Near-death experience: Difference between revisions

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:''"Well, I said, I will tell you a tale; not one of the tales which Odysseus tells to the hero Alcinous, yet this too is a tale of a hero, Er the son of Armenius, a Pamphylian by birth. He was slain in battle, and ten days afterwards, when the bodies of the dead were taken up already in a state of corruption, his body was found unaffected by decay, and carried away home to be buried. And on the twelfth day, as he was lying on the funeral pile, he returned to life and told them what he had seen in the other world."'' (from Plato, The Republic)
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'''Near-death experience''', also known as '''NDE''', is the common name for feelings, impressions and out-of-body experiences reported by people who have been resuscitated after a cardiac arrest.
'''Near-death experience''' (NDE) is the common name for feelings, impressions and out-of-body experiences, reported especially by people who appear to have died but revived.<ref>Blackmore SJ (1996) [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1295660/?tool=pubmed Near-death experiences] ''J R Soc Med'' 89:73-6. Review. PMID 8683504</ref>


Such reports date back to the time of [[Plato]] who wrote about the ''Myth of Er''.<ref name="urlMyth of Er (Plato, Republic X)">{{cite web
Such reports date back to the time of [[Plato]] who wrote about the ''Myth of Er''.<ref name="urlMyth of Er (Plato, Republic X)">{{cite web
|url=http://www.davidson.edu/academic/classics/neumann/CLA350/ErMyth.html
|url=http://www.davidson.edu/academic/classics/neumann/CLA350/ErMyth.html
|title=Myth of Er (Plato, Republic X)
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}}</ref>Researchers[[ Raymond Moody]], [[Elisabeth Kübler-Ross]], [[Bruce Greyson]], [[Kenneth Ring]], and[[ Michael Sabom]] have all researched and wrote about this subject. Greyson, Ring and Saborn helped start the field of Near-Death studies. Dr. Raymond Moody  writes: “By the classical definition, death is the state from which you don't return. It is defined as irreversible. Hence, since all of the NDEers returned, they were never really dead. Whjat happened was that various criteria for death were fufilled, p. 64 ''The Light Beyond''.  Both adults and children report similar NDE experiences.<ref name="urlNear-death experiences in a pediatric population. ... [Am J Dis Child. 1985] - PubMed result">Morse M ''et al.'' (1985) Near-death experiences in a pediatric population ''Am J Dis Child''139:595-600 PMID 4003364</ref>
}}</ref>, but the term  ''near-death experience'' was coined by a psychologist, Raymond Moody, in his book, ''Life after Life'', first published in 1975.<ref>Raymond Moody (2001) ''Life After Life: the investigation of a phenomenon – survival of bodily death'', San Francisco, CA: Harper SanFrancisco ISBN 0-06251739-2</ref> The book was a compilation of the experiences reported by more than 100 people who came close to death. Moody believes in an afterlife, and regards these reports as possible supporting evidence for this, while recognising that there are other explanations. Generally however, scientists consider that NDEs arise from the disordered activity of a brain under extreme stress that is interpreted in a way conditioned by expectations. <ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-15494379 Near-death experience 'all in the mind'] 'BBC News'' 31 October 2011</ref>
Similar experiences have been reported by others, who had not died, but NDE researchers do not consider them true NDEs. These experiences may occur when someone is participating in meditation, under emotional duress or at the bedside of a dying loved one. NDE researchers are studying this phenomena as part of their NDE research.<ref name="urlwww.iands.org">{{cite web
 
|url=http://www.iands.org/downloads/generaliands.pdf
In a later book, Moody  wrote: “By the classical definition, death is the state from which you don't return. It is defined as irreversible. Hence, since all of the NDEers returned, they were never really dead. What happened was that various criteria for death were fufilled" <ref name=Moody>{{cite book | author = Perry, Paul; Moody, Raymond A | title = The Light Beyond |  publisher = Bantam Books | location = New York | year = 1988 | isbn = 0-553-05285-3 }}</ref> <ref>[http://www.neurology.org/content/74/23/1911.full.pdf+html Eelco FM ''et al.''] (2010) Evidence-based guideline update: Determining brain death in adults: Report of the Quality Standards Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology ''Neurology'' 74:1911></ref> Both adults and children report similar NDE experiences.<ref>Morse M ''et al.'' (1985) Near-death experiences in a pediatric population ''Am J Dis Child''139:595-600 PMID 4003364</ref>
|title=www.iands.org
Similar experiences have been reported by others, including when someone is participating in meditation, under emotional duress or at the bedside of a dying loved one.
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== Did the NDE experiencer really die?==
== Did the NDE experiencer really die?==
Moody gives sums this up best on p. 65 of his book ''The Light Beyond": "The lesson of all this is that there is a lot we don't know about the physiology of dying. So technically speaking, NDEers are never really dead, but they are much closer than most of us have ever been."
The immediate reactions to Moody's book were very polarised; some embraced the reports as endorsing their belief in an afterlife, others dismissed the reports as hallucinatory delusions or mere inventions. Moody's book was simply a compilation of anecdotes. However, other researchers since then have consistently found that NDEs are a relatively common occurrence, and follow a quite consistent narrative form in many different cultures and in historical accounts. This suggests that NDEs share a common neurological basis, and various theories have been proposed, for example, that neuronal dysfunction due to anoxia and/or carbon dioxide overload leads to a sequence of disordered brain activity that is subsequently interpreted as an "experience" in a way conditioned by expectations.<ref>Blackmore SJ (1996) [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1295660/?tool=pubmed Near-death experiences] ''J R Soc Med'' 89:73-6. Review. PMID 8683504</ref>


He further right the classical definition of death is the state from which you don't return.[[Death]] is irreversible and the people who survived and returned to report their NDE were never really dead, p. 64 ''The Light Beyond''.
Even if the NDE has a relatively prosaic explanation, the impact of an NDE on the lives of those who have experienced one is often considerable. There are many accounts of an NDE changing a person's values, making them less afraid of death, more religious and less materialistic. Conversely, an NDE apparently led [[Hong Xiuquan]] to believe that he was the brother of [[Jesus Christ]], and he went on to lead a rebellion that claimed at least 20 million lives. <ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_7051/is_n1_v8/ai_n28700065/ God's Chinese Son: The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom of Hong Xiuquan]</ref>


== Scales ==
== Scales ==
There two primary scales used to score NDE experiences. In 1980, [[psychologist]] Kenneth Ring developed the 10 point interview scale to analyze the NDE. Using this scale, Ring interviewed 102 people who had come close to death. The interview using the scale determined that 48 percent of Ring's group had experienced an NDE. Using this information he developed the Weighted Core Experience Index, p. 16 ''What Happens When We Die''. <ref name="isbn1-4019-0710-5">{{cite book | author = Sam Parnia | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = What happens when we die: a groundbreaking study into the nature of life and death | edition = | language = | publisher = Hay House | location = Carlsbad, CA | year = 2006 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 1-4019-0710-5 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
In 1980, [[psychologist]] Kenneth Ring developed a ''10 point interview scale'', which he used to interview 102 people who had come close to death. The interview using the scale determined that 48% of Ring's group had had an NDE. Using this information he developed the ''Weighted Core Experience Index''. <ref name="isbn1-4019-0710-5">{{cite book | author = Parnia S| title = What happens when we die: a groundbreaking study into the nature of life and death | publisher = Hay House | location = Carlsbad, CA | year = 2006 | isbn = 1-4019-0710-5}}</ref> This index asked about whether the NDE was peaceful; involved an Out-of-Body Experience (OBE); tunnel or dark area; saw a light; entered the light.
Ring's Weight Core Experience Index asked about whether the NDE was peaceful; had an Out-of-Body experience (OBE); tunnel or dark area; saw a light; entered the light.
 
The Greyson Scale, developed by [[psychiatrist]] Dr. Bruce Greayson, was created after he interviewed 74 people who reported experiencing an NDE. He used the 16 most frequently reported features to develop his questionaire. Greyson's scale ask questions such as was there an experience of altered time; accelerated thought process; life review; a sense of sudden understanding; feelings of peace; feelings of joy; feeling of cosmic oneness; seeing or feeling the surrounding of light; reporting vivid sensations; [[extrasensory perception]] (ESP); experiencing visions; a feeling of being outside of the body (OBE); a sense being in an otherworldly environment; a sense of a mystical entity; a sense of deceased or religious figures; a sense of a border or point of no return. Each question is rated 0, 1 or 2. The potential maximum score was 32 and a score of 7 was needed to qualify for having an NDE experience, p. 17 ''What Happens When We Die''. <ref name="isbn1-4019-0710-5">{{cite book | author = Sam Parnia | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = What happens when we die: a groundbreaking study into the nature of life and death | edition = | language = | publisher = Hay House | location = Carlsbad, CA | year = 2006 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 1-4019-0710-5 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>


There are variances between adults and children in what they may experience and describe concerning the NDE event. Cultural variations concerning NDE experience have also been reported.
The ''Greyson Scale'' was developed by [[psychiatrist]] Bruce Greyson after he interviewed 74 people who reported an NDE. <ref>Greyson B (2003) Near-death experiences in a psychiatric outpatient clinic population ''Psychiatr Serv'' 54:1649-51 PMID 14645808</ref>
<ref>Greyson B (2010) Hypercapnia and hypokalemia in near-death experiences ''Crit Care'' 14:420 PMID 20519028 </ref><ref>Griffith LJ (2009) Near-death experiences and psychotherapy ''Psychiatry (Edgmont)'' 6:35-42 PMID 20011577</ref> He used the 16 most frequently reported features to develop his questionaire, which sought to establish whether there had been: an experience of altered time; accelerated thought process; a life review; a sense of sudden understanding; feelings of peace/joy/'cosmic oneness'; seeing or feeling the surrounding of light; reporting vivid sensations; [[extrasensory perception]] (ESP); experiencing visions; an OBE; a sense being in an 'otherworldly environment', of a mystical entity; of deceased or religious figures; or of a 'border' or point of no return. Each question is rated 0, 1 or 2. The potential maximum score was 32 and a score of 7 was needed to qualify for having an NDE. <ref name="isbn1-4019-0710-5"/> There are variances between adults and children in what they may experience and describe concerning the NDE. Cultural variations concerning NDEs have also been reported.


