• Free_Opinions@feddit.uk
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    3 days ago

    I don’t know about pleasant but I imagine breathing in nitrogen is among the least unpleasant ways to go. You first pass out and then suffocate while you’re unconscious. I believe that carbon monoxide acts in a similar fashion.

    • steeznson@lemmy.world
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      2 days ago

      The first nitrogen execution in the USA did not go well. And arguably the first nitrogen suicide pod they tried in Switzerland went even worse.

      • kiwifoxtrot@lemmy.world
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        2 days ago

        If you look up industrial accidents with nitrogen, it isn’t at all like the accounts of that execution. It takes one breath of pure nitrogen and you’ll just fade out. There have been plenty of accidents where someone connected a respirator up to nitrogen and put it on, and they passed out immediately and didn’t even know to take it off. If you are trying to hold your breath for as long as you can, it is very painful as the buildup of CO2 in the body is what triggers us to breathe.

        • Free_Opinions@feddit.uk
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          1 day ago

          Yeah, that’s the thing with gasses like nitrogen, helium or carbon monoxide: it feels like breathing air except since it contains no oxygen you’ll just go from feeling light headed to passing out and suffocating. CO2 would otherwise work the same way except that inhaling pure CO2 instantly causes panic and the sense of suffocation.

          Infact, I’ve heard of people who euthanize pet rodents with CO2 and recommend others doing the same which is terrifyingly bad advice. That’s a fucking awful way to go. Just imagine being so ignorant and doing that to your pet. Makes me feel sick to even think about it.

    • JackbyDev@programming.dev
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      2 days ago

      No, I don’t think it does. Carbon monoxide is actively poisonous to you while Nitrogen just displaces Oxygen.

      Very relevant to all of these discussions is the fact that your body doesn’t give you a feeling of suffocation from a lack of oxygen but from an abundance of carbon dioxide. This is why if you exhale while holding your breath it provides some relief.

      • Free_Opinions@feddit.uk
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        1 day ago

        Carbon monoxide similarly replaces the oxygen in your red blood cells. There are even suicide tutorials online by using carbon monoxide as it’s a painless way to go.

        Also, this is not advice and it’s also potenttially lethal to the people coming to save you. Don’t do it and if you do, for the very least, leave a sign warning others about it.