whatever our endevours, we know where we're going and where we've been (for the most part), in death, we don't have ANY clue. Will I be there with my dogs? Will my friends be there? Will it be a heaven for everyone, or will it be individualized for me? Will I still enjoy the simpler things in life, like watching the Skins beat the Cowboys, or will it be an entirely different life? It is natural to fear what you do not know. I have worked on myself to not fear it, but be more accepting. No matter what, we all have 1 thing in common, we will all die. It's a part of life. I accept this fact...I had 17 friends die in between my junior and senior year in high school. If I had to guess, I'd say I've been to about 40-50 funerals in my life. This helps me to understand death better, and I beleive that life tries to shelter you from death. It's GOING to happen. Sometimes it's not fair...in fact, a lot of times it's not fair. That's why you live life to the fullest when you can. I refuse to be 60 years old and look back and say "I wish I...." This is why I vacation someplace I have NEVER been at least once a year. Last year we went to St. Thomas / Nassau Bahamas / St. Maarten, we went to Cozumel / GeorgeTown Grand Cayman / Jamaica / and Labadee this year, and next year, we're going to Hawaii. I've been to all but 9 states, and I am determined to go to all 50 before I die, and visit as many countries as possible (I've only visited 9 at this point). I don't want to have any regrets. I've tried all sorts of things...stupid or not. I ride motorcycles, I raced ATV's, I've bungee jumped, I have sky dived, I have swam with Dolphins, I have swam and fed sting rays, I have swam with wild giant turtles, I have tamed class 4 rapids, I have climbed mountains, I have skiied where no man should have, I have braved a hurricane (Ok, it was dumb, but I got stuck in hurricane Charley in N. Fort Myers), I have been at baseball's biggest parade (2004 red sox world series championship parade), I have gotten alcohol poisoning (that hurt), I have broken approximately 50 bones in my life, I have driven a vehicle to 175MPH, I have ice skated in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico, and I have loved with all my heart and with no safety net. I purposely live life with no regrets, and if I die trying something, at least I tried it. Life is too short to live in fear, life is meant to be lived.
Sorry to ramble...point is, we live our lives trying not to get hurt, or in some sort of fear in the hopes that we will live a year longer. Well, I'd rather try everything I could, and live life and miss out on 5 years of life than to live a boring meaningless life. I don't fear death, cause there is nothing to fear. I love this expression "the only thing to fear is fear itself". It's so true.

I like the outlook on life here. Gotta make sure you take time each day for yourself.

For some, living life means traveling. For others, it's playing sports. And for others, it's simply taking the time to spend around family and friends. You don't have to be a risk taker or a bungee jumper to live life to the fullest. If you like bungee jumping, by all means, go do it and live your life. But if you like simply making sure you're sitting down to dinner with your family and not working 12 hours a day, then by all means do that.

I think it would be really hard to die knowing that you spent way too much time working, and not enough time doing the things you love, whatever they may be. To me, being on the "sidelines" means working way too much.

[MTK]

Originally Posted by djnemo65

It's actually possible to take a synthesized version of the chemical your brain is thought to secrete prior to death. My friend took it and said he saw pearly white gates. He said it was 20 minutes that felt like about 8 hours.

Dimethyltryptamine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

damn that stuff sounds like no joke