Not to get morbid here, but there is something I have wondered for some time now. I suppose medical examiners (i.e., those people who do autopsies) have to overcome any natural emotional reaction they first have to seeing dead bodies, especially those who have died under unfortunate circumstances. But how do repress the urge to vomit from the smell? The urge to vomit is involuntary after all–isn’t it?
As I said, it is not my intention to get morbid here. But have always wondered this.
Masks may help for some professions. For others, I imagine it’s a matter of time and practice. Call it trial-and-vomit.
I don’t get sick when I see blood or anything, and I’ve had my share of nasty experiences (cutting my hand open and whatnot) but I think we’ve all seen some of those pics from those nasty websites or whatever… and no matter how tough you think you are. I know for a fact that if I saw that IRL I would vomit. I would imagine that some people just don’t have that reaction to those type of sights. As for the smells, I’m sure they wear protective masks that help a lot with that… perhaps they do if it gets really really bad? Practice makes closer to perfect (since you can’t be perfect)
Some novels I have read suggest that they rub some camphor ointment right under their nose to help the smell, but that does little for the visual onslaught. Hope that helps a bit.
Quasi
I interned at the North Carolina Medical Examiner’s Office, and I can say without a doubt that camphor (or another strong-smelling oil) underneath the nose is rarely used. The smell is bad, yes, but often the most disgusting thing about the job is the taste-- of, well, the powdered bone drifting through the air when you have to open the body. I can only speak for myself and the people I worked with, but the majority of us simply got used to the horrible sensations. The first month is “hell month,” when you acclimate and get sick a lot. After that, you can’t smell much of anything anymore.
Sorry, didn’t mean to be so gross.
By the way-- dabbing a bit of smelly stuff underneath the nose seems to be popular only for medical students who are unused to the smell (Vicks Vaporub was often used) and tv shows.
I work in a hospital and get to smell some pretty rancid stuff every shift. The answer is simple: you get used to it. The first time I had to clean up someone that had shat themselves I kept gagging (not a pleasant experience for either of us, they were a bit embarrassed) and came very close to dashing to the toilet to spew. Now, roughly 500 shit-mops later, it’d take pretty foul crap to turn my stomach.
The only thing that still gets me (and that’s only because I haven’t seen a enough of it to get used to) is chronic lung problems. Draining the pus out of someone’s rattling chest through their throat still gets my lunch moving in the wrong direction.
Incidentally, there aren’t any odour eating protective masks yet, though we go through a lot of air freshener!
hey… HEY… HEY! You’re talking about my job here, my friend! “Lung-Butter” is my livelihood! :D:D
Just kidding, but you know, I hear the same thing from so many of my nurse-friends: They’ll work all day on the back end of things, but when it comes to suctioning a patient they’d rather be elsewhere. When I have to suction for a sputum specimen, I always make it a point to show them the plastic vial and tell them it’s the “new Sputum Lite”. Great taste, less filling!
:ducks and runs:
Q
The lab right next door to the one I work in deals with nothing but fecal samples all day long. Poor bastards. But, yeah, it doesn’t take too long to get used to anything like that.
I’m a forensic scientist and one of my coworkers used to work for a coroner’s office. From his and others’ accounts, most M.E.s ban things like vaporub because it masks important smells. Smells, no matter how disgusting, can be very important in the investigation of a crime, and it’s bad form to ignore evidence just because it’s disgusting.
As for the smell, the olfactory receptors (the things in your nose that enable you to smell) are “overwhelmed” fairly quickly, so after a while you don’t notice a smell (same reason sewer workers don’t regularly vomit on the job).
Okay, I’m rather morbid and always been fascinated by forensics and mortuary sciences.
Is is the smell of formaldehyde? That’s the only scent I have associated with cutting open dead things (animals). Yet, I can’t imagine any kind of preservation goes on in the actual autopsy room.
I think the average mom has dealt with some pretty nasty stuff.
I´ve heard that smilling cancells the gag reflex, is this true?
Not usually. Autopsies are usually done on people that have only died recently. I believe the OP is referring to the smell of decomposing flesh. However, formaldehyde does have a smell of its own and that unique smell can stay on your clothes for a long, long time.
Having been in the operating room a few times during surgeries, I can say the smell of burning flesh (from the cauterizer) is enough to make most first timers vomit or at least have to go outside to get fresh air. I almost fainted because the smell was so bad during my first time smelling it, and when I got my bearings again the surgeon said everyone gets used to it pretty quickly. Same thing with the “visual” gross stuff. You just learn to deal with it.