What Is Paradoxical Undressing, And Why Is Everyone Talking About It?

In the unlikely event that you are stuck in extreme cold, you might experience what is known as Hypothermia. This is caused by prolonged exposure to chilling temperatures. What happens during this phenomenon according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is that your body begins to lose heat a lot faster than it can generate some. In case you are not able to find any source of heat, any lengthy exposure will lead to your body using up the stored energy. This will in return lead to lower body temperature. There are several effects hypothermia can have on your body but perhaps one of the most bizarre is paradoxical undressing. This refers to the strange behaviour where victims of extreme hypothermia begin to take their clothes off.

Why does this happen? Other than impacting your body temperature, hypothermia can also have an impact on your brain. This will leave you unable to think or move clearly. The Guardian explained that once the body loses heat, what occurs next is known as vasoconstriction. This refers to the blood vessels narrowing to divert blood away from the periphery of the body. Your body is now working to maintain the temperature at the core. When this happens for too long, the muscles needed to maintain the core temperature get tired. When they start to fail, the blood rushes to the extremities. This can result in what is similar to hot flashes. Soon enough you will begin feeling like your skin is becoming warmer. Feeling strangely hot coupled with mental confusion, you might start taking off layers of clothes.

It is easy to understand what will happen next. Soon enough, you will start falling unconscious. Eventually, whoever this happens to will die after losing all of their body heat.

LADbible explained there is another strange phenomenon that can occur between paradoxical undressing and death. It is known as terminal burrowing. This is similar to animals hibernating and burrowing away for the winter. For animals, this packed environment helps keep them warm. It minimizes heat loss from the body. That is not the case for humans.

Terminal burrowing occurs in the final stage of hypothermia. People who have been exposed to cold for too long seek out shelter. This can be under logs, leaves, and other foliage. Whatever they deem fit for being a shelter space. With no clothes on their body and buried in the cold, the person eventually passes away.