Eileen C NDE

Experience Description

I was riding my bicycle home with friends when I flipped over the handlebars and landed on my head. (I do not remember the incident or what I was doing immediately prior. I think we were playing in the schoolyard, about 1/4 mile from my home.) A neighbor picked me up and carried me home-less than 10 houses away. (The neighbor did not know me. The other kids told him where I lived. Talk about the kindness of strangers!) I remember a brief snipet of being in the back seat of my parents car and saying I could not see anything-everything was dark. No memory of going to/being in hospital. From my parents-the doctors told them I was unlikely to survive, and if I did I would probably be severely brain damaged. I remember next OBE in the OR. I was above my body and could see the doctors and OR staff working on me. No tunnel that I remember. A very bright white light appeared. Communication was telepathic. Told me not to be afraid, to come closer, explained I was no longer in my body, but had a different form now and that we communicated telepathically (although they used words an 11 year old would understand). There was life review, seen in a film strip form. It went backwards and forwards. The light (Guide?) pointed out where I could have been nicer, or done something better. I was asked if I understood what was happening and did I want to go with the light. I must have hesitated because then I was told I was not ready and would have to go back. I was told I would not remember some of the things they had shown me and that I should go back and do something to help other people. Re-entry was like being sucked into a vacumn. I regained consciousness a week and a half later, in a small private hospital room. The doctors said it was a miracle I survive pretty much intact. Medical residual-I had abnormal EEGS for months afterwards. I finally refused to have anymore EEGS because they hurt! This was back when they used needles inserted into the skin to do the test, not like the electrodes they use now.And an insensitive technician told me it didn't hurt and I should stop crying. I was a child! (Funny the things you never forget). A year later I had to return to have a metal plate inserted to cover the area they removed the depressed skull fracture. (right occipital, maybe part of the parietal.)

Post NDE: Almost immediately returning home, I would hear voices. I could rarely distinguish words. It sounded like many people talking at once. Was it spirits communicating, or just an injured brain trying to heal? I rarely hear voices now, although I remember hearing my grandmother after she passed (1992) and I clearly heard my father once after he passed in 2014.

Shortly after my NDE I started to have premonitions. They happen while I am sleeping. They are always in black and white (so I know they are different from dreams), much more 'real' than dreams, and I always remember them clearly when I wake up, whereas I don't remember all my dreams. They are a little scrambled because the event does not happen to the person in the premonition, but to someone they are close to. All of them have come true. As an example, here is one of the earlier ones I had. This was approximately 3 or 4 years after my NDE. I had a dream in black and white about a girl Ann that I knew. We grew up together in grammar school, lived near each other. By this time, we had different friends, but were friendly when we saw each other. All I remember now was the dream/premonition was at her house and she was in it. I woke up thinking it was odd to have a "dream" about her, it was so real, and odd it was in black and white. It was either that day or the next that I learned her father had died in his sleep at their home. This exact same scenario happened with a closer friend a few years later when his parents died six months apart. I had the black and white premonition on both occasions. Very recently, my sister, mother and niece were on a trip and I had a terrible feeling they were going to get in a car accident. They did not, but a few days later, I learned my bother in law was in a bad car accident in another state! Luckily, he is okay.

On to visions/communications. Much later, while working in a hospital, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a white form in a patient's room. When I turned to look, it wasn't there, but it would reappear when I looked away. This happened two or three times, then it was gone. I don't remember any details of the patient or what happened to them.

After my grandmother passed, I felt I saw her everywhere-many patients looked like her, whenever I was thinking of her, I would find coins or flowers.

After my father passed in September 2014, I was at my mother's house helping her get ready for the service a few days away. I was outside cutting the lawn, when something told me to look towards the back yard. I clearly saw my father looking around the corner of the house. I saw his face clearly. He had on one of his baseball hats-a red one, either for the Red Sox, or his alma mater- Fairfield University, and a red white and blue golf shirt-something he always wore. I figured I was just tired and emotional, so I looked away, but he was still there when I looked again. I felt he was saying he was glad we were helping my mother. I went back to check if there was anything that could have been there that I just thought was a human form. The yard is heavily treed and everything is green. There was nothing remotely red colored out there. I told no one about this. At the memorial service a few days later, my cousin said to me, 'You know our family has a history of seeing visions?'! I was shocked, but still haven't told my family yet of this experience.

So, what did I do immediately after my NDE? I did not tell anyone. I knew even then that the voices were not normal. If I told my parents, it would be off to the doctor again, and I had already had enough of that. I was a preteen girl just trying to fit in. I was already different because they shaved my hair off for the surgery-twice. This was long before computers, the internet, research or support groups,etc. There was only the encyclopedia and the library, neither of which covered this subject. Later as a teenager, other teens found my experience cool, or creepy, or both and wanted to hear about it. I later found the book 'Closer to the Light' which described other people's NDEs, which helped knowing I wasn't the only one. I my twenties, I found a group of coworkers who had other abilities-some saw auras, some saw the future, some saw spirits, so my experience was less unusual. As time passed, it just became part of who I am, and there was less need to talk about it.

