do you die instantly at a hanging? What happens to you neck, body and brain?

Answer 1

I just saw a medical show about this. The doctor said that instantly the fall will break 2 vertibra in the neck thus causing paralysis from the neck down. The brain will slowly sufficate. For about 3 minutes time the victom will not feel any pain but will still have some consciousness. After increasing mental images, likely very intense dream-like state the mental ability blacks out. It will take an additional 10 minutes for the heart to stop.

It didn't sound like a person would suffer too much from a hanging. Although, I would think the mental stress leading up to the hanging would be intense!

Answer 2

Define instantly...

The answer is probably not whichever way you are hanged (slow or quick drop). Someone proved that even the gillotine isn't instant... cut off heads can mouth and blink for a few seconds. Anyway, 'death' isn't instant, it takes time for various bits to notice the body is dying. Intestines can go for minutes, nails are reputed to go on growing for quite a long time. Brains are complex and die fast... and the shock of the neck being broken probably puts the hanged person unconscious.

Ask yourself... why do they put a bag over the head? Is it so you can't see the hanged person mouthing 'Owww'?

Morbid subject really.

Answer 3

If you call walking down the hall knowing you are about to hang as being free of suffering........ The spinal cord is snapped immediately and a person does'nt feel anything. He is a scumbag and deserved to die for the things he did - but we couldn't fly in some lethal injection or something??? Hanging seems very third world - although there are a couple of states here that actually offer it as an option! Bizarre. I wonder if people actually chose that??

Answer 4

It depends if the hanging is done correctly or not. If it is, then the drop is long enough (but not too long) and the rope is positioned correctly, then the drop and jerk causes the spinal cord to be severed, resulting in a very quick, probably painless death (no survivors to tell tales...). If the hanging is done incorrectly, then the victim can end up slowly strangling/suffocating to death, which can last several painful minutes, until the person loses consciousness. If the drop is too far, there have been cases of decapitation.

Answer 5

As far as I know, yes. Your neck is snapped instantly...and if it's not you're unlucky, and you are basically suffocated or something like that from the rope being so tight. Not sure exactly what happens to your body or brain besides it all going limp and you're dead.. :)

Answer 6

There are various forms or hanging, depending on whether it is an execution or a suicide. For detailed information on the methods and results, look here

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanging

Answer 7

when you drop (you are dropped if they do it properly) it snaps your phrenic nerve which controls your diaphragm muscle... which controls your breathing, which causes you to die of suffocation from inability to breath.

your brain runs out of oxygen, your brain stops working you die.

your neck would be blimmen sore i reckon.

if your spinal cord snaps that would be a pretty instant death.

Answer 8

hanging coses brake your neck and you can't breath. not instantly kills you but it takes less that 1-2 minute

Answer 9

if it is done right it snaps your neck and u die instantly

Answer 10

depends if they drop you or pull you up, if they drop you then you'll die instantly but they other one you'll black out in a few secs