== Incidence==
== Incidence==
In a 1982 [[United States]] [[Gallup poll]], the survey concluded approximately 8 million people had reported a near-death experience.<ref name="isbn1-4019-0710-5">{{cite book | author = Sam Parnia | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = What happens when we die: a groundbreaking study into the nature of life and death | edition = | language = | publisher = Hay House | location = Carlsbad, CA | year = 2006 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 1-4019-0710-5 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>Moody states the same statistics based on the Gallup poll information. The Gallup poll garnered the following statistics from the people reporting an NDE: OBE 26 percent; accurate visual perception 23 percent; audible sounds or voices 17 percent; feelings of peace or painlessness 32 percent; light phenomena 14 percent; life review 32 percent; being in another world 32 percent; encountering other beings 23 percent; tunnel experience 9 percent; precognition 6 percent, p. 5 ''The Light and Beyond''.
In  ''The Light Beyond'', Moody explained that people often reported the following:


[[Physician]] [[Sam Parnia]] states the actual frequency for an NDE in his study was around 6 percent (4 out of 63) for [[cardiac-arrest]] survivors. In his book What Happens When We Die Parnia states the oxygen levels were higher in the NDE patients than in the study control group. This study included four patients so it was not possible to determined if this was a legitimate or real finding, p. 86 ''What Happens When We Die''. <ref name="isbn1-4019-0710-5">{{cite book | author = Sam Parnia | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = What happens when we die: a groundbreaking study into the nature of life and death | edition = | language = | publisher = Hay House | location = Carlsbad, CA | year = 2006 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 1-4019-0710-5 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
#a "sense of peace and painlessness”.  Cardiac patients, according to Moody, report the intense pain of a heart attack turns into pleasure.
# an "Out-of-Body Experience" (OBE): Moody reports his study subjects described seeing their body below while retaining a “body” of some sort they can not describe.
# a tunnel. “The descriptions are many, but the sense of what is happening remains the same: the person is going through a passageway toward an intense light” .
#'People of Light', that glow with intense luminescence that fills the person with love.  The light is described as being much brighter than anything found on earth while not hurting the eyes. The person under-going this experience may see friends and relatives who have died.
#Being of Light: The NDE witness will report seeing a holy supreme being of light. When meeting this holy being the person wants to remain but is told by the being of light to return to their earthly body.
#Life Review: “The closest description I've heard of it is that the whole person's life is there at once,” writes Moody. Moody states the NDE experiencer comes away from the experience realizing the most important things in life are love followed by knowledge.
#Return: NDE experiencers want to remain in the heavenly place and often experience short-term anger when they are brought back from death states.


== Adults ==
In 1982, a [[Gallup poll]] survey in the [[United States of America]], where most people believe in an afterlife, estimated that approximately 8 million people had had an NDE.<ref name="isbn1-4019-0710-5"/> Of those, 26% described an OBE; 23% felt that they had experienced accurate visual perception; 17% heard sounds or voices; 32% feelings of peace or painlessness ; 14% saw light phenomena; 32% described having a life review ;32% being in another world ;23% encountering other beings; 9% described a tunnel experience; and 6% described a sense of precognition .
Moody reported in his 1975 research a series of features found in his NDE research. Some of these features included  a feeling of peace and quiet, hearing a buzzing or wind like sound; the sensation of leaving one's body; having a life review; reaching a border where if crossed there would be no return and finally the returning to the physical body. This information was collected from western society adults. <ref name="isbn0-313-35864-8">{{cite book | author = Debbie James; Holden, Janice Miner; Greyson, Bruce | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = The handbook of near-death experiences: thirty years of investigation | edition = | language = | publisher = Praeger Publishers | location = New York | year = 2009 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-313-35864-8 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
In his book ''The Light Beyond'', Moody further clarifies the NDE experience reported by people who have undergone this experience. His subjects have reported the following:


==Peace==
In 2011, the journal ''Trends in Cognitive Sciences'' published a paper entitled 'There is nothing paranormal about near-death experiences: how neuroscience can explain seeing bright lights, meeting the dead, or being convinced you are one of them'. The paper, by neuroscientists Dean Mobbs and Caroline Watt, summarised the results of various scientific studies of NDEs.  
He writes “when the ribbons are cut there is a very real sense of peace and painlessness”. Cardiac patients, according to Moody, report the intense pain of a heart attack turns into pleasure. Moody states some researchers believe this effect could be caused by a self-made chemical to stop the pain. Moody states there have been no experiments to prove this is the case.
<ref>Mobbs D, Watt C (2011) There is nothing paranormal about near-death experiences: how neuroscience can explain seeing bright lights, meeting the dead, or being convinced you are one of them ''Trends in Cognitive Sci'' 15:447-9</ref>


== Out-of-Body Experience or the OBE==
A commonly reported features of NDEs is an awareness of being dead - but these feelings are not limited to NDEs. A condition called "Cotard" - or "walking corpse" syndrome, where a person believes they are dead, has been seen after trauma and during the advanced stages of typhoid and multiple sclerosis.<ref>McKay RL, Cipolotti L (2007) Attributional style in a case of Cotard delusion. ''Conscious Cogn'' (2007) 16:349–59</ref> Out-of-body experiences can be artificially induced by stimulating the right temporoparietal junction in the brain, an area that has a role in perception and awareness.<ref>Blanke O. Arzy S (2004) The out-of-body experience: disturbed self-processing at the temporo-parietal junction ''Neuroscientist''  11:16–24</ref> The "tunnel of light" sensation can also be artificially induced: pilots flying at G-force can experience "hypertensive syncope" which causes tunnel-like vision for up to eight seconds <ref> Lambert EH, Wood EH (1946) Direct determination of man's blood pressure on the human centrifuge during positive acceleration ''Federation Proc'' 5:59</ref>, and one study suggests that the light at the end of the tunnel is explained by poor blood and oxygen supply to the eye.<ref>  Nelson KR ''et al.'' (2007) Out-of-body experience and arousal. ''Neurology''  68:794–5</ref> The feelings of bliss and euphoria, meanwhile, can be recreated with drugs such as ketamine and amphetamine.
Moody reports his study subjects described seeing their body below while retaining a “body” of some sort they can not describe. The study subjects state their OBE body has a shape that may look like an energy field or filled with many colors. One person described their hands as being composed of light with “tiny structures in them.”


==Tunnel==
== Non-Western experiences ==
At this point, the dying person will realize this experience may have something to do with death writes Moody. A tunnel or portal will then be seen as the person is moved into darkness while moving towards a brilliant light. Moody also reports some people have witnessed a staircase going upward. Others have reported seeing ornately decorated doors instead of a tunnel. “The descriptions are many, but the sense of what is happening remains the same: the person is going through a passageway toward an intense light,” writes Moody.
<blockquote>"I died, as you know. I seemed to leave my body and stand beside it, looking down on what was me. The me that was standing there looked like the form I was looking at, only, I was alive and the other was dead. I gazed at my body for a few minutes, then turned and walked away. I left the house and village, and walked on and on to the next village, and there I found crowds of people,—Oh, so many people! The place which I knew as a small village of a few houses was a very large place, with hundreds of houses and thousands of men, women, and children. Some of them I knew and they spoke to me,—although that seemed strange, for I knew they were dead,—but nearly all were strangers. They were all so happy! They seemed not to have a care; nothing to trouble them. Joy was in every face, and happy laughter and bright, loving words were on every tongue." From ''Hawaiian Folk Tales'' (1907) <ref name=Handbook>[http://www.gutenberg.org/files/18450/18450-h/18450-h.htm#d0e946 ''Hawaiian Folk Tales''] (1907) Ed Thomas G. Thrum Project Gutenberg</ref></blockquote>
''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences'' summarises reports collated in 16 refereed journal articles describing more than 275  non-Western NDEs, gathered since 2005. Experiences from Asia, Pacific area and hunter-gatherer cultures, and show many similarities .<ref name=Handbook/>
<!---
'''China'''


Other witnesses have reported floating and a rapid rise into heaven. During this experience, the witness reports seeing the universe from the perspective reported by astronauts. Moody writes psychotherapist C.G.[[Jung]] described this experience in 1944 when he had a heart attack.  
Based on the historical work of Carl Becker and the empirical work by Fen Zhi-ying and Liu Jian-xun the following information was collected. Becker interviewed three Chinese Buddhist monks who were seriously ill and either had a NDE or or deathbed vision. No tunnel of light was reported by the monks although one did report “going through a void”. None reported an OBE or life review; all three reported visiting the “pure land.”


==People of Light==
Medical doctors Zhi-ying and Jian-xun interviewed 81 survivors of the [[Tangshan earthquake]]. They found 32 NDE experiencers who reported most of the similar experiences found in Western NDE studies. The Chinese earthquake survivors reported OBEs, the tunnel experience, peace, life reviews, seeing deceased beings and seeing an unearthly realm of existence.
The people or beings of light glow with intense luminescence that fills the person with love. The light is described as being much brighter than anything found on earth while not hurting the eyes. The person under-going this experience will usually see friends and relatives who have died. Joining this experience is the ability to see beautiful pastoral scenes. One female witness reported seeing plants filled with their own inner light. Other NDE subjects have reported seeing beautiful cities of light. Communication during this portion of the experience is nonverbal or telepathic.
 
==Being of Light==
The NDE witness will report seeing a holy supreme being of light. When meeting this holy being the person wants to remain but is told by the being of light to return to their earthly body.
 
==Life Review==
A panoramic review of every single thing the person has done in their lives takes place. “The closest description I've heard of it is that the whole person's life is there at once,” writes Moody. The being of light helps the person through the life review process. Moody states the NDE experiencer comes away from the experience realizing the most important things in life are love followed by knowledge. Some people also report a life review that includes foretelling of their future. One person reported knowing when and who he would marry. He also knew how many children he would have and where they would live, p. 23'' The Light Beyond''.
 
==Return==
NDE experiencers want to remain in the heavenly place and often experience short-term anger when they are brought back from death states Moody. Later the NDE patient is happy they survived and they are happy to have been given a chance to live Moody further writes.
 
