Thread: Could you cut your own arm/leg off?

I think we're on the same page then. I would have to be sure it was a matter of life or death, of course...cutting off an arm is heady stuff!

I COULD cut off my arm... but whether I would depends largely on the situation. If I was close to town or something then sure... but in a survival situation it's hard to tell. 'Cause i'd probably bleed to death right? So I could... but I don't know if I would.

edit: I'd sooner smash it to a pulp I think... 'cause then there's a chance to save it, plus even if they couldn't save it, at least I wouldn't bleed to death. I'd just smash my arm to bits and then once I was free I'd decide if I should remove it (depending on how much it hurts) because I think having my arm removed would hurt less then dragging a mangled mess around. I just wouldn't want to risk cutting it off then find out I can't half way through... then I'd just be stuck there bleeding.

Not unless there were lots and lots of painkillers just lying around.... and then a fake leg that I could put back on.... otherwise, no.

Eh I can always regenerate, no need to cut it off.

If you smash your limb up you can still die from internal bleeding. Plus its going to bleed badly any way when your broken bones jabs through the skin. Or the skin make just rupture after swelling up from all the internal bleeding. Beating your arm to a pulp is not any safer.

If you cut off the circulation to your arm, it would reduce the feeling to it. Though we are talking about cutting off your arm, so I am not sure how much its going to help.

Because we are animals, i think we would do literally anything to save our lives.

It'd make me sick and I'd probably faint or something, but I'd give the sawing a try.

Yes I could. I just hope I don't get into a situation that would require me doing so. Also, pirate hook FTW!

If I had to, yes. Would I be in any mental state or physical state by the end of it to be very much human? No. But I'd have the mentality to make myself do so if I absolutely had to. Fuck that would be hard though, regardless.

I think so. You can't really know until you're put in that situation.

That said, it wouldn't be Plan A.

As for going through bone. If possible you go through a joint, either the knee or elbow would be ideal. That way you avoid bone all together.

Aron Ralston (the guy who got stuck under a boulder for five days) deliberately broke the bones in his forearm above where he was trapped, so he could could cut around the break and pop the bones out. Then he walked out of the canyon. After cutting off his own arm.

Yeah, hardcore.

I don't know... Cutting off my own arm. -shudders- I guess if I were desperate enough...

My instinct would be definitely no. But, if you were really in that situation, adrenaline might tell your body to do the opposite of what your first instinct tells you to do.

I would probably attempt it if I had to.. but it would probably result in fainting and death by blood loss..

Originally Posted by Oneironaut

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But still..it's the act of cutting off my arm that I think would be the hardest for me to digest. Here, in my rational mind, I just couldn't picture myself doing it, but if it's a choice between than and certain death - I'm with you, Kael.

That's kind of what I'm thinking.

But I think it's more then just a life or death situation - think of how insane you must have gotten after two days under a furnace. Two incredibly long and painful days, sleep deprived, scared shitless. I just think the brain functions differently after a while and people do all sorts of crazy things when going insane.