Barbara R NDE

Experience Description

It's not clear that I had an out of body experience. I just have this feeling that I saw myself being wheeled down the hospital corridor. When I came to, I felt that I had been some place that was comforting and safe.

I had been comatose for two days. Just trying to figure out where I was and what happened. Unable to talk due to tubes down my throat from a collapsed lung, I was only able to communicate through writing. I remember having an incredible craving for a Butterfinger candy bar, which was the first thing I ate when they removed the tubes. I was in intensive care for eleven days. From what the nurses told me, they had to strap my arms down so I couldn't attack the technicians who were working with me. The pain was unbearable. Morphine didn't help much with the pain from the crushed ribs.

It wasn't until I was transferred to my own hospital room that I became more aware of what had happened. Apparently, I was brought in DOA (Dead On Arrival) to the emergency room the day of the accident. The emergency room team at the hospital couldn't get a pulse on me. I believe that if it hadn't been for the head surgeon who was on staff when I arrived via the paramedics that I would not be here today. He was truly my angel. They had worked on me for quite a while trying to get a pulse with no success and were ready to quit. The head surgeon insisted they keep working. He wasn't ready to give up being as I was only twenty-eight years old at the time.

I was hospitalized about two months. From 07/20/79 to 09/17/79. My injuries were quite extensive. I had a collapsed lung, crushed ribs, crushed pelvis, and crushed spleen, which resulted in a splenectomy, contused liver, compound fracture of the left tibia and fibula. Broken nose, and some facial scarring. The doctors thought I would have brain damage due to the swelling and concussion. They gave me a ten percent chance of survival. I was in traction the whole hospital stay. I can't count the number of surgeries I had during my hospital stay. Let alone the surgeries after I came home.

Background Information:

Gender: Female

Date NDE Occurred: July 20, 1979

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? Accident Clinical death

How do you consider the content of your experience? Mixed

Did you feel separated from your body? Uncertain I was up above my body watching it being wheeled down the hospital corridor. I was looking down at the back of my head.

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness? I was totally unconscious. Don't remember a thing. Never knew what happened until I was shown pictures of my car. I couldn't believe all that happened and I wasn't even there. I am grateful I don't remember. I was a bit apprehensive when I was finally able to drive again and drove past the place where I had the accident. I was frightened that being there would trigger the event, but thankfully, that didn't happen and I drove that route every day again when I returned to work.

Did time seem to speed up or slow down? Everything seemed to be happening at once; or time stopped or lost all meaning Not until I became semi-conscious and felt I had been somewhere. I guess I could call it a zone which felt safe, comforting, secure.

Did you pass into or through a tunnel? No

Did you encounter or become aware of any deceased (or alive) beings? No

The experience included: Light

Did you see an unearthly light? No

Did you seem to enter some other, unearthly world? No

The experience included: Special Knowledge

Did you suddenly seem to understand everything? Everything about the universe All I know is I became unafraid of death.

Did scenes from your past come back to you? My past flashed before me, out of my control

Did scenes from the future come to you? No

Did you come to a border or point of no return? No

God, Spiritual and Religion:

What was your religion prior to your experience? Liberal

What is your religion now? Liberal

Did you have a change in your values and beliefs because of your experience? Yes I am not afraid of death. I only fear any suffering prior to it.

After the NDE:

Do you have any psychic, non-ordinary or other special gifts after your experience that you did not have before the experience? Yes I believe I am much more psychic now.

Are there one or several parts of your experience that are especially meaningful or significant to you? The best part of my experience was understanding death on a different level. And regaining the ability to walk again. And feeling just an overall inner strength that I did not have before. The worst part was the pain and suffering my body went through.

Have you ever shared this experience with others? Yes

At any time in your life, has anything ever reproduced any part of the experience? Uncertain I had a hysterectomy in 1996 which caused me to hemorrhage keeping me hospitalized much longer than anticipated. I suffered quite a bit with that experience.

Is there anything else that you would like to add about your experience? I have a lot more respect for the medical profession. I am also aware of what it's like to be in a completely vulnerable and dependent state of being. I must say I kept asking myself why I survived. I do believe that it was just not my time to go yet! I still had things to do here on the physical plane.

Are there any other questions that we could ask to help you communicate your experience? I just can't think of any at the moment.