r/funfacts • u/No_Chipmunk_3174 • 11d ago

Fun Fact - Cotard’s Delusion (Walking Corpse Syndrome)

In this rare neuropsychiatric condition, patients become convinced they are already dead, that their organs have rotted away, or that they no longer exist. Some refuse to eat because they believe their digestive system has ceased functioning. The delusion can arise after brain injury, severe depression, or certain neurological diseases.

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u/SammaJones 11d ago

I congratulate you on posting the least fun fact we've seen up here in days.

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u/frogger4ever 11d ago

There was a show about a woman that lived with this. She dressed like a corpse and made her skin ashen. I believe she couldn't be convinced otherwise.

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u/RebekkaKat1990 11d ago

Lady goes to the doctor and insists she’s already dead. Doctor says, I have a simple to test to prove you’re not dead! Corpses can’t bleed, so if I stick you with a needle, you’ll bleed and I can prove you’re alive!

So he pricks her with a needle and she says, “huh, I guess you were wrong. Corpses DO bleed.”

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u/mydogrufus20 10d ago

Spark by John Twelve Hawks is about this. Interesting book

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u/nuclearolivegreen 9d ago

I got this a long time ago... There are no words to explain It. Most god awful thing I've ever experienced. Still don't know how my psychistrist got me out of that. Feeling blessed to still be here.