Experience Description:

As a four-year-old child, I had cardiac problems including arrhythmia and valve problems that frequently brought me to the hospital. One afternoon, I found 'myself' floating above our small house. I could see the roof of our house from above, as well as the yard and the woods. I saw everything from a bird’s eye view which is an angle I had never seen before. Floating in the sky above the trees, I saw a glowing lady in white and blue robes. She beckoned me to come to her. I thought/said, 'NO! I want to stay with my parents!' I instantly found myself back in my body lying on my bed.

Background Information:

Gender: Female

Date NDE Occurred: 1964

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? Uncertain. Illness. Other: Cardiac Arrythmia

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? No. 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. I could see 360 degrees around me and was floating in the sky.

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness? In the sky.

Were your thoughts speeded up? No

Did time seem to speed up or slow down? No

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. I could see in every direction simultaneously.

Please compare your hearing during the experience to your everyday hearing that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. Don't know.

Did you seem to be aware of things going on elsewhere, as if by ESP? No

Did you pass into or through a tunnel? No

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

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? A light clearly of mystical or other-worldly origin

Did you see an Unearthly light? Yes The lady was glowing.

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

The experience included: Strong emotional tone

What emotions did you feel during the experience? Curiosity. Reflecting on should I stay in this world or go. Then I felt a sense of urgency to return to my parents. I knew I would be dead if I didn't go back.

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

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? I came to a definite conscious decision to return to life. I loved my parents and knew they would be heartbroken if I died. I felt as if I was an adult, not a child when I was making this choice.

God, Spiritual and Religion:

What importance did you place on your religious/spiritual life prior to your experience? Unknown

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

Have your religious practices changed since your experience? Uncertain I was a child, so I was pretty unformed when it happened.

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

What is your religion now? Christian- Catholic

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 Since I was only four, I don't think I understood much about Catholicism. But I interpreted the lady as the Virgin Mary, a motherly, nurturing presence.

Did you have a change in your values and beliefs because of your experience? Uncertain The

Did you seem to encounter a mystical being or presence, or hear an unidentifiable voice? I encountered a definite being, or a voice clearly of mystical or unearthly origin. She was a lady in robes who was floating in the air. She was coming closer to me. My house was next to a field and woods. I was over the house and she was in the sky as she moved towards me from the direction of the woods.

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.)? Yes I thought she was the Virgin Mary.

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 Well, I felt the lady was the Virgin Mary, mother of God.

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? Yes I knew that nobody else in my family had this experience.

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. Yes I existed outside of my body. I was floating in the air and could see 360 degrees around myself.

Did you fear death prior to your experience? Unknown

Do you fear death after your experience? I slightly fear death

Were you fearful living your life prior to your experience? Unknown

Were you fearful living your life after your experience? Slightly 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? Yes Being human is a choice.

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? Unknown. I think this is the part of my experience that may be the most interesting, and the only thing I can attribute it to is my NDE as a child. I am different from most people in that I have had frequent 'after-death communication', shared death experiences, prophetic dreams, miraculous events and events when I seemed to be a medium to heal others.

Have your relationships changed specifically because of your experience? Uncertain I love everyone and often everything.

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 more accurately than other life events that occurred around the time of the experience. I can replay the event like a movie in my head. Particularly strange, was the sense that I was making a choice as an adult consciousness when I was out of my 4-year-old body.

Do you have any psychic, non-ordinary or other special gifts after your experience that you did not have before the experience? Yes I am different from most people in that I have had frequent 'after-death communication', shared death experiences, prophetic dreams, miraculous events and events when I seemed to be a medium for spirit to heal others physically and emotionally. I am a very ordinary, somewhat conservative person. But miracle after miracle happens to me.

Are there one or several parts of your experience that are especially meaningful or significant to you? Having the choice to stay or go.

Have you ever shared this experience with others? Yes. When a young person I know committed suicide, I knew he was in trouble at that moment he died even though I wasn't there. I was miles away and hadn't even seen the boy or his family in three years. But at the moment of his death, I felt tremendous pain in my chest and anxiety for him. I'd call it anguish. An hour later, a friend called me to tell me about his death. When the call came, I knew what the news was to be. In the months afterwards, through dreams, he communicated with me and asked me to give a message to his mother. I was very reluctant to do it. After about a year, I told her what had happened. She was relieved to know that her son still existed. Other times, when people are physically healed by my channeling God's healing to them, they are usually very surprised and moved. I can see people's auras and know much about them through their aura. For example, my friend who has cancer has a gray area in her aura near the cancer. In my normal awareness, I can be judgmental about people based on shallow appearances. When I look at someone's aura, though, I inevitably love them with all my heart. So, you can imagine I love everyone and I am very connected with everyone. This has led to many interesting experiences, such as saving people from suicide (twice), and many other interesting connections--Knowing when people are in trouble, for example, or seeing them as translucent if they are near death.

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. It just 'was'. When you are a child, everything is magical, so it fit in with life fairly seamlessly. It just didn't seem odd.

What do you believe about the reality of your experience now? Experience was definitely real. I just 'know'.

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? No.

Are there any other questions that we could ask to help you communicate your experience? It's great. Thank you.