Processes After Death

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Process performed on the body after death In today’s society there are many misconceptions of what actually happens to the body after death; not only with embalming but also with how people are cremated. Not many people want to go into the funeral business in today’s society, people think that dead bodies are nasty but in all reality they are not they are somebody’s loved one and need to be treated with respect. Everybody is going to die at one point and time. There are different options after death, viewing then cremation, direct cremation, viewing with burial, direct burial without embalming, direct burial with embalming. The first thing that happens to the body after death is a removal which is either done by a funeral director or the medical examiner if there is a need for an autopsy. Next if there is no autopsy the family decides if their loved one is being viewed, directly cremated or directly buried. If the family decides on viewing then they are embalmed. Embalming involves a lot of steps, this does not just include draining of the blood. If the body has been dead long enough, approximately 4 hours rigamortis has set in, if so then the rigor should be broken by moving the joints. At this point the body is on the embalming table and is ready to be bathed. After bathing the mouth nose and eyes must be sterilized. Next the eye caps are inserted under the eyelids, this is to keep the eyes closed and from sinking. Now you are ready to close the mouth which can be quite tricky sometimes, if all goes well and the jaw bones are still strong then a tack is put in the top of the mouth and one in the bottom and then tied together. If the bones are not strong then you would suture the mouth closed, you would do this by getting a piece of ligature and a needle, tie a not at the end of the ligature go up throw the nose cavity and back down and then down throw

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