Term paper on death and dyingLife support is a controversial and sensitive subject. When a person is on life support, their brain is completely unconscious. Although their brains are no longer in active, natural function, a survival machine keeps their organs alive and functional. Life support is administered in an emergency. This helps keep a person's body alive, even though their brain is dead. Brain death is an irreversible condition, and doctors perform many tests before determining this diagnosis. A person dies in two ways: cardiopulmonary death or brain death. Both are formal, legal definitions of death. Cardiopulmonary death is the irreversible loss of function of the heart and lungs. People who have suffered irreparable brain damage (such as traumatic brain injury or stroke) are diagnosed with brain death, which is "the irreversible cessation of all brain functions," according to the Health System. University of Miami. Many may wonder how to diagnose someone. like “brain death”? Well, it's very simple. The brainstem is the lowest part of the brain that is connected to the spinal cord. This part of the brain is responsible for most of the body's automatic functions that are essential for life. : breathing, heart rate, blood pressure and swallowing, Britain's National Health System said. The brainstem also ensures the exchange of information between the brain and the rest of the body, so it is essential for the functions of consciousness, knowledge and movement. There is no possibility of consciousness once the brainstem is permanently damaged, adding to the inability to breathe or maintain bodily functions, leading to the death of the individual, explains the NHS . When a person is brain dead, there is no blood flow. .... middle of paper ...... or someone to hold on to the infinite possibility that someone could "wake up" after being brain dead for so long. The scientific and medical world has progressed in a way that a normal person could understand. They perform specific tests that allow them to determine whether a person is completely brain dead or simply in a coma in which they have a chance of waking up. No one should depend on a machine to survive. Brain death can be a heartbreaking and very emotional topic to discuss with family and friends. It's understandable that some people can't understand the irreversible death of their loved one, or understand how their heart is still beating while their brain is unconscious, but dragging out their lives and tying their loved ones to a life support machine can seem quite selfish and neglectful. from them.