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Even in death, TCM speaks of yin and yang. Either yin or yang precedes the word for death, 亡 (as in 死亡).

亡阳 is when your yang is almost exterminated. That means your body is in a state of severe cold. It is described in TCM textbooks as:

• 冷汗淋漓、汗质稀淡
• 神情淡漠，肌肤不温，手足厥冷
• 面色苍白
• 舌淡而润
• 脉微欲绝

Most of the manifestations described above sound like Shock. And it sounds like the second stage, where adrenalin and other catecholamines no longer have such a strong effect on the CNS or capillary vessel constriction. Oxygen is lacking and while the body tries to bring blood to the brain, he still feels sleepy and dull. His skin is white from lack of blood (alpha-receptors constrict peripheral vessels). And he continues perspiring as before due to excess of catecholamines causing sweat glands to continue secreting; but the sweat is not cold and smooth like in the first stage, good stuff is coming out and the sweat is sticky. Blood pressue is obviously fallen, and hence urine output is decreasing in response.

Here’s a person suddenly losing blood and fluids, resulting in him being unable to keep the blood flowing around normally (because it’s stuck in the capillary beds. It’s like he suddenly loses his ability to generate yang energy, which is his life force. And that’ s what shock does to you, until you are able to bring blood pressure (not always “up,” but usually) to normal levels.

亡阴, on the other hand, is when your yin is almost exterminated. That means you’re dying from too much heat and loss of fluids. It is described in TCM textbooks as:

• 汗热味咸而粘、如珠如油 (fluids are damaged, hence causing stick emission of fluids from the skin)
• 身灼烦渴、面赤颧红

It’s more like a case of heat stroke or infections causing extremely high temperatures that burn your fluids up, leaving you like a dried-up ember.