Asphyxiation

Category: Illness or disabilities

Type

Involuntary

Introduction and description

“Asphyxia or asphyxiation (from Greek "without, "heartbeat") is a condition of severely deficient supply of oxygen to the body that arises from being unable to breathe normally. An example of asphyxia is choking. Asphyxia causes generalized hypoxia, which primarily affects the tissues and organs”.

Hypoxia is a pathological condition in which the body as a whole (generalized hypoxia) or a region of the body (tissue hypoxia) is deprived of adequate oxygen supply.  In this section I have grouped a number of ways in which one can be asphyxiated.  All these ‘accidents’ can produce hypoxia.  And all can result in hallucinations and other spiritual experiences – including out of body states. 

• Suffocation – from gases, for example, those released by a volcano or by chemical processes or by volatile solvents.  It is possible, for example,  to suffer asphyxiation by entering a low oxygen atmosphere or an inert atmosphere, such as in a food oil tank that has a covering blanket of nitrogen or argon to shield the oil from atmospheric oxygen 
• Smothering  - the mechanical obstruction of the flow of air from the environment into the mouth and/or nostrils, for instance, by covering the mouth and nose with a hand, pillow, or a plastic bag 
• Carbon monoxide poisoning
• Strangulation and light strangulation
• Smoke inhalation - accidental or deliberate including the smoke produced by smudge sticks
• Overlay -  in which an adult accidentally rolls over an infant during co-sleeping, an accident that often goes unnoticed and is mistakenly thought to be sudden infant death syndrome
• Compressive asphyxia - is also a for m of asphyxia
• The [so called] Fainting Game is a form of asphyxia
• Drowning is a form of asphyxiation
• Steam inhalation is a form of asphyxia
• Being buried alive -  cave-ins and other forms of being buried alive, when for example an individual is buried in sand or grain 
• Being hanged
• Choking – Physical obstruction of the airway by a foreign body.

• Erotic asphyxiation  - is the intentional restriction of oxygen to the brain for sexual arousal. But it can unintentionally produce hallucinations and other interesting effects. Colloquially, a person engaging in the activity is sometimes called a gasper.  Psychiatrists consider it a disorder "because it has the potential for lethality or serious injury."  The practice was documented as far back as 1600s and was used as a treatment for erectile dysfunction.  The practice of erotic asphyxiation has resulted in a significant number of accidental deaths. “Estimates of the mortality rate range of autoerotic asphyxia are between 250 to 1000 deaths per year in the United States.” Cases have also been reported in Scandinavia and in Germany
• Winding and chest compression

To a lesser extent the following also work in part through asphyxiation, although it is the seeping of the gases past the blood brain barrier and into the various organs of the brain that are principally at work here:

• Inhaling nitrous oxide
• Inhaling volatiles and gases

 There are illnesses and diseases that also produce forms of asphyxiation, one of these is

• Croup

Background

Asphyxiation physically causes at the time, or afterwards 

• Nausea and Vomiting
• Involuntary pooing and weeing – shitting yourself
• Hyperventilation - to restore oxygen supply and subsequent induced panic attack
• Lethargy  - and involuntary movement of the hands or feet, twitching
• Shock  - you may go very cold
• Hypotension  - together with irregular Heart Rhythm and Tachycardia . 
• Brain cell death  - leading to permanent loss of neurological function ranging from difficulty in concentration or loss of short term memory capacity through severe, lifelong mental disability
• Incidental, or indirect, injuries may arise from falling or uncontrolled movements. Such injuries may include concussion, bone fractures, tongue biting and hemorrhaging of the eye.

And maybe unconsciousness and death.  There is another nasty side effect from pressing on the arteries.   A message is also sent via the vagus nerve to the main pacemaker of the heart to decrease the rate and volume of the heartbeat.  This is why you get the tachycardia and arrhythmia.   In some cases there is evidence that this may escalate into asystole, a form of cardiac arrest that is difficult to treat.

Asphyxiation usually generates floods of endorphins, because it is classified as a trauma and the body reacts to trauma by the release of endorphins, people occasionally experience a perverse form of pleasure – which is not a spiritual experience incidentally it is just pleasure. Dying happy.