Most often the NDE experiencer wants to return to life as they do not want to leave their children behind or they do not want their families to grieve. One woman reported to Moody she argued with the being of light to return to life. “But I am young, I haven't danced enough yet. At that point the being of light have out a hearty laugh and allowed her to live,” wrote Moody in his book ''The Light Beyond.''
 
Moody also states not everyone who under-goes an NDE experience will have “all the symptoms”. “It is the presence of one or more of these traits that define the NDE,” p. 6. He further states that after interviewing more than a thousand people, some have had full blown NDE experiences where all nine NDE traits.<ref name="isbn0-553-05285-3">{{cite book | author = Perry, Paul; Moody, Raymond A. | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = The light beyond | edition = | language = | publisher = Bantam Books | location = New York | year = 1988 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-553-05285-3 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
 
 
In the book ''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences'', Bruce Greyson and Ian Stevenson in their 1980 research conducted a study of a sample of 78 NDE experiencers.  In this study Greyson and Stevenson identified some of the features in an NDE. They included having an OBE, passing through a tunnel or similar structure, entering an unearthly realm, encountering beings, reaching a border or point of no return, hearing music or noises, having a sensation of warmth or analgesia, feeling a distortion of time, having extrasensory perception (ESP), and panoramic memory.
 
Most NDE experiencers felt the experiences was neutral or mildly negative followed by mildly positive. None reported the experience as being “very negative”. <ref name="isbn0-313-35864-8">{{cite book | author = Debbie James; Holden, Janice Miner; Greyson, Bruce | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = The handbook of near-death experiences: thirty years of investigation | edition = | language = | publisher = Praeger Publishers | location = New York | year = 2009 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-313-35864-8 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
 
== Non-Western Near-Death experiences ==


In the book ''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences'', the authors state a total of 16 refereed journal articles described approximately 275 to 350 non-Western NDEs have been gathered since 2005. The experiences are gathered from Asia, Pacific area and hunter-gatherer cultures, p. 137.<ref name="isbn0-313-35864-8">{{cite book | author = Debbie James; Holden, Janice Miner; Greyson, Bruce | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = The handbook of near-death experiences: thirty years of investigation | edition = | language = | publisher = Praeger Publishers | location = New York | year = 2009 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-313-35864-8 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
'''India'''


Based on the historical work of Carl Becker and the empirical work by Fen Zhi-ying and Liu Jian-xun the following information was collected. Becker interviewed three Chinese Buddhist monks who were seriously ill and either had a NDE or or deathbed vision. No tunnel of light was reported by the monks although one did report “going through a void”. None reported an OBE or life review. All three monks did report visiting the “pure land.”
K. Osis and E. Haraldson interviewed 704 Indian medical personnel in 1977. The interviews dealt with their experiences with the dying. The interviews showed that 64 participants reported an NDE while the rest reported near-death visions. Satwant Pasrich and (first name unknown) Stephenson in 1986 reported 16 cases of NDE in India. Of the 16 reports, 10 of the reporting witnesses were directly interviewed. By 1993, a total of 45 cases were reviewed. The researchers found no evidence of tunnel of light and one person reported an OBE. <ref name=Handbook/>


Medical doctors Zhi-ying and Jian-xun interviewed 81 survivors of the [[Tangshan earthquake]]. They found 32 NDE experiencers who reported most of the similar experiences found in Western NDE studies. The Chinese earthquake survivors reported OBEs, the tunnel experience, peace, life reviews, seeing deceased beings and seeing an unearthly realm of existence.
'''Thailand'''


==India==
Researcher Todd Murphy in 2001 collected 10 published NDE accounts. There was one report of an OBE but Murphy believed the Yamtoots, guides of the underworld, served the this function. No tunnel or tunnel-like experiences were reported by Murphy other than the one case reported. He wrote “tunnels are rare, if not absent, in Thai NDEs.” <ref name=Handbook/>  
K. Osis and E. Haraldson interviewed 704 Indian medical personnel in 1977. The interviews dealt with their experiences with the dying. The interviews showed that 64 participants reported an NDE experience while the rest reported near-death visions. Satwant Pasrich and (first name unknown) Stephenson in 1986 reported 16 cases of NDE in India. Of the 16 reports, 10 of the reporting witnesses were directly interviewed. By 1993, a total of 45 cases were reviewed. The researchers found no evidence of tunnel of light and one person reported an OBE, p. 140 <ref name="isbn0-313-35864-8">{{cite book | author = Debbie James; Holden, Janice Miner; Greyson, Bruce | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = The handbook of near-death experiences: thirty years of investigation | edition = | language = | publisher = Praeger Publishers | location = New York | year = 2009 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-313-35864-8 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>


== Thailand ==
Researcher Todd Murphy in 2001 collected 10 published NDE accounts. There was one report of an OBE but Murphy believed the Yamtoots, guides of the underworld, served the this function. No tunnel or tunnel-like experiences were reported by Murphy other than the one case reported. He wrote “tunnels are rare, if not absent, in Thai NDEs.” p. 141 ''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences''.<ref name="isbn0-313-35864-8">{{cite book | author = Debbie James; Holden, Janice Miner; Greyson, Bruce | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = The handbook of near-death experiences: thirty years of investigation | edition = | language = | publisher = Praeger Publishers | location = New York | year = 2009 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-313-35864-8 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>


== The Pacific Region ==
'''New Zealand'''
Researcher Kellehear found one case of a Hawaiian womam who died, was placed alongside the road for her funeral rites, and later revived. The woman reported walking out of her house and to her village. She then walked onto another village where she saw numerous people and then realized these people had died. She then felt the need to walk towards Pele's Pit known as the “jumping off of souls of the dead” p. 143 ''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences''. As she reached this point, she was told it was not her time to die and crowds of people drove her back to life. This tale was reported in 1907 in Thomas Thrum's Hawaiian Folk Tales, according to Kellehear. No reports of a tunnel or life review was reported in this incident p. 143'' The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences''.<ref name="isbn0-313-35864-8">{{cite book | author = Debbie James; Holden, Janice Miner; Greyson, Bruce | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = The handbook of near-death experiences: thirty years of investigation | edition = | language = | publisher = Praeger Publishers | location = New York | year = 2009 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-313-35864-8 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>


== New Zealand==
Researcher Michael King reported in 1985 the report of a Maori woman who died and reported hovering over her body. She later ascended to a ledge and looked at the entrance of the underworld. She performed a dance in preparation of entering the underworld. As she prepared to enter, a voice told her it was not her time and she returned to her body. <ref name=Handbook/>--->
Researcher Micahel King reported in 1985 the report of a Maori woman who died and reported hovering over her body. She later ascended to a ledge and looked at the entrance of the underworld. She performed a dance in preparation of entering the underworld. As she prepared to enter, a voice told her it was not her time and she returned to her body, p. 145 The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences. She did report an OBE but not the tunnel, although the author's in'' The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences'' speculate if she had gone through the entrance to the underworld it would have constituted a tunnel experience, p. 145 ''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences''.<ref name="isbn0-313-35864-8">{{cite book | author = Debbie James; Holden, Janice Miner; Greyson, Bruce | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = The handbook of near-death experiences: thirty years of investigation | edition = | language = | publisher = Praeger Publishers | location = New York | year = 2009 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-313-35864-8 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>


==Children==
==Children==
[[Pediatrician]] [[Melvin Morse]] became interested in NDEs after one of his patients told about her NDE. She was [[resuscitate]]d after nearly [[drown]]ing. Katie spent three days near the brink of death and was kept in a deep coma. On the third day she awoke as if from a deep sleep and by the next day was visiting with family. She showed no signs of [[brain]] damage. Morse interviewed the girl about what she remembered from the experience and was told about her visit to heaven. Morse reports a person actually needs to be near death to have a near-death experience. He also reports the ara in the brain near the right temporal lobe is genetically coded for near-death experiences, forward to the book ''Closer to the Light''. <ref name="isbn0-394-57944-5">{{cite book | author = Perry, Paul; Morse, Melvin | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = Closer to the light: learning from children's near-death experiences | edition = | language = | publisher = Villard Books | location = New York | year = 1990 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-394-57944-5 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
[[Pediatrician]] [[Melvin Morse]] became interested in NDEs after one of his patients told about her NDE. She was [[resuscitate]]d after nearly [[drown]]ing. Katie spent three days near the brink of death and was kept in a deep coma. On the third day she awoke as if from a deep sleep and by the next day was visiting with family. She showed no signs of [[brain]] damage. Morse interviewed the girl about what she remembered from the experience and was told about her visit to heaven. Morse reports a person actually needs to be near death to have a near-death experience. He also reports the ara in the brain near the right temporal lobe is genetically coded for near-death experiences, forward to the book ''Closer to the Light''. <ref name=Perry>{{cite book | author = Perry P; Morse M| title = Closer to the light: learning from children's near-death experiences | publisher = Villard Books | location = New York | year = 1990 | isbn = 0-394-57944-5}}</ref>
 
Morse created the [[Seattle Study]] to determine if someone needed to be near death in order to have a near-death experience. The control group of 121 seriously ill children had a less than five percent chance of dying but were ill. The study group of 12children who faced death. Morse interviewed children based on the psychological experience of being in an intensive care unit with no mention of NDEs. Interviews lasted approximately two hours and asked questions such as what the patient remembered while being sick, dreams and hospital experiences, p. 20 ''Closer to the Light''.  118 of the children who were seriously ill, but not close to death,  did not remember their hospital experience, p. 21 ''Closer to the Light''.


The experimental group, the cardiac survivors or ones who awoke from deep comas, most of the children did report at least one feature of the NDE experience. Morse states the child would often start telling of their experience with a puzzled look. He gave the example of “Well, I kind of remember a really funny thing that I can't exactly telly. I was looking at myself and going somewhere, but I didn't exactly know where,” p. 23 ''Closer to the Light''. Morse said the children would go onto tell about their NDE experience. Some of the children were not affected by the experience while others were profoundly affected. <ref name="isbn0-394-57944-5">{{cite book | author = Perry, Paul; Morse, Melvin | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = Closer to the light: learning from children's near-death experiences | edition = | language = | publisher = Villard Books | location = New York | year = 1990 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-394-57944-5 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
Morse created the [[Seattle Study]] to determine if someone needed to be near death in order to have an NDE. The control group of 121 seriously ill children had a less than five percent chance of dying but were ill. Morse interviewed children based on the psychological experience of being in an intensive care unit with no mention of NDEs. Interviews lasted approximately two hours and asked questions such as what the patient remembered while being sick, dreams and hospital experiences. 118 of the children who were seriously ill, but not close to death,  did not remember their hospital experience.


