Is anyone here scared of going to a funeral?

Question

not a funeral funeral. but where you get to see the body of the person who has died and do prayers and stuff.

i used to love reading scary stories and watch things about mummies and stuff back when i was like 12ish. then i saw a picture of my dead great uncle when i was 13ish. it was a head shot of him in the casket. since that moment i feel like i wouldnt be able to just stand there and see a person dead. im scared i might have a panic attack or something. i just cant do it. i saw video footage of my grandpa's funeral and the open casket and everything and i just couldnt watch the whole thing. is this horrible of me? i wouldnt want to hurt the family of the person that passed away by not showing up with my family but i really feel like i cant.

have any of you gone through this? or feel the same way.

Answer 1

I've been to a funeral with an open casket--a great uncle. I wasn't scared; sort of looked like he was sleeping--didn't really look like him. You don't have to go view the body. I certainly hope no family member would try to get you to do that, as that is just cruel. Not everyone feels comfortable doing so; many would rather remember the departed as they were when they were alive, not dead. If you go to a funeral with an open casket, just stay far away from it, and try to sit with tall people in front of you to block the view. I know that maybe family is supposed to sit in the front, but gee, if you're uncomfortable, why should you? Funerals can make people act funny ("You should be up front, you should see the dead, you should give him/her a kiss!" etc.) but you have the right to stick to your own comfort level.

Answer 2

Though some funerals in churches are "open casket," the norm seems to be a viewing (with prayers and stuff) at the funeral home beforehand. This is more to give people a chance to visit with the family of the deceased than to be a "service." Many times the casket is placed in such a way that you only have to view the corpse if you want to. My first experience with this was also very scary at first, but when I finally went up to see my granddad, it was so obvious that he wasn't there! It was just a body made up to look like him (that's what I was thinking at 10 years old). Ever since, when I have to go to a viewing (or wake, as they are sometimes called), that's the attitude I take with me. The person I knew and cared about is truly beyond all bodily cares and pains.
Hope that helps???

Answer 3

Yes, i have gone through this, it was my grandpas funereal. When I first got there i wasn't as sad. But right when i saw him (it was an open casket) i just broke down knowing that he won't be back. It did hurt, i cried the whole time. But I believe one should show up for a loved one as a sign of respect. Although youngsters I don't think can handle it. Most of my cousins around 6 years and younger did not attend. It was the parents decision.

Answer 4

My heart goes out to you...My sister had her friends die and she cant stand funerals, the funeral home, or even the thought of funeral arrangements...One friend just died from at the time unknown cause..one had metabolic syndrome (death was pneumonia I think)...another got shot...
At dad's funeral she did ok because others were around.
She was not there for the arrangements or calling his death when he died.
If I were you I would make an effort when someone passed on that was close to you to do something special for the family.
Prayers

Answer 5

You can attend the funeral and not go up to the casket to see the person. It is not required for you to go up and view the body if you do not want to, or are not up to it. Some people just cannot do that and I would think that the deceased's family would understand. If not, that is their own problem, not yours.....at least you showed up to pay your respects to the deceased's family.

Answer 6

I never found funerals pleasant, there is always something upsetting about seeing a person once alive and well be reduced to a corpse. Death in a family can also remind everyone of their own inevitable death. The best thing you can do is to pray that the person will be in a better place.

Answer 7

I couldn't go to a funeral for years but I got over it. I saw my dead Grandpa when I was 3 and was traumatized. I can go now. It helped to be a nurse and wrap up dead people in shrouds. I got over the horror. It is just a part of life.

Answer 8

yah, I went to my moms friends 3 year olds funeral that used to live with us, he was like a brother to me, and well i was balling histarically, even worse than the mother and sister, and when i went up to the casket i think i got tears on him almost and i almost had a panic attack or maybe even had one because like i stopped breathing for like 6 seconds, so dont feel bad, many other people go through the same thing!

Answer 9

i'm continually afraid i will lose my composure and commence bawling uncontrollably each and every time I attend a funeral. i have executed that adequate situations for confident. even as i replaced right into a baby, funerals did not hardship me as a lot as they do now. I wasn't almost as senstitive to stuff like that as i'm now. perchance that's because at this kind of comfortable age, i replaced into proof against such thoughts, or did not understand what replaced into occurring. As we grow old, in the top (and all of us desire that's later) we are able to lose someone we care deeply about, and perchance the shortcoming of existence and funeral of a loved one will develop into harder to pass by ability of.

Answer 10

Funerals are to help the living grieve. not the dead. If you don't want to go and you don't think it would help you grieve then don't go. I'm sure the family will understand, especially if the rest of the family are going; they can explain your reasons, or you could explain them yourself-maybe in a phone call? It depends if you feel this would be appropriate or not.
There are other ways to remember the dead without having to see them. photos, friends memories, more importantly, your memories which are irreplacable.