What happens if we find out when and how we die

We will all die. Each of us, everyone we know, who is dear to us - there will be no exceptions. Unlike animals, a person realizes and accepts the fact of the finiteness of his life path, but no one knows when and under what conditions his heart will stop. And yet, what happens if we are told the exact date of our death?

Фото: Depositphotos

Some psychologists believe that the thought of a future death sooner or later is constantly active in our brain and determines our actions, for example, forcing us to attend church, eat right or go to the gym, motivating to become parents, write books or create businesses, writes Air force.

Yes, it is impossible to know the date of your death, but if we consider such a scenario, even hypothetically, it will shed light on life motivation - both our own and the society in which we live. And perhaps it will help us understand how best to spend the limited time that was given to us to live on Earth.

How does death affect our behavior?

In the 1980s, psychologists were interested in how we cope with the anxiety and fear that comes with the realization that we are “nothing more than a breathing, relieving, self-aware piece of meat who could die at any moment,” as one day formulated by Sheldon Solomon, professor of psychology at New York's Skidmore College. In more than 1000 experiments, researchers found that the more often we are reminded of the inevitability of death, the more strongly we adhere to fundamental cultural traditions, trying to strengthen our sense of self-worth.

Even the slightest hint (such as when the word “death” appears on a computer screen for just 42,8 milliseconds or when you talk to someone outside a funeral home) is enough to influence our behavior. And what are the changes?

• When we are reminded of death, we tend to treat more kindly those who are similar to us - both in appearance, and in political and religious views, and in place of residence.
• To the same people who do not fall in the number of close to us, we begin to treat more scornfully, even aggressively.
• We take our loved one more seriously if he shares our views on the world.
• And we are more inclined to vote for a decisive and charismatic leader who promises to instill fear in strangers.

At the same time, thoughts about death can make us behave more nihilistically, drink heavily, smoke heavily, overeat, buy unnecessary things and do not care about environmental protection. Well, what if everyone knows the exact date and cause of their death? It is likely that society will become even more racist, xenophobic, aggressive, militant, damaging to the environment - in short, damaging to itself.

The difference in the perception of death

Society, having learned exactly when each of its members will die, can either go down the path of self-destruction, or decide to die gracefully. How do we react to this knowledge as an individual? This will depend on the nature and specific circumstances of personal death - a major event that we cannot avoid.

“The more neurotic and anxious you are, the more preoccupied you will be with your impending death and unable to focus on making necessary changes in your life,” says Laura Blackie, associate professor of psychology at the University of Nottingham. “But on the other hand, if you are told that you will die peacefully in your sleep at 90, it is quite possible that this will not affect your behavior in any way.”

Patients of the palliative care center, says Voedtner, often go through two phases. First, they question every detail of their diagnosis, asking the doctor if it’s true that death is inevitable or you can still fight. Then they reflect on how best to use the time they have left. And here the majority falls into one of two categories: either decides to give all the energy and strength to combat the disease, or makes a choice in favor of thinking about the life they have lived and spends as much time as possible with their loved ones and doing activities that make a person happier.

Similar processes are likely to occur in the head of each of us, if we know for sure the day of our death.

“Even if you know you have another 60 years, sooner or later you have a couple of years, a couple of days, a couple of hours left,” Feudtner emphasizes. “And when the clock starts counting in close proximity to that very date, depriving us of peace of mind, I think people will behave in the same way [as hospice patients].”

Фото: Depositphotos

Someone who knows they will drown is likely to practice swimming hard. Those who know they will die in a car accident will avoid traveling in a car at all costs. But at the same time, there will be others who will choose a different behavior - to try to cheat their death and end their life in their own way. Those who take the path of accepting a “death sentence” may also react differently. Someone will experience a surge of energy and will try to spend the remaining years (or days) with maximum benefit, conquering new heights in science and creativity, which, quite possibly, they would not have been able to achieve otherwise.

However, not everyone’s knowledge of the day of death will awaken the best feelings and creative potential. Many will simply cut ties with society altogether—and not necessarily because they are lazy. They will simply be consumed by the feeling of the meaninglessness of everything. As Caitlin Doughty, founder of the Order of the Good Death, a death acceptance society, once said, “Would you be writing this article if you knew you were going to die in June?” (I think no).

“If death cannot be postponed anyway, why bother yourself. I'm not going to eat organic anymore, I'm going to drink regular Coke instead of diet Coke. Maybe I'll try drugs. And in general, I will gorge myself on cakes all day long,” says Doughty.

However, it is most likely that most people will alternate weeks of nihilism and vice with weeks of work for the good of society. “One week you sit at home, nibble on pack after pack of crackers and stay glued to the TV screen. And another week you distribute free soup to the homeless as a volunteer,” Solomon comments.

Will new cults emerge?

Whatever country we are in, our daily lives would change at their very core if we all knew when and how we died. Relationships between people will be seriously affected. For many it will become necessary to find a partner whose date of death is close to his own. Marital mobile applications will be added for this special filter.

“One of the things that people tend to fear about death is not their own demise, but the loss of those they love,” Doughty says. “Why should I marry someone who will die at 40 when I die at 89?”

If it is possible to know the date of death already at the fetal stage, then some parents will choose to have an abortion if it turns out that their child will die at a young age - simply to avoid the tragic loss of a beloved son or daughter. And someone, having learned that their life will be short, decides not to have children at all. Or, on the contrary, have as many children as possible, and the sooner, the better.

New laws will have to be adopted and new norms introduced. According to Rose Eveleth, creator and producer of the Flash Forward podcast, date of death privacy laws may need to be passed to prevent employers from discriminating against workers on this basis. Politicians may have to disclose the date of their death before running in elections. “Agree, this makes sense, otherwise it may happen that the elected president dies three days after the inauguration,” Eveleth notes.

When the big day arrives, the date of the prophesied death, someone may throw a big party or hold an elaborate event - as some of those who have obtained permission for euthanasia are now doing.

And someone who is destined to die under tragic circumstances may prefer that none of his close ones be present. Eveleta believes that there will be such creative individuals who use their day of death for artistic or propaganda purposes, having organized a whole performance with the participation of those who are destined to die that day. In general, knowing when and how we die will radically change our lives.

“Human civilization has evolved around the idea of ​​death,” Doughty points out. “I think that knowing exactly the date of departure will completely destroy the current way of life.”

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