==Children's reports==
The experimental group, the cardiac survivors or ones who awoke from deep comas, most of the children did report at least one feature of the NDE. Morse states the child would often start telling of their experience with a puzzled look. He gave the example of “Well, I kind of remember a really funny thing that I can't exactly telly. I was looking at myself and going somewhere, but I didn't exactly know where,” p. 23 ''Closer to the Light''. Morse said the children would go onto tell about their NDE. Some of the children were not affected by the experience while others were profoundly affected. <ref name=Perry/>
Here is a small selection of reports collected by Morse in his book'' Closer to the Light''.


Patient Two, known as Chris, who related this story after under-going cardiac surgery at the age of 10. “I have a wonderful secret to tell you Mother. I've been climbing the staircase to heaven. It was such a good and peaceful feeling. I felt wonderful. I was on a staircase, and it was dark, and I started climbing upward. I got about halfway up the staircase and decided not to go any higher. I wanted to go on up, but I knew I wouldn't come back if I went too high. That would hurt my mom and dad; since my little brother had already died, they wouldn't have anyone to take care of,” p. 27 Closer to the Light. He returned to his body by turning and going down the staircase.


Patient Five, known as June, drowned when her hair was caught in a pool drain. June went onto to relate the following story:
<!---===Children's reports===
Here is a small selection of reports collected by Morse '' Closer to the Light''.


“All I remember was my hair getting stuck in the drain and then blacking out. The next thing I knew, I floated out of my body. I could see myself under the water but I wasn't afraid. All of a sudden I started goint up a tunnel and before I could think about it, I found myself in heaven. I know it was heaven because everything was bright and everyone was cheerful. 'A nice young man asked me if I wanted to stay there. I thought about staying; I really did. But I said 'I want to be with my family'. Then I got to come back,” p. 32'' Closer to the Light''.<ref name="isbn0-394-57944-5">{{cite book | author = Perry, Paul; Morse, Melvin | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = Closer to the light: learning from children's near-death experiences | edition = | language = | publisher = Villard Books | location = New York | year = 1990 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-394-57944-5 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
Patient Two related this story after under-going cardiac surgery at the age of 10. “I have a wonderful secret to tell you Mother. I've been climbing the staircase to heaven. It was such a good and peaceful feeling. I felt wonderful. I was on a staircase, and it was dark, and I started climbing upward. I got about halfway up the staircase and decided not to go any higher. I wanted to go on up, but I knew I wouldn't come back if I went too high. That would hurt my mom and dad; since my little brother had already died, they wouldn't have anyone to take care of”. He returned to his body by turning and going down the staircase.  


In his book ''The Light Beyond'' Moody gives several examples of children who experienced NDEs. While a resident at a Georgia hospital Moody discovered a nine-year-old boy, who he called Sam, that told him about how he died the previous year from a cardiac arrest. Moody writes that Sam told him about he floated out of his body and watched his doctor perform CPR to restart his heart. Sam then reported that he began to move rapidly away from the earth and towards a dark tunnel. He passed through the tunnel where he was met by a group of “angels”. He told Dr. Moody the angels did not have wings but described them as glowing. He described the place as filled with light and saw beautiful pastoral scenes encircled by a fence. The angels said if he went past the fence he would not be able to return to life. He then encountered a being of light who (Sam told Moody this was God) who told him he had to return to his body, p. 46 <ref name="isbn0-553-05285-3">{{cite book | author = Perry, Paul; Moody, Raymond A. | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = The light beyond | edition = | language = | publisher = Bantam Books | location = New York | year = 1988 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-553-05285-3 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
Patient Five nearly drowned when her hair was caught in a pool drain. She went onto to relate the following story: “All I remember was my hair getting stuck in the drain and then blacking out. The next thing I knew, I floated out of my body. I could see myself under the water but I wasn't afraid. All of a sudden I started going up a tunnel and before I could think about it, I found myself in heaven. I know it was heaven because everything was bright and everyone was cheerful. 'A nice young man asked me if I wanted to stay there. I thought about staying; I really did. But I said 'I want to be with my family'. Then I got to come back,” <ref name=Perry/>  


In ''The Light Beyond'' Moody gives several examples of children who experienced NDEs. While a resident at a Georgia hospital Moody discovered a nine-year-old boy, who he called Sam, who told him about how he nearly died the previous year from a cardiac arrest. Moody writes that Sam told him about he floated out of his body and watched his doctor perform CPR to restart his heart. Sam then reported that he began to move rapidly away from the earth and towards a dark tunnel. He passed through the tunnel where he was met by a group of “angels”. He told Dr. Moody the angels did not have wings but described them as glowing. He described the place as filled with light and saw beautiful pastoral scenes encircled by a fence. The angels said if he went past the fence he would not be able to return to life. He then encountered a being of light who (Sam told Moody this was God) who told him he had to return to his body<ref name=Moody/>


The NDE experience is similar between adults and children. Children though are typically accompanied by someone when they enter the light while adults usually do not report this experience, p. 105 ''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences''. Children may also be accompanied by a deceased family pet during an NDE, p. 98 ''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences''.
The NDE is similar between adults and children. Children though typically report being accompanied by someone when they enter the light while adults usually do not report this experience. Children may also describe being accompanied by a deceased family pet during an NDE <refname=Handbook/>


Of note preverbal and nonverbal children may indicate they witnessed the tunnel during the NDE, p. 98 ''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences''.  This information was discovered after observing how some children became fearful of tunnel-like objects. One child who experienced this fear of tunnels later asked if her grandmother would have to go through the tunnel found at a grocery store so she could see God.
Of note, preverbal and nonverbal children may indicate they witnessed the tunnel during the NDE<ref name=Handbook/>.  This information was discovered after observing how some children became fearful of tunnel-like objects. One child who experienced this fear of tunnels later asked if her grandmother would have to go through the tunnel found at a grocery store so she could see God.


Adults, who report childhood NDE experiences later in life, are reliable and not distorted or changed to fit cultural or social expectations, p. 105 T''he Handbook of Near-Death Experiences''. Moody states the near-death experiences of children give better evidence for an afterlife as they have not been influenced by cultural material, p. 60.
Adults, who report childhood NDEs later in life, are reliable and not distorted or changed to fit cultural or social expectations<ref name=Handbook/>. Moody states the NDEs of children give better evidence for an afterlife as they have been less influenced by cultural material.
 
==Colton Burpo==
Colton Burpo, 4,  nearly died from a ruptured appendix, but lived to tell about his trip to heaven. The book ''Heaven Is Real'' tells of Burpo's near-death experience and how he sat in the lap of Jesus. He also saw God and the mother of Jesus, Mary, during his NDE. Burpo gives detailed accounts from the viewpoint of a young child and often describes heaven as a place of rainbows, animals and people who wear wings. Colton reports seeing dead relatives including a beloved family member named Pop, who he later identified in a photo; and told about seeing a sister (she died in utero) who died before he was born. Colton did not know of his mother's miscarriage until after telling about seeing his sister. His father, Todd Burpo who is a pastor, provides biblical documentation to back up what his son reports.<ref name="isbn0-8499-4615-8">{{cite book | author = Lynn Vincent; Todd Burpo; Sonja Burpo; Colton Burpo | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = Heaven is for Real: A Little Boy's Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back | edition = | language = | publisher = Thomas Nelson | location = Walton-on-Thames, Surrey | year = 2010 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-8499-4615-8 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>


== Veridical  NDE==
== Veridical  NDE==
The apparently nonphysical veridical NDE perception (AVP) is when the NDE experiencer either through the current condition of the NVP or position of their body during their experience could not have been caused by normal sensory processes. The reported experience is backed up or corroborated as having a consensus to reality, p. 186 ''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences''.  
The ''apparently nonphysical veridical NDE perception'' (AVP) is when the NDE experiencer either through the current condition of the NVP or position of their body during their experience could not have been caused by normal sensory processes. One of the best documented cases of AVP concerns Pam Reynolds who underwent surgery for a brain aneurysm. Neurosurgeon Robert Spetzler performed a “hypothermic cardiac arrest” during surgery to repair the aneurysm. Below is a paraphrased summation of the report filed by Spetzler. <ref name= Handbook/>.  


AVP experiencers are further defined as undergoing reversible death and were revived. “...from a purely scientific perspective, the nature of  
At 7:15 a.m. Reynolds is brought into the operating room in a conscious state, she is then given intravenous petnathol, whereupon she reported a 'loss of time'. Her eyes were taped shut and general anesthesia was administered. Monitoring devices were then instrumented to her including EEG electrodes to her head. Small speakers were molded to and inserted in both of her ears to emit a 95 decibel clicking sound that would register on a monitor of her brainstem. By 8:40 a.m. an incision was made into her scalp and a section of her skull was removed. It was determined the hypothermic cardiac procedure would be performed due to the size of the aneurysm. By 10:50 a.m. The blood cooling and cardiopulmonary bypass was underway. At 11 a.m. Reynold's core body temperature was 73 degrees F. At 11:25 a.m. Her core body temperature was 60 degrees and “the clicks from the ear speakers no longer elicited a response” <ref name=Handbook/>. The aneurysm was repaired and the process of restoring normal body functions began.  At 12 noon, the heart monitor showed ventricular defibirilation and two defibrilation shocks were administered. Her heart beat normally. By 12:32 p.m. Her body temperature registered 89.6 degrees and the monitoring equipment was removed. She was taken to the recovery room in stable condition at 2:10 p.m.
person's consciousness during reversible death may or may not indicate the nature of one's concerning during irreversible death. The consciousness associated with a body that has not yet lost the potential to live may or may not be the same as the consciousness associated with a body that has lost that potential,” p. 187 ''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences''.  


