Course of a dead body?

Question

Hi. I am curious what happens to a dead body a week, then a month, then, say, six months after death. I do not have a body in my basement, I swear, just writing a bittersweet story about someone reluctant to give up the corpse of a loved one. Could they do something simple, (sprinkle lye) that the average person could do and have access to? Could you "live" with that body for a few weeks or months without it driving you out of the house. Embalming not an option for this character, by the way. . . Thanks! meg

Answer 1

Well the bacteria starts going crazy in the intestines and the abdomen will bloat up and blow up. It will stink in no time then start to break down. Nobody could live with that. Maybe you have to get the body into the freezer just to make it real.

Answer 2

Wow! Sounds like quite a story. You have a strong imagination. Try looking up spices used by ancient egyptians. Or maybe, death and burial rituals of ancient societies, like maybe the greeks and romans. I have heard that mud and ashes can preserve bodies. I just saw a deal on t.v. where a colonial cemetary was accidentally dug up and some of the corpses were preseved by the mud that seeped into the coffins. There are certain minerals that can combine in the ground and with the body to make a "soap person". I saw that on a show about the world's oldest medical/science museum. Hope some of that helped. Please don't have any dead bodies stashed anywhere.

Answer 3

Rot, decay, stink, stench. Its really gross. Think of leaving 175 lbs. of meat lying around, how that would smell. Yuck. Worse than that, flies lay eggs in it and maggots eat it. The bacteria in the intestines are held in check by the body's immune system but once thats gone the bacteria multiply wildly and release gasses and the abdomen distends and often explodes. No, it is not a pretty picture at all.

Answer 4

I use to be a cop, and I can tell you, after a week or two, the body swells up like a balloon then pops, spraying the area with the nastiest gunk on the face of the planet, and you can't get rid of the smell.

Answer 5

fore ever if you kept it in the deep freeze.
or forever if you walled it up in a dry place and it would mummify
just around the room the smell would drive you outside with in the week(depending the climate and the temperature in the house) and the neighbours would be able to smell it soon after,
the smell of death is very distinct and powerfull .and drifts for a long distance.

Answer 6

are you a bit mental???? what on earth would posess you to write a book like that? I'm intrigued to know......not trying to be rude or anything.