Jeff D NDE

Experience Description

I had been shot eight times, including one bullet which impacted my left carotid artery. While being attended to by my two neighbors, both with medical backgrounds, I began to go into shock.

Soon, I started experiencing a calmness that was totally out of the norm; especially considering that I had just physically assaulted my assailant, forcing him to flee. As the calmness and totally peacefully feeling progressed, I soon saw my father along with another person that I could not identify. My father had died 30 years earlier and I was elated to see him. However, the shooting occurred in my next-door neighbor's front yard. My 11-year-old daughter was inside my house during the shooting. I began praying as loud as I could, asking Jesus to let me live for the sake of my daughter. One of the neighbors had worked in the local Memphis Trauma Unit and she has stated that she believed that I was gone as well as stating that she could not hear my prayer. After asking Jesus to spare me, all the pain returned. My father and the other man disappeared. I got back on my feet and remained standing until the emergency medical technician (EMT) unit arrived.

Background Information:

Gender: Male

Date NDE Occurred: January 22, 2003

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? Yes Criminal attack Clinical death (cessation of breathing or heart function) Being shot multiple times

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

Did you feel separated from your body? No

How did your highest level of consciousness and alertness during the experience compare to your normal everyday consciousness and alertness? Normal consciousness and alertness

Were your thoughts speeded up? No

Did time seem to speed up or slow down? No

Were your senses more vivid than usual? No

Please compare your vision during the experience to your everyday vision that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. Same

Please compare your hearing during the experience to your everyday hearing that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. Same

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

Did you pass into or through a tunnel? No

The experience included: Presence of deceased persons

Did you see any beings in your experience? I actually saw them

Did you encounter or become aware of any deceased (or alive) beings? Yes Father and unidentifiable male

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? No

What emotions did you feel during the experience? Total peace and a sense of euphoria. Overwhelming joy at seeing my long deceased father

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? No

Did you suddenly seem to understand everything? No

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? No

God, Spiritual and Religion:

What importance did you place on your religious/spiritual life prior to your experience? Greatly important to me

What was your religion prior to your experience? Christian- Protestant

Have your religious practices changed since your experience? Yes

What importance do you place on your religious/spiritual life after your experience? Greatly important to me

What is your religion now? Christian- Protestant

Did your experience include features consistent with your earthly beliefs? Content that was entirely consistent with the beliefs you had at the time of your experience

Did you have a change in your values and beliefs because of your experience? Yes Extreme empathy for all living things that were either experiencing impending death or had faced extreme physical trauma.

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

Did you see deceased or religious spirits? I actually saw them

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? No

During your experience, did you gain information about universal connection or oneness? No

Did you believe in the existence of God prior to your experience? God definitely exists

During your experience, did you gain information about the existence of God? Yes I prayed to Jesus, asking him to let me live for the sake of my 11 year-old daughter

Do you believe in the existence of God after your experience? God definitely exists

Concerning our Earthly lives other than Religion:

During your experience, did you gain special knowledge or information about your purpose? No

Did you believe that our earthly lives are meaningful and significant prior to your experience? Are possibly meaningful and significant

During your experience, did you gain information about the meaning of life? No

Did you believe in an afterlife prior to your experience? An afterlife definitely exists

Do you believe in an afterlife after your experience? An afterlife definitely exists Yes Prayer to Jesus for help was answered and I saw my deceased father

Did you fear death prior to your experience? I greatly feared death

Do you fear death after your experience? I do not fear death

Were you fearful living your life prior to your experience? Slightly fearful in living my earthly life

Were you fearful living your life after your experience? Not fearful in living my earthly life

Did you believe that our earthly lives are meaningful and significant prior to your experience? Are possibly meaningful and significant

Did you believe that our earthly lives are meaningful and significant after your experience? Are meaningful and significant

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

Were you compassionate prior to your experience? Slightly compassionate toward others

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

Were you compassionate after your experience? Greatly compassionate toward others

What life changes occurred in your life after your experience? During both my educational and professional career, I had struggled with writing any type of document. Within a few years after my NDE, I had written AP press releases and an article for The Sporting News as evident at jeffdroke.com.

Have your relationships changed specifically because of your experience? No

After the NDE:

Was the experience difficult to express in words? No

How accurately do you remember the experience in comparison to other life events that occurred around the time of the experience? I remember the experience as accurately as other life events that occurred around the time of the experience

Do you have any psychic, non-ordinary or other special gifts after your experience that you did not have before the experience? Yes My writing abilities changed 180 degrees.

Are there one or several parts of your experience that are especially meaningful or significant to you? It confirmed my Christian faith

Have you ever shared this experience with others? Yes On the EMT transport to the trauma unit.

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 Overwhelmed and blessed to have experienced it

What do you believe about the reality of your experience now? Experience was definitely real One of the people working on me states that she believed that they had lost me. Also, all the intense pain associated with being shot eight times went away.

At any time in your life, has anything ever reproduced any part of the experience? No