One of the best documented cases of AVP concerns Pam Reynolds who under went surgery for a brain aneurysm. Neurosurgeon Robert Spetzler performed a “hypothermic cardiac arrest” during surgery in order to repair the aneurysm. Below is a paraphrased summation of the report filed by Spetzler.  This information was found in ''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences'' and was paraphrased from ''To Light and Death'' written by NDE researcher Michael Sabom.
Reynolds reported hearing the cranial saw after the pentathol was administered. As a musician, she was able to determine that she saw a natural D tone emitted and that sound pulled her out through the top of her head. Reynolds claimed a greater sense of awareness and enhanced vision. She also 'observed' surgical procedures such as the tools used to operate and observed the way her head was shaved. She also encountered deceased loved ones including an uncle “giving her a push back” to help her enter her body. Reynolds said her reentry into her body felt like jumping into a pool of ice water.
 
At 7:15 a.m. Reynolds is brought into the operating room in a conscious state, she is then given intravenous petnathol where upon she reported a loss of time. Her eyes were taped shut and general anesthesia was administered. Monitoring devices were then instrumented to her including EEG electrodes to her head. Small speakers were molded to and inserted in both of her ears to emit a 95 decibel clicking sound that would register on a monitor of her brain stem. By 8:40 a.m. an incision was made into her scalp and a section of her skull was removed. It was determined the hypothermic cardiac procedure would be performed due to the size of the aneurysm. By 10:50 a.m. The blood cooling and cardiopulmonary bypass was underway. At 11 a.m. Reynold's core body temperature was 73 degrees F. At 11:25 a.m. Her core body temperature was 60 degrees and “the clicks from the ear speakers no longer elicited a response,” p. 192 ''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences''. The aneurysm was repaired and the process of restoring normal body functions began.  At 12 noon the heart monitor showed ventricular defibirilation and two defibrilation shocks were administered. Her heart beat normally. By 12:32 p.m. Her body temperature registered 89.6 degrees and the monitoring equipment was removed. She was taken to the recovery room in stable condition at 2:10 p.m.
 
Reynolds reported hearing the cranial saw after the pentathol was administered. As a musician, she was able to determine that she saw a natural D tone emitted and that sound pulled her out through the top of her head. Reynolds claimed a greater sense of awareness and enhanced vision. She also observed surgical procedures such as the tools used to operate and observed the way her head was shaved. She also encountered deceased loved ones including an uncle “giving her a push back” to help her enter her body. Reynolds said her reentry into her body felt like jumping into a pool of ice water.  


== Hellish NDEs==
== Hellish NDEs==
Key reported components of the hell-like NDE include seeing lifeless or threatening apparitions; barren or ugly landscapes; hearing threats, screams or perceiving silence; feeling a sense of danger or the possibility of violence including torture; a feeling of cold or temperature extremes and a sense of hell, p. 69 ''The Handbook of Near-Death Rxperiences''.
Key reported components of the hell-like NDE include seeing lifeless or threatening apparitions; barren or ugly landscapes; hearing threats, screams or perceiving silence; feeling a sense of danger or the possibility of violence including torture; a feeling of cold or temperature extremes and a sense of hell<ref name=Handbook/>.  
 
In a study conducted by Hubert Knoblauch, Ina Schmied and Bernt Schnetter they studied 82 German participants. Of the 82 study contributors 4 percent reported NDEs. Of those NDEs 60 percent of the West German correspondents reported positive NDEs (or emotions) while 29% reported negative (or emotions) in the study. Of interest was the difference between the West and East German study participants as the East German participants reported 40 percent positive and 60 percent negative in this study sample. “The authors concluded that not only the interpretation but 'also the very content of what is experienced...is culturally constructed,” p. 69 ''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences''.  


Montana State University Health Science Professor William Serdahely reported in his study of 12 NDE experiencers 33 percent considered the experience scary or frightening, p. 69 The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences. The scantiness of statistics concerning hellish NDEs may be based upon the lack of wanting to disclose this experience states medical social worker Kimberly Clark Sharp. She says people will call and start to discuss their negative experience and then change their mind, p. 70 ''The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences''.  
A study conducted by Hubert Knoblauch, Ina Schmied and Bernt Schnetter involved 82 German participants, of these, 4% reported NDEs; 60% of the West German correspondents reported positive NDEs (or emotions) while 29% reported negative NDEs (or emotions), whereas the East German participants reported 40% positive and 60% negative experiences. “The authors concluded that not only the interpretation but 'also the very content of what is experienced...is culturally constructed.” <ref name=Handbook/>


== Blind can see during an NDE ==
Montana State University Health Science Professor William Serdahely reported that 4 of 12 NDE experiencers considered the experience scary or frightening<ref name= Handbook/>. The scantiness of statistics concerning hellish NDEs may be based upon the lack of wanting to disclose this experience states medical social worker Kimberly Clark Sharp. She says people will call and start to discuss their negative experience and then change their mind. <ref name=Handbook/>
Morse writes about Vicki Umipeg who developed blindness as a premature baby. Umipeg had her first NDE and reported seeing Jesus who had woolly hair. This experience happened during an appendectomy at the age of 12. She saw Jesus and had a brief life review. She was told to be kind and show others how to be kind. As an adult she had a second NDE after being in an auto accident. During this experience she arose from her body, traveled through the tunnel, saw deceased relatives and friends and saw Jesus. She was instructed by Jesus to not touch anyone nor to cross through the gate as it wasn't her time. She returned to her body through a tunnel with holes and saw people traveling along similar paths alongside her. She felt like she was being propelled along. During this experience she heard fanlike sounds, chimes and smelled the scent of jasmine. During this experience she received knowledge of all sorts. "...there was a brief time when knowledge came to her on most any topic; mathematics, science, astronomy, building, sewing....she would think it and the knowledge would come. She didn't bring the knowledge back with her, but she remembers having it. Jesus told her she must go back to have her children, and that someday she'd have all that knowledge again. She was told she had to go back to learn and teach about loving and forgiving, then she had a very intense life review and was returned."
== Blind can "see" during an NDE ==
Morse writes about Vicki Umipeg who developed blindness as a premature baby. Umipeg had her first NDE during an appendectomy at the age of 12, and experienced a very typical NDE despite her blindness. She reported "seeing" Jesus, as a man with woolly hair who told her to be kind and show others how to be kind. As an adult she had a second classic NDE after an auto accident. During this she reported that she had an OBE, reported travelling through a tunnel, seeing deceased relatives and friends and seeing Jesus, who instructed her not to not touch anyone nor to cross through the gate as it wasn't her time. She returned to her body through a tunnel with holes and saw people traveling along similar paths alongside her. She felt like she was being propelled along. During this experience she heard fanlike sounds, chimes and smelled the scent of jasmine. During this experience she received knowledge of all sorts. "...there was a brief time when knowledge came to her on most any topic; mathematics, science, astronomy, building, sewing....she would think it and the knowledge would come. She didn't bring the knowledge back with her, but she remembers having it. Jesus told her she must go back to have her children, and that someday she'd have all that knowledge again. She was told she had to go back to learn and teach about loving and forgiving, then she had a very intense life review and was returned."


Morse writes Umipeg has never developed any light perception although she had some 'facial vision' but that has lessened after her auto accident. 'To 'see', has memories of things by touch, but in NDE's objects were "percieved from a distance" and felt "very eerie". She didn't see colors and doesn't know what 'colors' are, but saw different brilliances of light, and having never seen light, it was "almost appalling (to see light during her NDE.)'<ref name="urlVickys NDE">{{cite web | url = http://www.melvinmorse.com/e-blind.htm | title = Vicky's NDE | author = | authorlink = | coauthors = | date = | format = | work = | publisher = | pages = | language = | archiveurl = | archivedate = | quote = | accessdate = 2011-02-27}}</ref>  
Morse writes Umipeg has never developed any light perception although she had some 'facial vision' but that has lessened after her auto accident. 'To 'see', has memories of things by touch, but in NDE's objects were "perceived from a distance" and felt "very eerie". She didn't see colors and doesn't know what 'colors' are, but saw different brilliances of light, and having never seen light, it was "almost appalling (to see light during her NDE.)'<ref name="urlVickys NDE">{{cite web | url = http://www.melvinmorse.com/e-blind.htm | title = Vicky's NDE | accessdate = 2011-02-27}}</ref>


== Transformation ==
== Transformation ==
Moody writes that all of the clinicians and scholars he has talked to, and who have interviewed NDE experiencers, said the experiencers were better people because of the NDE, p. 27 The Light Beyond. He cites research done by Charles Flynn who found that NDE experiencers developed a greater concern for others after their experience. They also developed an increased belief in the afterlife and a lessened fear of death, p. 28 The Light Beyond. “Loss of the fear of death was reported with the greatest frequency. NDErs have tended to attribute this loss to a new or strengthened belief in survival of bodily death,” p. 45 The Near-Death Handbook. While they retained their fear of dying their experience had lessened the fear of death itself.  They also developed a greater sense of spirituality  which was enhanced or new to the experiencer.  They may also report a greater sense of purpose in their life and many reported they were sent back to complete their work. Sometimes their mission was not clear, but the NDE experiencer felt there was need for their return and a mission to accomplish. Many of the NDE experiencers also reported a sense of being detached from their body or they felt imprisoned by their body, p. 46 The Handbook Of Near-Death Experiences. They also reported greater compassion and a desire to serve after their experience.  
Moody writes that all of the clinicians and scholars he has talked to, and who have interviewed NDE experiencers, said the experiencers were better people because of the NDE, p. 27 ''The Light Beyond''. He cites research done by Charles Flynn who found that NDE experiencers developed a greater concern for others after their experience. They also developed an increased belief in the afterlife and a lessened fear of death, p. 28 ''The Light Beyond''. “Loss of the fear of death was reported with the greatest frequency. NDErs have tended to attribute this loss to a new or strengthened belief in survival of bodily death,” <ref name=Handbook/>. While they retained their fear of dying their experience had lessened the fear of death itself.  They also developed a greater sense of spirituality  which was enhanced or new to the experiencer.  They may also report a greater sense of purpose in their life and many reported they were sent back to complete their work. Sometimes their mission was not clear, but the NDE experiencer felt there was need for their return and a mission to accomplish. Many of the NDE experiencers also reported a sense of being detached from their body or they felt imprisoned by their body.<ref name=Handbook/>  They also reported greater compassion and a desire to serve after their experience.  


