Samson J NDE

Experience Description

Early in the morning after having had my right kidney removed the previous day, I was talking to my mother. According to her, I said, 'My lungs are gurgling!' Then alarms started to go off. I coded. Mom said they announced 'Code Blue in Room ???'

Let me give you a little background. I have a bleeding disorder called Von Willebrand's Disease. In order to prevent bleeding to death during surgery, I had been scheduled to receive five units of FFP (fresh frozen plasma) the night before the surgery. There were several mix-ups involving the student nurse, paperwork, etc. This resulted in my not getting the FFP until very early the morning of the surgery. The surgery seemed to have gone without incident. According to my doctor, the 'code' that happened the next day was due to pushing the five units of FFP in much, much faster than they had planned. Then post-op I was given IV antibiotics, TPN (total parenteral nutrition), more blood, etc. Apparently, they overloaded my body with fluids. This forced the excess fluid into my lungs and heart area, which resulted in both respiratory arrest and congestive heart failure.

Let me go back to the account. I don't remember coding at all. My last memory was of talking to my mother. When I re-entered the story, my first impression was one of complete chaos in the room. It was strictly auditory with shouting, commands, and alarms. Next, I became aware of a VERY bright light in the upper left corner of the room. I felt myself being drawn slowly towards that light. I could still hear the chaos behind me, but I don't recall looking down or anything. I was drawn to the light. At this point, I remember realizing that I was dying, and having a 'So this is what it's like!' kind of feeling. However, I also felt an overwhelming sense of sadness for my wife and children who would be left behind.

At this point, I entered the 'light' and found that it seemed to be a tunnel leading somewhere. The light was the brightest white that I had ever seen. As I entered the tunnel, I felt an indescribable sense of warmth, love, peace. I'm not sure how to describe it. The farther I got into the tunnel, the greater the peaceful feeling became. As I approached the 'end' of the tunnel, I could see people waiting to greet me. One of them appeared to be my mother-in-law who had passed away 7 months previously. At this point, my forward progress stopped. Then I started to move slowly backward for a few seconds. My memory of the experience ended at that point.

The next thing that I remember was awakening in ICU several days later. I was intubated with my wrists secured to the rails. Apparently I had started to awake earlier and tried to pull my breathing tube out.

Background Information:

Gender: Male

Date NDE Occurred: November, 1998

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? Uncertain Surgery-related. Clinical death (cessation of breathing or heart function or brain function) It happened the day after I had my kidney removed.

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

The experience included: Out of body experience

Did you feel separated from your body? Yes I related this experience to my doctor in his office a week or so after getting out of the hospital. He seemed to want to dismiss it as a hallucination until I started repeating to him the orders that he was giving to the nurses. This was especially the case with one where he had told them to stop moving the rails. My arm was in them, and the rails would break my arm if the nurses continued! I lost awareness of my body

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

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness? I seemed to have normal consciousness and alertness. When in the tunnel, I just seemed to be me.

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. It seemed to be the same, but I DID NOT look down and see myself or anything like that. My attention was focused on the light.

Please compare your hearing during the experience to your everyday hearing that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. It seemed to be the same, but it possibly could have been clearer.

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

The experience included: Tunnel

Did you pass into or through a tunnel? Yes

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 I saw my mother-in-law who had died 7 months earlier.

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

Did you see an unearthly light? Yes It was extremely bright, white and pure. It was the light that I first noticed in the upper left corner of the room, and the one that I later seemed to enter.

Did you seem to enter some other, unearthly world? Some unfamiliar and strange place The tunnel could be considered as such.

What emotions did you feel during the experience? I felt sadness, peace, joy, warmth, love, awareness, etc.

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- Mormon

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- Mormon

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 My religion teaches that we have eternal life after death, but nothing about a tunnel of light or anything like that.

Did you have a change in your values and beliefs because of your experience? No

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? 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? Are 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 Seeing the "people" - including my mother-in-law waiting for me at the end of the tunnel.

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

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? Not fearful in living my earthly life

Did you believe that our earthly lives are meaningful and significant prior to your experience? Are 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? Moderately compassionate toward others

During your experience, did you gain information about love? Yes The feeling in the tunnel could be described as a feeling of "love".

Were you compassionate after your experience? Moderately compassionate toward others

What life changes occurred in your life after your experience? No changes in my life

Have your relationships changed specifically because of your experience? No No

After the NDE:

Was the experience difficult to express in words? Yes Certain parts are difficult to express such as the feeling I got in the tunnel. How I could feel so sad on one hand, yet at the same time feel so much joy and peace, etc.?

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

Have you ever shared this experience with others? Yes

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

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