When any form of real trauma – which asphyxiation is – affects us, not only are endorphins released, but our parasympathetic nervous system takes over and everything suddenly relaxes.  Normally we ‘fight or flight’ when danger is apparent, but once the will recognises there is no hope of escape it is kind to us and sends us peace and relaxation before we die.  The parasympathetic nervous system relaxes all our muscles reducing the heart rate, dilating blood vessels, stimulating our urinary system and intestines – which is why people who think they may die are literally ‘shit scared’.

And the muscles of the penis are also relaxed – which means we are likely to get [if we are male] an enormous erection.  Normally the penis is held in place by contraction of muscles, once we relax, we get an erection.

This is why men who are executed by hanging have an erection – bizarre though it may sound.  This effect was noted way back in the 17^th century when observers at public hangings noticed this [well who wouldn’t] – the erection sometimes remaining after death.  It was given the rather obvious name of a ‘death erection’.  The ‘hanging hard –on’ might have been more catchy.  Occasionally the poor victims even ejaculated when being hanged, again a result of muscle relaxation – the prostrate amongst other organs all contributing.

How it works

It may be helpful now to refer to the Model of the Mind and to have read the generic description of How spiritual experience works.

During asphyxiation we are essentially dying and  because we are ‘dying’  - dying for those who have not cottoned on to this, is regarded by the body as a threat [sorry cynicism crept in here]  - the body reverts to only essential functions and much of our  reasoning and memory are not essential functions.  Thus these two functions are actually suppressed. 

What takes the place of these functions is an overwhelming input of messages from the sensory systems – all of them – that says HELP HELP HELP – we are being deprived of oxygen – all of us, we are dying DO SOMETHING. 

But the Will, is unable to do something – it has no learnt function with which to counter the Threat and it is struggling all the time to ensure the Autonomic systems keep going.

Eventually the Will exhausted by the battle, gives in and the Composer takes over and we have our spiritual experience – which may happen just shortly before we die!

Related observations

Hallucination

• A case of anaphylaxis to peppermint, statins, aspirin and gastroesophageal reflux drugs 012294
• Accidental Hanging 000070
• Face Visualiser 000069

Wisdom, Inspiration, Divine love & Bliss

• Choking on sugar 000068
• Never caught the attacker 005227
• Rabbi Alon Anava - Is there life after death? Is God real? Jewish NDE (Near Death Experience) 025023

Out of time

Near death, Out of time, Out of body, Rebirth

• Asphyxiation 1 000066
• Child tortured by wicked father 005235
• Choking on sugar 000068
• Dr M Morse - From Closer to the Light - Egyptian rebirth reconstruction 000103
• German army lieutenant goes out of body as a result of the breathing of poisonous gases with the onset of asphyxia 027943
• Joseph Costa - Di là della Vita (Beyond Life) 027939
• Nearly killed during an episode of child abuse 021171
• Never caught the attacker 005227
• Out of Body by Choking 000067
• Rabbi Alon Anava - Is there life after death? Is God real? Jewish NDE (Near Death Experience) 025023
• Reeve, Christopher – His out of body experience 023440
• The tunnel and the light in the NDE 11 023022
• Tikal - Mayan - North Acropolis Tomb 011709
• Watson, Lyall - On the out of body experience 011402

In time

Synaesthesia, Pure or enhanced perception, Inter composer communication, Vision, Dream, Perception recall, Exploring group perception

• Cayce, Edgar - Choking from a button in her windpipe 004245
• Chest compression 000071
• German army lieutenant goes out of body as a result of the breathing of poisonous gases with the onset of asphyxia 027943
• Joseph Costa - Di là della Vita (Beyond Life) 027939
• Nearly killed during an episode of child abuse 021171
• Out of Body by Choking 000067
• Rabbi Alon Anava - Is there life after death? Is God real? Jewish NDE (Near Death Experience) 025023

Prophecy

• Never caught the attacker 005227

Dying

• A case of anaphylaxis to peppermint, statins, aspirin and gastroesophageal reflux drugs 012294

Environmental Influence

• Hack Tuke, Daniel – Sickness - Asphyxiation induced by powerful emotions – grief 026085
• The Power of the Soul over the Body - Dr. Moore - Dies from Sympathetic action 026051
• Tikal - Mayan - North Acropolis Tomb 011709