Alicia S NDE

Experience Description

On Monday morning, April 3, 2023, I had a cold and decided to eat an orange and take ibuprofen. Shortly afterwards, my allergic reaction started. I was alone in my house; in September, I had already experienced anaphylaxis due to hazelnuts, and since I couldn't stop sneezing and my eyes swelled a lot, I decided to leave the house to call an ambulance. I got dressed and once outside, I had no voice left, my throat was swelling and I saw that it was something different from what had happened in September, when only my eyes had swollen. So, I walked to the bar next to the house, I went in, I pointed to the phone where "112" was featured and I blurted out: ambulance.

Noayla, the girl from the bar, called the ambulance, saying I was having an allergic reaction and providing the address. I sat in a chair, and every moment, I suffocated more. He couldn't breathe through the nose because it was very stuffy, I had endless mucus, and I could barely breath through the mouth.

A short time later, the ambulance arrived. I remember hearing them. They asked me things while I was sitting in the chair, and I answered as best I could. At some point, I stopped seeing. I told them, "I don't see, I don't see," but they didn't listen to me. I remember that they laid me down on the floor, that they put a stethoscope close to my jugular vein, they put an IV in me, they started pricking me with lots of things, and I suddenly stopped feeling all the stress and suffocation that I had been feeling before.

I remember thinking, 'Good, I'm not drowning anymore.' And then I started thinking, 'It's because I no longer have lungs.' I felt the most wonderful peace I have ever been in. It was a huge amount of peace and tranquility, much more than the words peace and tranquility can define. It was amazing. I thought to check if I could see something, but I no longer had eyes either. I heard the people from the bar crying, I heard that the doctors were doing things to me, but since I had no mouth, I couldn't tell them that everything was perfect, although I wasn't worried either. I was like been wrapped in cotton, in the best place you could be.

Then, they suddenly took me out of there. I felt a very strong pain in my leg and chest, two adrenaline needles pricked me, since apparently the first one had not "revived" me. Suddenly, I had legs and a chest again and lungs and I suffocated again and died. I remember thinking: "What am I doing here again," and even now, while grateful because they had "saved" me, I don't feel grateful with all my being.

I remember that afterwards, I was shaking violently, that Arantxa was trying to hold my legs, while my body shook faster. They took me to the Plato hospital and they kept me there. I cried when I saw my husband, who had arrived before me at the hospital (our neighbors had alerted him). He cried the whole time, because of what had happened, because of what he had lost, because of the sadness of having to go through this subsequent torture.

In that other place, outside of my body, I felt incredibly well ; since I came back, everything seems a bit unreal, as if I were a bit dissociated from reality. As if my work now doesn't make much sense, as if I don't attribute as much importance to my belongings; the "materialist" dreams I had before have disappeared.

And before, I was very afraid of death. The experience of death is wonderful; what is painful is what leads you to it, but I don't remember it being too painful in my case either. I don't remember too much the "pain" right before I died. It's as if what came next was so incredible that it made the ordeal disappear, and erased it from my memory. It's either that, or I have retained it in the form of a trauma and I still have to get it out. I’m seeing a psychologist who helps me with my current rejection of food. In 2 months I have lost 7 kg, but these past two weeks, I feel happier, a little more at peace.

Even so, I have spent almost two very complicated months, with fears and anxiety; even now, I am on sick leave, because they are investigating my allergies, which at the moment are a bit of a "medical mystery". I've been wanting to write about my experience for a long time, but I feel weird about it, as if I couldn't explain it in such a way that what I've experienced is understood. It's as if my language doesn’t have enough terms.

Background Information:

Gender: Female

Date NDE Occurred: 03/04/2023

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? Yes Allergic Reaction Life threatening event, but not clinical death I went into anaphylactic shock.

How do you consider the content of your experience? Entirely pleasant

Did you feel separated from your body? No. I clearly left my body and existed outside it

How did your highest level of consciousness and alertness during the experience compare to your normal everyday consciousness and alertness? Less consciousness and alertness than normal I think I was there and everywhere, but only over there. I wasn't thinking about any of the 30,000 things that always worried me, I was present in that time and place, even if it wasn't a specific time and place.

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness? When I realized that I no longer had to breathe because I no longer had lungs.

Were your thoughts speeded up? No

Did time seem to speed up or slow down? Everything seemed to be happening at once; or time stopped or lost all meaning Time was not linear.

Were your senses More vivid than usual? More vivid than usual

Please compare your vision during the experience to your everyday vision that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. Not much vision because my eyes were very swollen before I died, and after I died, then I didn't have eyes to see what was new. But I did see the ambulance paramedics doing things to me: inserting an IV, a bunch of syringes, a prick in the leg, a stethoscope, and then another prick. Above them, it was if I were on the roof of the bar, although the ceiling was higher, and it was a bit blurry, as if there was a mist separating me from the people who were moving, leaving a "body trace" behind. But when I looked at "what could not be seen" (the new realm), I realized that I did not see because I had no eyes.

Please compare your hearing during the experience to your everyday hearing that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. When I suffered the cardiac arrest, I could hear things far away, as if what I heard was inside my head.

Did you seem to be aware of things going on elsewhere? No

Did you pass into or through a tunnel? No

Did you see any beings in your experience? I sensed their presence

Did you encounter or become aware of any deceased (or alive) beings? Uncertain I didn't see anyone, but I remember feeling my grandmother, my husband's uncle, my husband's aunt, my grandfather, my other grandfather, my uncle nearby. It was like a communion, but I neither saw them nor spoke to me, I felt them. I felt more people too.

