Why are many people squeamish about the sight of blood when, for much of history, we had to butcher animals? (continued)
Andrew Charters
Holmfirth, West Yorkshire, UK
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Your correspondence about squeamishness and blood (26 November 2022) made me think of my early experiences as a medical student. From the first week, we had to dissect dead bodies. Ours were decapitated because the dental students needed the heads. We also had the opportunity of watching open heart surgery. In both cases, group bravado helped to overcome squeamishness.
A bit later, we observed operations from within the operating theatre. The fact that you had nothing useful to do and were the least experienced in the room, with all of its sounds and smells, made some of the students squeamish. Later still, we assisted at operations, which mostly involved using all of our strength to 鈥渞etract鈥� the liver, pulling it out of the way for the surgeon.
Having something useful to do and being part of a team removed any squeamishness. So I would suggest that being active rather than passive is another important dimension to this question.
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Julian Money-Kyrle
Calne, Wiltshire, UK
After 30 years of medical practice, it seems to me that people are more squeamish about their own blood than other people鈥檚.
Those who are squeamish react with a sharp drop in blood pressure, which may be accompanied by fainting. I would hypothesise that this is a survival reflex, with the drop in blood pressure reducing bleeding for long enough for the various clotting mechanisms to kick in.
I have also noticed that I often feel a bit squeamish when I see blood or injuries on television, particularly in dramas where the aim is to maximise the emotional impact in relation to the plot. However, the same sights don鈥檛 bother me in real life. I think this is because, in reality, I am usually trying to do something to help, which requires an analytic rather than an emotional response.
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