Patient One in Morse's book'' Closer to the Light'' states “I know one thing. I am not afraid to die. My near-death experience has made me more aware of life. It has kept me from being interested in drugs or driving around in cars and getting high like my friends do, “ p. 166.
Patient One in Morse's book'' Closer to the Light'' states “I know one thing. I am not afraid to die. My near-death experience has made me more aware of life. It has kept me from being interested in drugs or driving around in cars and getting high like my friends do, “ p. 166.
==Paranormal experiences==
Interestingly NDE experiencers developed an increased frequency for paranormal experiences. <ref name="isbn0-313-35864-8">{{cite book | author = Debbie James; Holden, Janice Miner; Greyson, Bruce | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = The handbook of near-death experiences: thirty years of investigation | edition = | language = | publisher = Praeger Publishers | location = New York | year = 2009 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-313-35864-8 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
==Theories of what may cause a Near-Death Experience ==


===The Birth Tunnel experience===
===The Birth Tunnel experience===
Astronomer Carl Sagan proposed the NDE is a leftover birth memory. Sagan writes in his book ''Broca's Brain: Reflections on the Romance of Science'' every human being has the shared experience of birth to back up his theory.
Astronomer Carl Sagan proposed the NDE is a leftover birth memory. Sagan writes in ''Broca's Brain: Reflections on the Romance of Science'' every human being has the shared experience of birth to back up his theory.--->


===Carbon dioxide overload===
== Near-Death-Like experiences that are not==
Some researchers think a carbon dioxide overload in the brain may cause the NDE. <ref name="isbn0-553-05285-3">{{cite book | author = Perry, Paul; Moody, Raymond A. | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = The light beyond | edition = | language = | publisher = Bantam Books | location = New York | year = 1988 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-553-05285-3 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
One view of NDEs is to include them in the large group of phenomena in which changes in the body seem related to mental or spiritual experiences. There are many of these, from mediation and fasting to ceremonial intoxicants to forty days in the wilderness. In any of them, the effects have been interpreted as anything from madness to divine inspiration. Morse <ref name= Moody/> rejects this view, and considers none of the following to be NDEs:


=== Endorphin model ===
*[[LSD]] – People who use this drug may feel like they've left their bodies. They also know they are not experiencing reality.
Endorphins are produced in the brain to help alleviate pain. The “runners high” is a good example of this phenomena. Dr. Daniel Carr proposes the brain produces endorphins to help ease the pain of dying.  “There is no evidence in the medical literature that the stresses of dying actually produce significantly greater amounts of endorphins in the brain,” writes Morse, p. 191'' Closer to the Light''. <ref name="isbn0-553-05285-3">{{cite book | author = Perry, Paul; Moody, Raymond A. | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = The light beyond | edition = | language = | publisher = Bantam Books | location = New York | year = 1988 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-553-05285-3 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
*[[Morphine]] and [[Heroin]] – People using these drugs usually do not perceive this experience as real, nor does it usually involve seeing the tunnel of light, seeing the light, or having visions of heaven.
*Recreational drugs such as [[marijuana]], [[cocaine]], [[amphetamine]]s and [[barbituate]]s tend to cause paranoia, speech disturbances, loss of control of thought processes, poor memory, depression and fear, but not NDE-like experiences.
*Anesthetic Agents – [[halothane]], [[surital]], [[nitrous oxide]], [[narcotic]]s, and [[nembutal]] do not cause hallucinations, although the patient may hear conversations while under the influence of one of these agents and become confused.  
*[[Ketamine]] – Another anesthetic agent no longer used. When used, patients reported frightening OBEs and they may have seen mirror images of themselves (autoscopic) when under the influence of this agent. Patients also know they are under the influence of drugs during this experience.  
*Transient Depersonalization – The person becomes emotionally detached from their bodies during a near-fatal experience. Morse found no evidence of this in the children he interviewed after their NDE.
<ref name= Moody/>


=== Hypoxia ===
== Causes of NDEs ==
Morse writes there was no evidence that patients who experienced NDEs were any more deprived of oxygen than the control group that did not have NDEs. <ref name="isbn0-553-05285-3">{{cite book | author = Perry, Paul; Moody, Raymond A. | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = The light beyond | edition = | language = | publisher = Bantam Books | location = New York | year = 1988 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-553-05285-3 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
NDEs seem to be relatively common in cardiac arrest patients after successful resuscitation, with an estimated incidence of 11 to 23%.<ref>Parnia S ''et al.'' (2007) Near death experiences, cognitive function and psychological outcomes of surviving cardiac arrest ''Resuscitation'' 74:215-21 Review. PMID 17416449 </ref>One prospective study of 52 patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest reported that 11 had experienced an NDE, and that this was connected to higher initial partial pressures of end-tidal CO2, higher arterial blood CO2 levels, and previous NDEs. Higher serum levels of potassium might also play a role. During cardiac arrest, the end-tidal CO2 falls to very low levels, reflecting the very low cardiac output achieved with cardiopulmonary resuscitation. CO2 levels affect the acid-base equilibrium in the brain, and this can provoke unusual experiences in the form of bright light, visions, and out-of-body experiences <ref>Klemenc-Ketis ''et al.'' (2010) The effect of carbon dioxide on near-death experiences in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survivors: a prospective observational study ''Crit Care'' 14:R56 PMID 20377847 </ref>


== Near-Death-Like experiences that are not==
In 2007, the ''New England Journal of Medicine'' published a report of a patient, in whom electrodes had been implanted to suppress tinnitus, who repeatedly experienced an out-of-body experience during stimulation of part of the superior temporal gyrus. [[Positron-emission tomography| Positron-emission tomographic]] scanning showed brain activation at specific brain sites following stimulation, and the authors suggested that the experience of disembodiment is mediated by coactivation of a small area at the junction of the angular and supramarginal gyrus, which affects vestibular–somatosensory integration of body orientation in space, and the posterior part of the superior temporal cortex, which is believed to be involved in processing an internal map of self-perception. They suggest that these same regions may be activated in patients who report disembodiment as part of an NDE.<ref>De Ridder D ''et al.'' (2007) Visualizing out-of-body experience in the brain ''N Engl J Med'' 357:1829-33 PMID 17978291</ref>
*LSD – People who use this drug may feel like they've left their bodies. They also know they are not experiencing reality.
*Morphine and Heroin – People using these drugs usually do not perceive this experience as real. They also may experience nausea and vomiting. Nor does it usually involve seeing the tunnel of light, seeing the light, or having concrete visions of heaven.
*Recreational drugs such as marijuana, cocaine, PCP, apmphetamines and barbituates tend to cause paranoia, speech disturbances, loss of control of thought processes, poor memory, depression and fear. No NDE-like experiences are reported when recreational drugs are used.
*Anesthetic Agents – Halothane, surital, nitrous oxide, narcotics, and Membutal do not cause hallucinations. The patient may hear conversations while under the influence of one of these agents and become confused.
*Ketamine – Another anesthetic agent no longer used. When use patients reported frightening OBEs and they may have seen mirror images of themselves (autoscopic) when under the influence of this agent. Patients also know they are under the influence of drugs during this experience.  
*Transient Depersonalization – The person becomes emotionally detached from their bodies during a near-fatal experience. Morse writes he's found no evidence of this in the children he interviewed after their NDE experience.


The above information was paraphrased from the book ''Closer to the Light'' by Morse. <ref name="isbn0-553-05285-3">{{cite book | author = Perry, Paul; Moody, Raymond A. | authorlink = | editor = | others = | title = The light beyond | edition = | language = | publisher = Bantam Books | location = New York | year = 1988 | origyear = | pages = | quote = | isbn = 0-553-05285-3 | oclc = | doi = | url = | accessdate = }}</ref>
Neuroscientist Mario Beauregard and colleagues measured brain activity (using [[functional magnetic resonance imaging]] (fMRI) and [[electroencephalography]] (EEG)) while they meditated; participants were asked to mentally visualize and emotionally connect with the "being of light" allegedly encountered during their "near-death experience". The meditative state was associated with hemodynamic and neuroelectric changes in brain regions known to be involved either in positive emotions, visual mental imagery, attention or spiritual experiences.<ref>Beauregard M ''et al.'' (2009) Brain activity in near-death experiencers during a meditative state ''Resuscitation'' 80:1006-10 PMID 19573975</ref>  


== Reported mechanisms ==
Pyschiatrist Karl Jansen attributes NDEs to “underlying mechanisms in more mysterious realms that cannot currently be described." He attributes NDEs partly to neurochemistry and [[psychology]]. <ref name=TIME>{{cite web
Not everyone agrees about what causes the reported NDE. Some believe the event is a peek into the the [[afterlife]] while others discount the experience as being caused by some form of artificial means discounting the afterlife aspect.
 
