Julie McFadden, a California-based hospice nurse known as Nurse Julie on TikTok, has shared her observations on the three most frequent signs people exhibit in their last day. Drawing from her 16 years in palliative care, McFadden explains that these signs, while unsettling, are natural parts of the body shutting down and are not painful.
The first sign is the “death rattle,” a gurgling noise caused by saliva and mucus pooling in the throat due to the patient’s inability to swallow or cough. The second is changes in breathing patterns, including slow, irregular breaths or “agonal breathing,” where gasping occurs as a reflex without causing distress. The third is the “death stare,” where the patient’s eyes may be open but unresponsive, signaling a peaceful detachment from the environment even as hearing remains intact.
McFadden emphasizes that not everyone experiences these signs, and that understanding them can help families cope better during this difficult time.
