Laura B NDE

Experience Description

I was playing tag with friends on the playground in second grade. The playground had a cement surface. I was 'it'. My friend, Jenn, was moving up the back of the slide and I was moving up the front of the slide - where you slide down. It was a tall slide. Jenn and I met at the top of the slide. I was so thrilled and excited and so was she. I will never forget the look on her face and that is when I was just gone. I guess I passed out and fell off the slide, but the experience I had was that I was floating above the playground. Everything was dreamy here and in slow motion. There was a girl with two blonde braids that were whipping about as she turned over and over in the air, falling off the slide.

I was purely fascinated with this girl. I wasn't upset. I was feeling really good to be floating above. I remember the pine trees and the falling girl. I realized that the falling girl was me. I felt no worry, pain, or fear; just detached, slightly confused, and most of all, thrilled to be up in the air.

The next thing I remember is being slammed back into my body. It happened quickly and it was a shock. There were people crowded around me and they scared me because the light behind them was so bright that they were only silhouettes and they looked like aliens might look - just scary shapes. I was crying horribly û although I didn't feel pain. I remember being scared by the shapes of what turned out to be people and blinded by the light behind them. I didn't like being back inside of my body. I was very scared then. The playground attendant was also very scared and seemed terribly worried about me. They took me to the nurse and made me wait for my mom to come and get me. There was no blood, but I was in shock. My mother took me to the hospital. After X-rays, the doctors determined that I had a pressure fracture in my skull and my arm. My mother said she never saw me so pale or so scared in my life as when she picked me up - I was not a child who scared easily.

The thing that stands out most in my mind about the accident itself was that I was out of my body before I hit the ground. I was floating above the playground watching myself fall off that slide. I always felt like if an out-of-body experience happened, then it should have happened when I hit the ground, but what do I know? I've never, ever forgot this event.

Background Information:

Gender: Female

Date NDE Occurred: 1980- during school year

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? Uncertain AccidentDirect head injury I was healthy until the accident. It felt like I came out of my body BEFORE I hit the ground. Other I was healthy until the accident. It felt like I came out of my body BEFORE I hit the ground. I received a pressure fracture in my skull.

How do you consider the content of your experience? Both pleasant AND distressing

The experience included: Out of body experience

Did you feel separated from your body? Yes I saw that my body was falling off the slide, turning over and over in the air. I know that it was real because other people saw me fall off the slide. I left my body at the top of the slide and re-entered it on the ground. 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? More consciousness and alertness than normal The smallest details stood out to me: the way the light hit things; the way my braids were juxtaposed against my head; the look on my friend's face; the feel of the slide's sides before I 'passed out'; the feeling of buoyancy when I was in the air; and the shock and fear when I was slammed back into my body.

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness? When I got slammed back into my body. The light was so bright, the people were so dark, and I was so scared. Right before I left my body, I was very aware of my surroundings as well - I never forgot the look on Jenn's face when I surprised her at the top of the slide. I will never forget the way I looked falling from a distance. The entire event was at a high level of consciousness but getting slammed back into my body was the most aware that I was during the event.

Were your thoughts speeded up? No

Did time seem to speed up or slow down? Time seemed to go faster or slower than usual Time seemed to slow down while I was out of my body.

Were your senses more vivid than usual? Incredibly more vivid

Please compare your vision during the experience to your everyday vision that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. The light was different. Time seemed to be slowed down during the experience. Immediately before I floated out of my body, I seemed to become highly aware of everything.

Please compare your hearing during the experience to your everyday hearing that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. I have a hard time remembering this, but it seemed as if my hearing was through a filter during the experience. It was a playground and kids were playing and screaming (in a good way), but it seemed distant to me. Before the experience, things were normal.

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? No

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

Did you see, or feel surrounded by, a brilliant light? An unusually bright light

Did you see an unearthly light? Uncertain It is possible that the light behind the people after I got slammed back into my body could have been unearthly, as it was so bright that it seemed to obscure everything. I am not certain, however.

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

The experience included: Strong emotional tone

What emotions did you feel during the experience? I was confused by what was happening but I felt purely calm and slightly detached. Mostly, I felt really, really good to be floating in the air.

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 My grandmother was very faithful in taking my cousins and me to church on Sundays. She was a Sunday school teacher. We were of the Assemblies of God faith. I always tried to pay attention.

Have your religious practices changed since your experience? No

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

What is your religion now? Christian- Protestant I believe in God but I do not attend church on a regular basis.

Did your experience include features consistent with your earthly beliefs? Content that was both consistent and not consistent with the beliefs you had at the time of your experience I don't really think any of these choices were good for me. I think I was too little to really understand fully any significance beyond feelings and images.

Did you have a change in your values and beliefs because of your experience? Uncertain I am uncertain because I was so young. I believe that life is precious. I do not know why that happened to me as I did not receive any specific instructions that I can remember beyond peace and love.

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

Did you see deceased or religious spirits? No

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? No

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? Unknown

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 No

Did you fear death prior to your experience? Unknown

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

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

Were you fearful living your life after your experience? Moderately fearful in living my earthly life

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

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? Unknown

During your experience, did you gain information about love? Uncertain While I was out of my body I felt a pervading sense of peace and love.

Were you compassionate after your experience? Greatly compassionate toward others

What life changes occurred in your life after your experience? Unknown

Have your relationships changed specifically because of your experience? Uncertain Uncertain I don't know but I know I have always felt different to others. I am lonely and long for something that I cannot find here on earth.

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? No I can sometimes pick up on energy from people and am almost always right with my 'gut feelings' and perceptions of others. Occasionally, I know things without being told - once I touched my photography teacher's hand by accident in college and knew, he was cheating on his wife, which he was. I cannot control any of this.

Are there one or several parts of your experience that are especially meaningful or significant to you? The entire thing is significant.

Have you ever shared this experience with others? Yes I don't remember but I have not shared it often because it is so personal. People think I am strange when I tell them about it, so I mostly keep it to myself. After watching the documentary movie 'Afterlife' [released in 2010. Directed by Paul Perry, starring Raymond Moody MD PhD and Jeffery Long MD], I felt compelled to share my story with you here. I was amazed to hear the stories - they were so much like my own (minus the religious figures) that I felt I had relived an experience that I had mostly forgotten about. My children were really excited when I told them near-death experience had happened to me.

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 know it was real because I lived through it.

What do you believe about the reality of your experience now? Experience was definitely real I know it was real because I lived through it. I will never forget that day, not ever.

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

Is there anything else that you would like to add about your experience? I was a child when this happened. The fact that my memories were so much like the other stories I watched in the 'Afterlife' documentary made me feel amazed. I never knew that others had such similar experiences. It doesn't dominate my life but I have always wondered why this happened.

Are there any other questions that we could ask to help you communicate your experience? The only thing I could say is that some of the questions were tough - but I think that is because of my age at the time of the near-death experience and not the questions themselves. Thank you.