Experience Description :

I saw a light and experienced a warm blanketing feeling around me. I felt really at peace but was looking behind me for my husband and baby. I was really concerned for them. There were the presence of people saying to me that my time wasn't up. The presence of God was there reassuring me. He/she/it had commanded for my attention and it was as if they had pulled my attention towards them.

Once I had become focused on this higher being, a voice had said to me, 'Muriel don't worry, Buck and Roy will be fine. I just need you to listen to me and understand what I am saying to you.' I replied okay.

The being (God) said to me, 'Don't worry. No matter what happens you will be alright.' I thought that this was a strange thing to say to me but intuitively knew that everything was okay and became focused back onto Buck and my baby. Before I knew it I was coming out of the anesthetic.

Background Information:

Gender: Female

Date NDE Occurred: 24/6/1990

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? Yes Surgery-relatedChildbirth Life threatening event, but not clinical death

How do you consider the content of your experience? Mixed

Did you feel separated from your body? Uncertain 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? Couldn't say.

Were your thoughts speeded up? Neither

Did time seem to speed up or slow down? Neither I went into surgery at 12:00 noon and emerged at 3:00 pm. When this experience had occurred, there was no sense of timing. It seemed like the experience had taken a brief second to occur but when I had emerged from the operation it was three o'clock in the afternoon.

Were your senses more vivid than usual? More so than usual

Please compare your vision during the experience to your everyday vision that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. Vision was normal but could not identify peoples' faces or presences visually. Did see light and colors ahead of me but for the most part the experience was emotionally, physically, intuitively experienced.

Did you seem to be aware of things going on elsewhere? Neither

Did you pass into or through a tunnel? No

Did you see any beings in your experience? Sensed their presence

Did you encounter or become aware of any deceased (or alive) beings? Yes Met with people even though I couldn't identify them. They were like angels who had been here on this earth before me or who knew me. Met with what seemed to be God, light was around both God and these people, but couldn't see their faces. They were trying to tell me that I wasn't finished with my time here on earth.

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 Intuitively knew that if I went towards the light I would not return to my husband and baby.

Did you seem to enter some other, unearthly world? Clearly mystical or unearthly realm

What emotions did you feel during the experience? Worried for my husband and baby.

Did you have a feeling of peace or pleasantness? Incredible peace or pleasantness

Did you have a feeling of joy? Neither

Did you feel a sense of harmony or unity with the universe? United, one with the world

Did you suddenly seem to understand everything? Everything about the universe

Did scenes from your past come back to you? Neither

Did scenes from the future come to you? Neither I had sensed that these beings knew something that I didn't and it was in relation to the future.

Did you come to a border or point of no return? A barrier I was not permitted to cross; or 'sent back' to life involuntarily

God, Spiritual and Religion:

What was your religion prior to your experience? Moderate not religious really but do believe in god

Have your religious practices changed since your experience? Yes There is definitely a higher order of things and we are being looked out for. After being diagnosed with a life crippling disease and piecing together the events that had happened, a sense of justice is starting to come into effect for my injury.

What is your religion now? Moderate still believe in god but not religious

Did you have a change in your values and beliefs because of your experience? Yes There is definitely a higher order of things and we are being looked out for. After being diagnosed with a life crippling disease and piecing together the events that had happened, a sense of justice is starting to come into effect for my injury.

Did you seem to encounter a mystical being or presence, or hear an unidentifiable voice? Definite being, or voice clearly of mystical or other-worldly origin

Did you see deceased or religious spirits? Sensed their presence

Concerning our Earthly lives other than Religion

During your experience, did you gain special knowledge or information about your purpose? Uncertain At the time I thought it was odd that such a statement was made that I would be okay. My first thought was 'what do you mean by that?' before I could question this statement I was coming to. It was like they knew something that I didn't and they were reassuring me and encouraging me to not be frightened.

Have your relationships changed specifically because of your experience? No

After the NDE:

Was the experience difficult to express in words? Yes I didn't think that I would be believed or that is was due to the effects of surgery. The experience causes me to be very emotional.

Do you have any psychic, non-ordinary or other special gifts after your experience that you did not have before the experience? Yes Had an experience in 1987 after suffering from a serious bout of alcoholism. I had hit rock bottom at this time and had an experience where I was lying in bed being treated by a doctor. Instinctively I knew that I was close to dying. A presence and a warm blanketing feeling had occurred with the voice asking me to make a decision on whether to stay or whether to go. A point of clarity had occurred where I had realized that my whole life had revolved around alcohol and that I should try life without alcohol. I knew that if I chose to go there would be repercussions for my drinking. After this event, I got sober and have remained this way for the past sixteen years. I've been reluctant to discuss this event because it is put down to the effects of alcohol and the state of mind that I was in at the time.

Are there one or several parts of your experience that are especially meaningful or significant to you? The difference between the first time and this time was that I knew that there were beings looking out for me and that I no longer feared death.

Have you ever shared this experience with others? Yes Once I had mentioned it to a church elder and she put it down to the effects of alcohol and my state of mind. I never discussed it with anyone since then. The situation that occurred at childbirth I have not discussed either because of this belief and because it is quite emotional.

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 The first time through my alcoholism, it was very real and had transformed my life. But as time passed, I seemed to disregard it as something that had happened because of alcohol. The second time at childbirth, the situation was very real and remained with me clearly to this day.

What do you believe about the reality of your experience now? Experience was definitely real I was being given a message from a higher authority. They knew that something was going down and because I was under an anesthetic, I had no way of knowing what had really happened. The events that had transpired years later confirmed my experience.

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