University of Montreal neuroscientist Mario Beauregard examined the brains of 15 people who reported near-death experiences.  The participants relived their experiences while Beauregard completed the exam using [[electrodes]] and an isolation chamber. Beauregard noted there was a shift in their brain and the shift would allow these people to stay in touch with the spiritual world.<ref name="urlDecoding The Mystery Of Near-Death Experiences : NPR">{{cite web
|url=http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=104397005
|title=Decoding The Mystery Of Near-Death Experiences : NPR
|format=
|work=
|accessdate=2011-01-11
}}</ref>
 
Auckland pyschiatrist Karl Jansen attributes NDEs to “underlying mechanisms in more mysterious realms that cannot currently be described." He does attribute NDEs partly to neurochemistry and[[ psychology]]. <ref name="urlAt the Hour Of Our Death - TIME">{{cite web
|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1657919,00.html
|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1657919,00.html
|title=At the Hour Of Our Death - TIME
|title=At the Hour Of Our Death - TIME=|accessdate=2011-01-11}}</ref>  
|format=
|work=
|accessdate=2011-01-11
}}</ref>  


[[Neurologist]] Kevin Nelson believes NDEs are not imagined but lie within the brain itself. He attributes NDEs to [[Rapid Eye Movement]] (REM) state. Nelson also believes the NDE bright light is caused by visual stimulation in the brain due to the REM. The tunnel is also caused by a decrease of blood flow to the[[eye]].<ref name="urlDoctor says near-death experiences are in the mind - Page 2 - CNN">{{cite web
[[Neurologist]] Kevin Nelson attributes NDEs to [[Rapid Eye Movement]] (REM) state, and believes that the NDE bright light is caused by visual stimulation in the brain due to the REM, while the 'tunnel' is caused by a decrease of blood flow to the[[eye]].<ref name="urlDoctor says near-death experiences are in the mind - Page 2 - CNN">{{cite web
|url=http://articles.cnn.com/2009-10-16/health/cheating.near.death_1_geraghty-cardiac-arrest-school-bus/2?_s=PM:HEALTH
|url=http://articles.cnn.com/2009-10-16/health/cheating.near.death_1_geraghty-cardiac-arrest-school-bus/2?_s=PM:HEALTH
|title=Doctor says near-death experiences are in the mind - Page 2 - CNN
|title=Doctor says near-death experiences are in the mind - Page 2 - CNN
|format=
|work=
|accessdate=2011-01-11
}}</ref>
Mark Mahowald, director of the Minnesota Regional Sleep Disorders Center, believes there is nothing mysterious about NDEs. He attributes NDEs to [[oxygen]] starvation in the brain.<ref name="urlAt the Hour Of Our Death - TIME">{{cite web
|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1657919,00.html
|title=At the Hour Of Our Death - TIME
|format=
|work=
|accessdate=2011-01-11
|accessdate=2011-01-11
}}</ref>
}}</ref> Mark Mahowald, director of the Minnesota Regional Sleep Disorders Center similarly attributes NDEs to [[oxygen]] starvation in the brain.<ref name=TIME/>


== Laboratory-induced NDE ==
Recently, it has been established that the spectrum of effects attributed to near-death experiences can be fully reproduced, at will, by area-specific stimulation of the brain by [[magnetic resonance imaging]] techniques in combination with sensory deprivation.


Morse writes in  ''Closer to the Light'' that electrical stimulation of the right temporal lobe has caused patients to report 'seeing God'. He first came up with this theory after discussing NDEs with Art Ward who was the chairman of neurosurgery at the [[University of Washington]]. Ward recalled one patient who experienced every trait of the NDE experience after an area of his brain was examined with an electric probe (by [[Wilder Penfield]]).  <!---After this discussion between Morse and Ward further research was done concerning Penfield's work. The area being mapped was called the [[Sylvian fissure]] located in the area of the right temporal lobe, p. 104-105 ''Closer to the Light''. Researchers in Chile confirmed that near-death experiences were caused by neuron activity within the Sylvian fissure.


== The seat of the soul ==
“Learning that other scientists had reached the same conclusion independently told us that we had at least discovered the circuit boards of mysticism. In our hearts, some of us believed strongly that we had discovered the seat of the soul” p. 110 ''Closer to the Light''.--->
There are many theories on what causes an NDE, but none have been proven. Morse writes in his book ''Closer to the Light'' the right temporal lobe when electrically stimulated has caused patients to report 'seeing God'. He first came up with this theory after discussing NDEs with Art Ward who was the chairman of neurosurgery at the University of Washington. During their conversation, Ward reported many of his own patients had reported similar experiences. He recalled one patient who experienced every trait of the NDE experience after an area of his brain was examined with an electric probe. Wilder Penfeld was conducting the examination reported Ward.  After this discussion between Morse and Ward further research was done concerning Penfeld's work. The area being mapped was called the Sylvian fissure located in the area of the right temporal lobe, p. 104-105 ''Closer to the Light''. Researchers in Chile confirmed that near-death experiences were caused by neuron activity within the Sylvian fissure.


“Learning that other scientists had reached the same conclusion independently told us that we had at least discovered the circuit boards of mysticism. In our hearts, some of use believed strongly that we had discovered the seat of the soul,” p. 110 ''Closer to the Light''.
==References==
{{reflist}}

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"Well, I said, I will tell you a tale; not one of the tales which Odysseus tells to the hero Alcinous, yet this too is a tale of a hero, Er the son of Armenius, a Pamphylian by birth. He was slain in battle, and ten days afterwards, when the bodies of the dead were taken up already in a state of corruption, his body was found unaffected by decay, and carried away home to be buried. And on the twelfth day, as he was lying on the funeral pile, he returned to life and told them what he had seen in the other world." (from Plato, The Republic)

(PD) Image: Hieronymus Bosch

Near-death experience (NDE) is the common name for feelings, impressions and out-of-body experiences, reported especially by people who appear to have died but revived.[1]

Such reports date back to the time of Plato who wrote about the Myth of Er.[2], but the term near-death experience was coined by a psychologist, Raymond Moody, in his book, Life after Life, first published in 1975.[3] The book was a compilation of the experiences reported by more than 100 people who came close to death. Moody believes in an afterlife, and regards these reports as possible supporting evidence for this, while recognising that there are other explanations. Generally however, scientists consider that NDEs arise from the disordered activity of a brain under extreme stress that is interpreted in a way conditioned by expectations. [4]

In a later book, Moody wrote: “By the classical definition, death is the state from which you don't return. It is defined as irreversible. Hence, since all of the NDEers returned, they were never really dead. What happened was that various criteria for death were fufilled" [5] [6] Both adults and children report similar NDE experiences.[7] Similar experiences have been reported by others, including when someone is participating in meditation, under emotional duress or at the bedside of a dying loved one.

Did the NDE experiencer really die?

The immediate reactions to Moody's book were very polarised; some embraced the reports as endorsing their belief in an afterlife, others dismissed the reports as hallucinatory delusions or mere inventions. Moody's book was simply a compilation of anecdotes. However, other researchers since then have consistently found that NDEs are a relatively common occurrence, and follow a quite consistent narrative form in many different cultures and in historical accounts. This suggests that NDEs share a common neurological basis, and various theories have been proposed, for example, that neuronal dysfunction due to anoxia and/or carbon dioxide overload leads to a sequence of disordered brain activity that is subsequently interpreted as an "experience" in a way conditioned by expectations.[8]

Even if the NDE has a relatively prosaic explanation, the impact of an NDE on the lives of those who have experienced one is often considerable. There are many accounts of an NDE changing a person's values, making them less afraid of death, more religious and less materialistic. Conversely, an NDE apparently led Hong Xiuquan to believe that he was the brother of Jesus Christ, and he went on to lead a rebellion that claimed at least 20 million lives. [9]

Scales

In 1980, psychologist Kenneth Ring developed a 10 point interview scale, which he used to interview 102 people who had come close to death. The interview using the scale determined that 48% of Ring's group had had an NDE. Using this information he developed the Weighted Core Experience Index. [10] This index asked about whether the NDE was peaceful; involved an Out-of-Body Experience (OBE); tunnel or dark area; saw a light; entered the light.

The Greyson Scale was developed by psychiatrist Bruce Greyson after he interviewed 74 people who reported an NDE. [11] [12][13] He used the 16 most frequently reported features to develop his questionaire, which sought to establish whether there had been: an experience of altered time; accelerated thought process; a life review; a sense of sudden understanding; feelings of peace/joy/'cosmic oneness'; seeing or feeling the surrounding of light; reporting vivid sensations; extrasensory perception (ESP); experiencing visions; an OBE; a sense being in an 'otherworldly environment', of a mystical entity; of deceased or religious figures; or of a 'border' or point of no return. Each question is rated 0, 1 or 2. The potential maximum score was 32 and a score of 7 was needed to qualify for having an NDE. [10] There are variances between adults and children in what they may experience and describe concerning the NDE. Cultural variations concerning NDEs have also been reported.

Incidence

In The Light Beyond, Moody explained that people often reported the following:

  1. a "sense of peace and painlessness”. Cardiac patients, according to Moody, report the intense pain of a heart attack turns into pleasure.
  2. an "Out-of-Body Experience" (OBE): Moody reports his study subjects described seeing their body below while retaining a “body” of some sort they can not describe.
  3. a tunnel. “The descriptions are many, but the sense of what is happening remains the same: the person is going through a passageway toward an intense light” .
  4. 'People of Light', that glow with intense luminescence that fills the person with love. The light is described as being much brighter than anything found on earth while not hurting the eyes. The person under-going this experience may see friends and relatives who have died.
  5. Being of Light: The NDE witness will report seeing a holy supreme being of light. When meeting this holy being the person wants to remain but is told by the being of light to return to their earthly body.
  6. Life Review: “The closest description I've heard of it is that the whole person's life is there at once,” writes Moody. Moody states the NDE experiencer comes away from the experience realizing the most important things in life are love followed by knowledge.
  7. Return: NDE experiencers want to remain in the heavenly place and often experience short-term anger when they are brought back from death states.

In 1982, a Gallup poll survey in the United States of America, where most people believe in an afterlife, estimated that approximately 8 million people had had an NDE.[10] Of those, 26% described an OBE; 23% felt that they had experienced accurate visual perception; 17% heard sounds or voices; 32% feelings of peace or painlessness ; 14% saw light phenomena; 32% described having a life review ;32% being in another world ;23% encountering other beings; 9% described a tunnel experience; and 6% described a sense of precognition .

In 2011, the journal Trends in Cognitive Sciences published a paper entitled 'There is nothing paranormal about near-death experiences: how neuroscience can explain seeing bright lights, meeting the dead, or being convinced you are one of them'. The paper, by neuroscientists Dean Mobbs and Caroline Watt, summarised the results of various scientific studies of NDEs. [14]

A commonly reported features of NDEs is an awareness of being dead - but these feelings are not limited to NDEs. A condition called "Cotard" - or "walking corpse" syndrome, where a person believes they are dead, has been seen after trauma and during the advanced stages of typhoid and multiple sclerosis.[15] Out-of-body experiences can be artificially induced by stimulating the right temporoparietal junction in the brain, an area that has a role in perception and awareness.[16] The "tunnel of light" sensation can also be artificially induced: pilots flying at G-force can experience "hypertensive syncope" which causes tunnel-like vision for up to eight seconds [17], and one study suggests that the light at the end of the tunnel is explained by poor blood and oxygen supply to the eye.[18] The feelings of bliss and euphoria, meanwhile, can be recreated with drugs such as ketamine and amphetamine.