Did it change my beliefs? I think I was too young to have beliefs or convictions. I think those came later with life experience. Am I more religious? No. Maybe more spiritual.

I hope this helps your research. I only became aware of you when I recently met someone with a more recent NDE.

Background Information:

Gender: Female

Date NDE Occurred: 04/23/1969

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? Yes Accident. Surgery-related. CPR given. Direct head injury. Clinical death (cessation of breathing or heart function) Head injury-depressed skull fracture, temporary blindness, subdural hematoma, coma, seizures on day 3. Taken to OR emergently for Burr holes. Event happened as son as on OR table. Do not know if they had started anesthesia yet.

How do you consider the content of your experience? Neither pleasant NOR distressing

The experience included: Out of body experience

Did you feel separated from your body? Yes as described, I saw my body and the doctors/OR staff. I heard a lot of loud voices from them, but probably didn't understand all the medical jargon back then. 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

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness? Maybe during life review.

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 slower, I think.

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. Just that it was very vivid. One thing I didn't include in the narrative-during the OBE/NDE I for some reason remember the tile on the walls of the OR and the shiny stainless steel equipment in very sharp detail.

Please compare your hearing during the experience to your everyday hearing that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. There wasn't 'hearing' per se. It was that the communication just popped into your 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? No

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

The experience included: Unearthly light

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

Did you see an unearthly light? Yes I saw a very bright white light that was brighter than anything I had witnessed before. However, it did not hurt to look at it. It was also warm.

Did you seem to enter some other, unearthly world? Some unfamiliar and strange place I remember floating above the operating room.

What emotions did you feel during the experience? Confused, but not scared.

Did you have a feeling of peace or pleasantness? No

Did you have a feeling of joy? No

Did you feel a sense of harmony or unity with the universe? No

Did you suddenly seem to understand everything? No

The experience included: Life review

Did scenes from your past come back to you? No Seen in the life review.

Did scenes from the future come to you? Scenes from my personal future Not in the experience, but later I would have premonitions that do not happen to me personally, but to others.

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

God, Spiritual and Religion:

What importance did you place on your religious/spiritual life prior to your experience? Not important to me

What was your religion prior to your experience? Christian- Catholic Religious school classes, weekly church attendance

Have your religious practices changed since your experience? No

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

What is your religion now? Unaffiliated- Nothing in particular- Religious unaffiliated

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 Remember, I was a child. I don't know that I had beliefs. I followed what my parents did in regards to religion.

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

The experience included: Presence of unearthly beings

Did you seem to encounter a mystical being or presence, or hear an unidentifiable voice? I heard a voice I could not identify

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? Unknown

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 probably exists

Concerning our Earthly lives other than Religion:

During your experience, did you gain special knowledge or information about your purpose? Uncertain I remember being told that when I went back, I would not be able to remember all they had told and shown me. I remember being disappointed at this.

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? Yes I was told to go back and do something good for other people.

Did you believe in an afterlife prior to your experience? An afterlife does not exist

Do you believe in an afterlife after your experience? An afterlife definitely exists Uncertain I was only a child, so I think I was surprised to learn there was something else out there.

Did you fear death prior to your experience? I did not fear 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? Unknown

Did you believe that our earthly lives are meaningful and significant after your experience? Are probably 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? No

Were you compassionate after your experience? Greatly compassionate toward others

What life changes occurred in your life after your experience? It is hard to know if these are truly changes, as the NDE occurred at a young age. It is hard to know if these are truly changes, as the NDE occurred at a young age.

Have your relationships changed specifically because of your experience? No

After the NDE:

Was the experience difficult to express in words? Yes It was not difficult to describe, it was more that it was a hard thing to bring up. (See narrative). It is not something you bring up in casual conversation. I was afraid people would call me crazy. Remember, I was a child who was trying to fit in, not be singled out for being different.

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 more accurately than other life events that occurred around the time of th I remember the experience more accurately than other life events that occurred around the time of th

Do you have any psychic, non-ordinary or other special gifts after your experience that you did not have before the experience? Yes Voices, premonitions, visions, and other communication

Have you ever shared this experience with others? Yes It was a few years. I shared it with other teenagers. Some thought it was cool, others thought it was creepy. Don't know how they were influenced, other than they wanted to hear about it and had many questions.

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 remembered it in very vivid detail, shortly after regaining consciousness.

What do you believe about the reality of your experience now? Experience was definitely real It happened so long ago, that it has just become part of my life.

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 don't believe so. I think it has made me open to other experiences. In my practice as a nurse, I have met people with other abilities such as psychics, mediums, and so forth. Some people believe, others don't. All of which is okay.

Are there any other questions that we could ask to help you communicate your experience? Cannot think of any. This was comprehensive.