Not to be morbid but over the past couple of weeks in the most inappropiate of moments I suddenly realise that me and my family are all going to die eventually in the future. Is there something wrong with me? No, I’m not depressed, but it just keeps making me realise that it’s going to happen.
Does evryone have this sort of period in there life or is it just an isolated incident.
personally i think its a good thing - we will all die, its inevitable. by accepting that this will eventually happen you realise that you need to make the most of the time that you have with people.
don’t fear the reaper… 
Montezuma I know exactly what you are talking about. I’m 26 and do not suffer from depression, etc. Although I’ve always realized I was mortal it really hit me about 10 months ago. My relatively young Mom (age 45) had a brain aneurysm. It really freaked me out, to see her in the hospital and to realize that she could have died, will die sometime, I will, we all will. For a while it really freaked me out. I was the opposite of suicidal - clinging to Life. I’d be sitting in a meeting and look around at the 30 other people in the room and think “We’re all going to die”. I finally talked to a wise friend and asked if he had ever felt the same way, he had. I’m finally not dwelling on it like I used to but it still pops up once in a while. For me the thing that has eased the fear is to not take things for granted or the people I love. I try to be a better person and not waste so much time. I started volunteering. YMMV but I made peace with the concept and decided not to squander valuable time. The hereafter still has me wondering but that’s another story altogether. Also, read Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom - that helped me some.
Yeah I was just the exact opposite to suicide aswell, and keep thinking that I will face death eventually. I sometimes, just before I go to sleep, realise I will pass away.
Going to sleep weirded me out too. But each morning that I wake up, I’m glad to find myself still here.
I’m not sure why more people don’t “get it” and act more kindly towards each other but I have figured my whole “I’m going to die!” phase is a wake up call to not waste time, to not be mean spirited and to not forget what an amazing fluke it is that I am even here to begin with.
How long have you been feeling this way? It took me serveal months to calm down about it.
several rather
A few months ago, a friend of mine killed herself. That was the first time in my life that I really understood mortality. I always knew that people die, but I always figured I’d die when I was eighty or something. She was eighteen. Now, I really am not afraid to die. I’m only a bit jumpy about any pain that may come with death and I’m terrified my life will end before I actually get to do something with it. My life is either a gift or accident, depending on the nature of God, and I don’t intend to waste it.
The first time I realized my parents would die, I was 14 and on my way to English class. I’d been so ignorant of the idea until then that I collapsed in the hall and cried. It was… odd.
I’m pretty comfortable in my mortality these days. It gets to me sometimes when I’m doing really small things; someday I won’t be able to cook, I won’t be able to watch TV, I won’t be able to kiss my mom, my nephews, my SO. And now, with motherhood in my very near future, I realize I could leave my child motherless, or even worse, lose a child myself.
But it’s okay. Death happens, and no one gets left out.
Well… My sig is oddly appropriate here, I think.
SLAINTE: I just started to feel this way since the end of September.
The older you get the more loved ones you lose, thats what sucks about life. As for realizing your own mortality, I think everyone goes through that. I have more to say on this, but I have stuff to do and time is always against us…
One of the things that makes you think about mortality is when you see the icons of your youth die, of age rather than self-destruction.
Although self abuse must surely have come into it, it still is a sobering thought that Richard Harris died last night.
Montezuma, you’ll sort it out in your own time.
For me it took a while and like you described, I would think “We’re gonna die” at the oddest moments, for no apparent reason. I know it’s weird (an a bit scary) to go through but after a while you won’t think of it on a regular basis. Try some of the tings I listed above; perhaps they will help you too.
Isn’t it funny how that thought can hit at such a random time? About four years ago (I was twenty or so), I was standing in the bathroom brushing my teeth and thought “someday I won’t be here to do this.” That thought clung to me the rest of the day as I performed all the mundane daily stuff, like attending class, cleaning the kitchen and grocery shopping. We all know intellectually that we’ll die some day, but it’s a different feeling when the idea actually hits home.
I guess I’ve always had a bit of a morbid streak anyway, but more and more I’ve become quietly acceptant of the fact that I could die at any time, despite my best efforts to stay alive.
In my twenties sometimes it would hit me suddenly and just take my breath away. It was just stark terror! Eventually it went away on its own. So did the fear of death. Oh, I’m not wild about the idea – life has been a real page-turner for me.
I used to be terrified of cemeteries. Now the graves of people I have loved are a comfort to me. Out-living all of my friends and heroes would be dreary.
I’ve been thinking this a lot lately. An aunt and an uncle from my mom’s side of the family, and my dad, have died in the past ten months.
Hope you don’t end up like me. I don’t pass a single day, sometimes not more than a few hours, without coming back to the fact of my eventual death. And I’ve been like that to one degree or another since I was about 10, counting off the years in my head.
Ideally, such thoughts should spur you to positive thoughts and actions, helping you live in the moment and do what is meaningful and important.
Ideally.
I remember my very 1st experience with death. I was 7 and my grandfather died. I remember my mother being very upset and crying a lot, when I asked my dad why she was so upset for so long. (At this point, I think it was only 2 days). When he said it was because her dad died and she would NEVER see him again, that’s when significance of what had really happened actually hit me. Of course, it wasn’t until much later when I started to think of that happening to me.
It is just so hard to grasp the PERMANENCE of it! Like trying to grasp the concept of infinity—you’ll go crazy if you keep trying!!
I think its good to think about it, so you’ll have an idea of what your feelings will be and how to deal with them in case you ever have to face it (terminal illness, etc). FWIW I do this myself on many occasions too. I find that it happens when I get frustrated with the direction my life is taking, then get pissed off that I only get to “do it all once.”(Life) So if you feel like you’re in a rut, and I’m just guessing, based on my experiences, focus on getting out of it. At the risk of sounding like excessive-psycho-babble—usually if I can do that, I feel more control over my life and less worried about the what if’s.
I’ve had rare, yet freakish, “We’re all going to die someday!” moments in the past year or so. They’ve gripped me out of nowhere. I’d lay (I’m usually in bed when I get a freak-out) there and realize that, yes, my parents are going to die someday. I’m going to die someday.
I think it’s 'cause my grandfather & great-aunt might both die at any time… It’s a paralyzing feeling when the thought hits, but it only lasts a few moments. Can’t let it control you, gotta live life while you have it.
So no, you aren’t alone, as I’m guessing you’ve gathered by now. And if it matters, I’m 23, soon to be 24, and have dealt with death somewhat in my life: I’ve known about ten people who’ve died - eight I knew very casually, two were my paternal grandparents. So that might colour my view.
Either way, there ya go; you are not alone.
Hmmmmmm…
I’m doing the exact same thing as most of you lately, and I can’t help but notice the high number of people who experience this in their twenties (same here). Is it maybe a natural product of coming out of your childhood/adolesence when you think that you’re immortal, and this is just snapping out of it? Just a thought.
But I have to ask- in addition to the realization that you’ll die, do you ever wonder when and how it’ll happen?