Non-Western experiences

"I died, as you know. I seemed to leave my body and stand beside it, looking down on what was me. The me that was standing there looked like the form I was looking at, only, I was alive and the other was dead. I gazed at my body for a few minutes, then turned and walked away. I left the house and village, and walked on and on to the next village, and there I found crowds of people,—Oh, so many people! The place which I knew as a small village of a few houses was a very large place, with hundreds of houses and thousands of men, women, and children. Some of them I knew and they spoke to me,—although that seemed strange, for I knew they were dead,—but nearly all were strangers. They were all so happy! They seemed not to have a care; nothing to trouble them. Joy was in every face, and happy laughter and bright, loving words were on every tongue." From Hawaiian Folk Tales (1907) [19]

The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences summarises reports collated in 16 refereed journal articles describing more than 275 non-Western NDEs, gathered since 2005. Experiences from Asia, Pacific area and hunter-gatherer cultures, and show many similarities .[19]

Children

Pediatrician Melvin Morse became interested in NDEs after one of his patients told about her NDE. She was resuscitated after nearly drowning. Katie spent three days near the brink of death and was kept in a deep coma. On the third day she awoke as if from a deep sleep and by the next day was visiting with family. She showed no signs of brain damage. Morse interviewed the girl about what she remembered from the experience and was told about her visit to heaven. Morse reports a person actually needs to be near death to have a near-death experience. He also reports the ara in the brain near the right temporal lobe is genetically coded for near-death experiences, forward to the book Closer to the Light. [20]

Morse created the Seattle Study to determine if someone needed to be near death in order to have an NDE. The control group of 121 seriously ill children had a less than five percent chance of dying but were ill. Morse interviewed children based on the psychological experience of being in an intensive care unit with no mention of NDEs. Interviews lasted approximately two hours and asked questions such as what the patient remembered while being sick, dreams and hospital experiences. 118 of the children who were seriously ill, but not close to death, did not remember their hospital experience.

The experimental group, the cardiac survivors or ones who awoke from deep comas, most of the children did report at least one feature of the NDE. Morse states the child would often start telling of their experience with a puzzled look. He gave the example of “Well, I kind of remember a really funny thing that I can't exactly telly. I was looking at myself and going somewhere, but I didn't exactly know where,” p. 23 Closer to the Light. Morse said the children would go onto tell about their NDE. Some of the children were not affected by the experience while others were profoundly affected. [20]


Near-Death-Like experiences that are not

One view of NDEs is to include them in the large group of phenomena in which changes in the body seem related to mental or spiritual experiences. There are many of these, from mediation and fasting to ceremonial intoxicants to forty days in the wilderness. In any of them, the effects have been interpreted as anything from madness to divine inspiration. Morse [5] rejects this view, and considers none of the following to be NDEs:

  • LSD – People who use this drug may feel like they've left their bodies. They also know they are not experiencing reality.
  • Morphine and Heroin – People using these drugs usually do not perceive this experience as real, nor does it usually involve seeing the tunnel of light, seeing the light, or having visions of heaven.
  • Recreational drugs such as marijuana, cocaine, amphetamines and barbituates tend to cause paranoia, speech disturbances, loss of control of thought processes, poor memory, depression and fear, but not NDE-like experiences.
  • Anesthetic Agents – halothane, surital, nitrous oxide, narcotics, and nembutal do not cause hallucinations, although the patient may hear conversations while under the influence of one of these agents and become confused.
  • Ketamine – Another anesthetic agent no longer used. When used, patients reported frightening OBEs and they may have seen mirror images of themselves (autoscopic) when under the influence of this agent. Patients also know they are under the influence of drugs during this experience.
  • Transient Depersonalization – The person becomes emotionally detached from their bodies during a near-fatal experience. Morse found no evidence of this in the children he interviewed after their NDE.

[5]

Causes of NDEs

NDEs seem to be relatively common in cardiac arrest patients after successful resuscitation, with an estimated incidence of 11 to 23%.[21]One prospective study of 52 patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest reported that 11 had experienced an NDE, and that this was connected to higher initial partial pressures of end-tidal CO2, higher arterial blood CO2 levels, and previous NDEs. Higher serum levels of potassium might also play a role. During cardiac arrest, the end-tidal CO2 falls to very low levels, reflecting the very low cardiac output achieved with cardiopulmonary resuscitation. CO2 levels affect the acid-base equilibrium in the brain, and this can provoke unusual experiences in the form of bright light, visions, and out-of-body experiences [22]

In 2007, the New England Journal of Medicine published a report of a patient, in whom electrodes had been implanted to suppress tinnitus, who repeatedly experienced an out-of-body experience during stimulation of part of the superior temporal gyrus. Positron-emission tomographic scanning showed brain activation at specific brain sites following stimulation, and the authors suggested that the experience of disembodiment is mediated by coactivation of a small area at the junction of the angular and supramarginal gyrus, which affects vestibular–somatosensory integration of body orientation in space, and the posterior part of the superior temporal cortex, which is believed to be involved in processing an internal map of self-perception. They suggest that these same regions may be activated in patients who report disembodiment as part of an NDE.[23]

Neuroscientist Mario Beauregard and colleagues measured brain activity (using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and electroencephalography (EEG)) while they meditated; participants were asked to mentally visualize and emotionally connect with the "being of light" allegedly encountered during their "near-death experience". The meditative state was associated with hemodynamic and neuroelectric changes in brain regions known to be involved either in positive emotions, visual mental imagery, attention or spiritual experiences.[24]

Pyschiatrist Karl Jansen attributes NDEs to “underlying mechanisms in more mysterious realms that cannot currently be described." He attributes NDEs partly to neurochemistry and psychology. [25]

Neurologist Kevin Nelson attributes NDEs to Rapid Eye Movement (REM) state, and believes that the NDE bright light is caused by visual stimulation in the brain due to the REM, while the 'tunnel' is caused by a decrease of blood flow to theeye.[26] Mark Mahowald, director of the Minnesota Regional Sleep Disorders Center similarly attributes NDEs to oxygen starvation in the brain.[25]


Morse writes in Closer to the Light that electrical stimulation of the right temporal lobe has caused patients to report 'seeing God'. He first came up with this theory after discussing NDEs with Art Ward who was the chairman of neurosurgery at the University of Washington. Ward recalled one patient who experienced every trait of the NDE experience after an area of his brain was examined with an electric probe (by Wilder Penfield).

References

  1. ↑ Blackmore SJ (1996) Near-death experiences J R Soc Med 89:73-6. Review. PMID 8683504
  2. ↑ Myth of Er (Plato, Republic X). Retrieved on 2011-01-11.
  3. ↑ Raymond Moody (2001) Life After Life: the investigation of a phenomenon – survival of bodily death, San Francisco, CA: Harper SanFrancisco ISBN 0-06251739-2
  4. ↑ Near-death experience 'all in the mind' 'BBC News 31 October 2011
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Perry, Paul; Moody, Raymond A (1988). The Light Beyond. New York: Bantam Books. ISBN 0-553-05285-3. 
  6. ↑ Eelco FM et al. (2010) Evidence-based guideline update: Determining brain death in adults: Report of the Quality Standards Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology Neurology 74:1911>
  7. ↑ Morse M et al. (1985) Near-death experiences in a pediatric population Am J Dis Child139:595-600 PMID 4003364
  8. ↑ Blackmore SJ (1996) Near-death experiences J R Soc Med 89:73-6. Review. PMID 8683504
  9. ↑ God's Chinese Son: The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom of Hong Xiuquan
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Parnia S (2006). What happens when we die: a groundbreaking study into the nature of life and death. Carlsbad, CA: Hay House. ISBN 1-4019-0710-5. 
  11. ↑ Greyson B (2003) Near-death experiences in a psychiatric outpatient clinic population Psychiatr Serv 54:1649-51 PMID 14645808
  12. ↑ Greyson B (2010) Hypercapnia and hypokalemia in near-death experiences Crit Care 14:420 PMID 20519028
  13. ↑ Griffith LJ (2009) Near-death experiences and psychotherapy Psychiatry (Edgmont) 6:35-42 PMID 20011577
  14. ↑ Mobbs D, Watt C (2011) There is nothing paranormal about near-death experiences: how neuroscience can explain seeing bright lights, meeting the dead, or being convinced you are one of them Trends in Cognitive Sci 15:447-9
  15. ↑ McKay RL, Cipolotti L (2007) Attributional style in a case of Cotard delusion. Conscious Cogn (2007) 16:349–59
  16. ↑ Blanke O. Arzy S (2004) The out-of-body experience: disturbed self-processing at the temporo-parietal junction Neuroscientist 11:16–24
  17. ↑ Lambert EH, Wood EH (1946) Direct determination of man's blood pressure on the human centrifuge during positive acceleration Federation Proc 5:59
  18. ↑ Nelson KR et al. (2007) Out-of-body experience and arousal. Neurology 68:794–5
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Hawaiian Folk Tales (1907) Ed Thomas G. Thrum Project Gutenberg
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Perry P; Morse M (1990). Closer to the light: learning from children's near-death experiences. New York: Villard Books. ISBN 0-394-57944-5. 
  21. ↑ Parnia S et al. (2007) Near death experiences, cognitive function and psychological outcomes of surviving cardiac arrest Resuscitation 74:215-21 Review. PMID 17416449
  22. ↑ Klemenc-Ketis et al. (2010) The effect of carbon dioxide on near-death experiences in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survivors: a prospective observational study Crit Care 14:R56 PMID 20377847
  23. ↑ De Ridder D et al. (2007) Visualizing out-of-body experience in the brain N Engl J Med 357:1829-33 PMID 17978291
  24. ↑ Beauregard M et al. (2009) Brain activity in near-death experiencers during a meditative state Resuscitation 80:1006-10 PMID 19573975
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 At the Hour Of Our Death - TIME=. Retrieved on 2011-01-11.
  26. ↑ Doctor says near-death experiences are in the mind - Page 2 - CNN. Retrieved on 2011-01-11.
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