One Last Walk in the Park

First you begin to shiver. Your hands become numb and your breathing becomes quick and shallow. Goosebumps form in an attempt to create an insulating layer of air around your body. This takes place when your body temperature has decreased by only two to three degrees Farenheit.

When your body temperature falls to between 95F and 91F you begin to lose muscle coordination. It becomes difficult to walk steadily. The shivering becomes extreme. You start to become confused, and your breathing is labored. Your extremities...toes, fingers, ears...actually start to turn blue.

Once your body temperature falls below 90F, the shivering usually ceases. You no longer experience the cold. Your body is giving up. It will be difficult to speak, your brain malfunctions, you begin to forget simple things. You lose control over your hands and legs. Your metabolism at the cellular level shuts down. You are on the verge of death.

Below 86F your respiration and pulse slow dramatically. Your heart, though, may beat wildly out of control in irregular, unsynchronized spasms. Major organs begin to fail. Clinical death follows shortly. Because of the deceleration in your cellular activity, your brain is the last thing to die.