What happens physiologically to make someone unconscious during this kind of hold? How do you know you’re not suffocating someone or causing serious damage?
In: 53
You asked for “what happens physiologically” and that doesn’t really appear to have been answered.
When you press on the carotid arteries to stop the flow of freshly oxygenated blood into the brain, it creates a low pressure zone in the head. Your veins are still trying to pull blood out of the head, but the arteries are no longer feeding blood in, and that causes blood pressure in your head and brain to lower significantly. This changes the balance of pressure between your brain and the blood vessels in your head, which increase the onset of symptoms like narrowing vision, heavy or light headedness, loss of hearing, and loss of motor/muscle control. Most people, when being choked out, will make a gurgling or snoring sound as they loose consciousness, which is related to the loss of motor control in the mouth, nose, and throat.
One concern and consideration when choking someone out is that the stoppage of blood flow to the head can create the possibility for the formation of a clot. Similarly, the increased pressure in the lower portion of the body and at the point of constriction can also create a clot. When the hold is released, these clots can then move to the brain where they get stuck and cause a stroke.
Generally speaking, carotid chokes increase in danger exponentially when held, so a choke of only a second or two is much safer than a choke lasting 5 seconds or more. Either way, it should always be done in an environment with proper supervision and medical treatment available nearby in case of emergency, and it should never be performed on someone who is at high risk of clotting.
Latest Answers