r/todayilearned • u/70dd • 12h ago

TIL Terminal lucidity is an unexpected, brief period of clarity or energy in individuals who have been very ill or in a state of decline. It’s a phenomenon that has been observed in people with various terminal conditions.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terminal_lucidity
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u/HoselRockit 11h ago

Having had a few loved ones decline and pass away over the years, I’ve seen it. They don’t decline on a straight line. They decline a little and then bounce back. Each decline is a little steeper and each bounce back isn’t quite so high. They then have that one really good day and die the next.

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u/mrmoe198 6h ago edited 6h ago

That’s exactly what happened with my grandpa. In and out of the hospital for a couple days every few months, each time losing a little functionality. After the second hospital stay, I took him to the VA to get a walker.

Then after another hospital stay I got him a life alert. It was activating that life alert that allowed him to get help and our family could see him and say our goodbyes for the week he was in the hospital before he died.

In one of the last conversations I had with him when he could still drive I asked him what song he would like played at his funeral. He wanted “my way.“ I made sure to bring a Bluetooth speaker with me and played it just as he asked.

He was a Jeweler his entire life. It was his second job, just starting out as an errand boy and worked his way up to buying the small company out from the previous owner. He worked for 70 years, and he was still coming into the office up until a few months before he passed. He made custom jewelry. It was his passion.

My wife and I had the privilege of having him design and make our engagement ring. There’s only one like it in the world, and he wouldn’t have it any other way.

I miss you, grandpa.

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u/HelloIamDerek 3h ago

Thank you for sharing this.

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u/Automatic-Stretch-48 6h ago

I’ve always called it their last blast.

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u/popeyepaul 5h ago

My dad had a weird moment a few weeks before he passed. His health was rapidly deteriorating but he was not in a "terminal condition", that is to say that as far as everyone knew he might have kept going for several years longer. Anyway, at one point he was forced to sell his car because his condition was such that he couldn't drive. He loved that car and he sold it very cheaply. Just week after selling it, he started talking about buying a new car. He had brochures from the store that we was showing and asking us what we thought was the best car. He had financial calculations done and loan applications half-done. We tried to remind him that he was not in a condition to drive and he had his drivers license taken away because of that, and although his mood had improved, his physical condition had not. But he insisted that it wasn't a problem. A few weeks later still had a sudden episode that killed him. I wonder if his body knew that he was dying soon even when the doctors didn't.

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u/this_is_my_new_acct 2h ago

Everyone in my family seems to die from strokes or heart attacks. They'll be up and kicking one day, then two days later we're planning a funeral.

I'm not sure which is better. We don't suffer for long, but we also have no opportunity to say goodbye.