Did you see, or feel surrounded by, a brilliant light? No

Did you see an unearthly light? No

Did you seem to enter some other, unearthly world? A clearly mystical or unearthly realm I say this because of what I felt, not because I saw it. I felt that I was no longer in my body. I have put down "mystical or unearthly" because I did not find it strange, with the connotations that this word carries. It was as if I had come home after a long journey, as if I was finally where I needed to be.

What emotions did you feel during the experience? Tranquility, peace, Happiness, but on a unique level, which cannot be explained with words.

Did you have a feeling of peace or pleasantness? Incredible peace or pleasantness

Did you have a feeling of joy? Incredible joy

Did you feel a sense of harmony or unity with the universe? I felt united or one with the world

Did you suddenly seem to understand everything? Everything about myself or others My body had been a temporary and physical limit. That limited time in that costume had already passed, and I was in everything.

Did scenes from your past come back to you? No

Did scenes from the future come to you? No

Did you come to a border or point of no return? I came to a barrier that I was not permitted to cross; or was sent back against my will I did not decide to return, but they tore me out of there and I returned to the pain. It was quite a hard and painful wrenching. But I know it's temporary.

God, Spiritual and Religion:

What was your religion prior to your experience? Unaffiliated- Agnostic

Have your religious practices changed since your experience? Uncertain I feel more spiritual, I think I'll start meditating.

What is your religion now? Do not know

Did your experience include features consistent with your earthly beliefs? Content that was entirely not consistent with the beliefs you had at the time of your experience I had always thought that death was the end, I was very afraid of dying completely, of disappearing forever. What I felt about death has nothing to do now with the death I experienced.

Did you have a change in your values and beliefs because of your experience? Yes I no longer care about my job, I care about seeing my nephews, being with my family, being with my loved ones. I would like to work at something that helps people. I am less dependent, and more compassionate, I get much less upset.

Did you seem to encounter a mystical being or presence, or hear an unidentifiable voice? No

Did you see deceased or religious spirits? I sensed their presence

Did you encounter or become aware of any beings who previously lived on earth who are described by name in religions (for example: Jesus, Muhammad, Buddha, etc.)? No

During your experience, did you gain information about premortal existence? Uncertain It was like coming home, although I was amazed as if it was the first time. I felt that everything was very familiar at the same time.

During your experience, did you gain information about universal connection or oneness? Yes I felt an immense connection and peace with the universe, but not the material universe - with the "energy" universe.

During your experience, did you gain information about the existence of God? No

Concerning our Earthly lives other than Religion:

During your experience, did you gain special knowledge or information about your purpose? Uncertain We come to learn something, and we return to our energy.

During your experience, did you gain information about the meaning of life? Uncertain If I had to say something - but then I'm not very sure what I derived from that experience - although before, I felt that I "wanted" to do it, and now I feel that it is, without a doubt, the right thing to do. I believe that the purpose of life is to do good and also help others.

During your experience, did you gain information about an afterlife? Uncertain I felt there were others up there with me who are dead now.

Did you gain information about how to live our lives? No

During your experience, did you gain information about life's difficulties, challenges and hardships? No

During your experience, did you gain information about love? No

What life changes occurred in your life after your experience? Moderate changes in my life I have had many fears since this experience, such as post-traumatic shock. Really, because of those fears, I should have answered "Fear of death." But I am not afraid of dying. I have been afraid of not being able to fully connect with life, of eating (which in theory will derive from dying, but I liked dying), of suffering, of a thousand things ; before I died, I was very, very, very fearful. Now I don't feel the same fears.

Have your relationships changed specifically because of your experience? Uncertain I don't feel as dependent on people as I did before, I don't feel the need to explain everything or apologize for everything. I feel that I have to live in peace doing good, and that everything will be fine.

After the NDE:

Was the experience difficult to express in words? Yes I don't think there are words to describe the state of utter peace and wonder and tranquility that I was feeling at that moment.

How accurately do you remember the experience in comparison to other life events that occurred around the time of the experience? I do not know how my remembrance of the experience compares to my remembrance of other life events t At first, it was etched in my mind more precisely, because I thought about it perenially, but it is true that the way I relive this memory has nothing to do with the way I relive the others. I've been answering this whole questionnaire and I physically feel my whole brain, when I think about it, which I don't feel with anything else. Something changes inside me, that I think wants to get closer to what I felt in the other place, but it doesn't come close.

Do you have any psychic, non-ordinary or other special gifts after your experience that you did not have before the experience? No

Are there one or several parts of your experience that are especially meaningful or significant to you? The lack of a body, the maximum sensations and feelings of peace, wonderful tranquility and maximum Happiness. It was liberating.

Have you ever shared this experience with others? Yes I told my mother about it while we were reading the ambulance report, after I had already returned from the hospital and did not dare to be home alone, during the first few days. My mother wasn’t keen on listening and I stopped talking. I told my husband and he listened without judging me. I told some friends and some didn't believe it; others asked me : "Did you see a light?", and other curious things. But all too much, and I told them that I was not in my body, and little else.

Did you have any knowledge of near death experience (NDE) prior to your experience? No

What did you believe about the reality of your experience shortly (days to weeks) after it happened? Experience was definitely real I was conscious, my mother compared it to fainting. I've passed out before, and I'm a person who dreams a lot. It wasn't a dream nor did I faint, or anything like that. It was probably the most real I've ever felt.

What do you believe about the reality of your experience now? Experience was definitely real I feel the same as in those weeks, I have never doubted that it wasn't real, even though it seems "crazy," and even if they consider me "crazy." In fact, I don't care in the slightest. It is a wonderful experience to have gone through, to have felt and lived, and there is nothing, not even logic, that can detach me from it, or make me doubt it.

At any time in your life, has anything ever reproduced any part of the experience? Uncertain I think about it. It’s unavoidable, as I have been living with this for less than two months.

Are there any other questions that we could ask to help you communicate your experience? I believe it’s very well done.