The process of dying can take days, weeks or months. Many individuals will show dramatic changes in their breathing and skin color, and the appetite will be suppressed. Some people will go through many changes while others will go through only a few.
Mental Changes
Some people go through significant mental changes. Disorientation may become the rule in someone who has been clear-minded throughout his life. The individual may sleep most of the time and when he wakes up there are very few words spoken and little acknowledgement of the loved ones or caregivers around him. Individuals who do say anything may be quite agitated and angry for no apparent reason.
Body Changes
Some of the physical symptoms that occur in the days before death include a lower blood pressure, a lower body temperature, irregular pulse, increased perspiration and skin color changes. Skin color may appear purplish, especially near the fingers and toes, and the color can work its way up the extremities. The individual may stop eating or eat just a couple of bites. Interest in nourishment is non-existent.
Breathing
As death comes closer, the individual's breathing pattern will change. Instead of the normal in-and-out pattern of breathing, the individual may take three or four rapid breaths and then not take any breaths at all for a few seconds. This type of breathing is called "Cheyne-Stokes" breathing, named after the doctor who discovered this pattern. This type of breathing will continue for several minutes or hours and can be accompanied by loud rattling in the breathing passage due to congestion caused by fluid.
