An autopsy technician who answers people's morbid questions on TikTok has made a shocking revelation that has left viewers running scared.
It definitely turned my stomach at the thought of it.
Death is inevitable and it's the one thing we all have in common.
No matter how many veggies we wolf down with our dinner or how many marathons we run, we all sadly end up in the same place.
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One thing many people didn't realise we also had in common was the removal of one of our body parts and, it is pretty gross to think about.
Gerald Ledford is a pretty popular autopsy technician who helps shed light on any and all burning questions people have about what happens to your body when you die.
Being an autopsy technician, Ledford certainly has the authority on that and takes to TikTok to debunk a few myths while also revealing all the secrets of his profession.
With a whopping 1.4 million followers, as much as people might fear death, it's safe to say they're pretty curious about it too.
Posing a slightly random thought to Ledford, one follower asked what happens to your piercings when you die, and I have to say, as someone with piercings, this isn't something I actually ever thought about.
The person asked because they expressed they want their piercings to remain with their lifeless corpse.
Sure, why not?
Ledford explained: "The only one that I take out is your tongue ring."
OK Ledford, but why?
Sadly, it's not because he doesn't like the look of them, oh no.
It's because if your corpse happens to end up on Ledford's autopsy table, he's going to remove your tongue - and yes, you read that right.
Don't worry though, because Ledford isn't some crazed tongue collector, this is actually a common occurrence in autopsies.
"I remove your tongue during an autopsy – we need to make sure you didn’t bite down on it, make sure you don’t have drugs in the back of your throat," he said.
"So if you have a tongue ring, that one comes out, but nipples, nose, ears, eyebrows, private parts..."
See, no need to be alarmed.
Ledford explained the importance of this is to ensure it doesn't interfere with any forensic procedures.
Turns out though this isn't actually common knowledge and as you can imagine, people had a fair bit to say about this rather unsettling revelation.
One person said: "Just decided I won't be dying," and honestly, same.
Another added: "Wait what? everyone's tongue is removed."
Some more morbid users asked exactly how the tongue is removed, while another demanded to know: "Do we cut all tounges? Where do they go? Are there a tongue pile somewhere?"
To those people I say, please don't ask questions he might actually answer.
A final, much more logical person, questioned: "All of us freaking out at the thought of our tongues being removed…after we are dead!"
Yeah, they kind of have a point there...
Saskia Calliste