Anthony C's NDE

Experience description: 

My family went to a lake for the day when I was 7 which was a common thing that we did during the summer in N.J.  I had an older brother and sisters who knew how to swim but my twin brother and I did not. We were swimming in the kids section, when my older brother and sisters decided they wanted to swim to one the square docks the sat in the middle of the lake and told my twin brother and me that we couldn't go.  I went back to the beach to ask my mother to take me out to the dock, of course she said no.   

There was another small boat dock that came out from the beach and separated the swimming area from the non-swimming area.  When I returned to the water I decided to jump in from the boat dock but for some reason I jumped into the water on the non-swimming side witch I didn’t realize was deeper.  I tried to swim back to the dock but I was panicking and couldn't, I struggled for a while but no one on the beach seemed to notice, I think everyone just assumed I was playing around.   

After a few minutes of struggle I went under, I don't know how long I was under but I remember giving up.  Then I was outside my body looking at my self under water and then I rose above the water and I could see all around me 360 degrees.  Above me, I sensed a very bright light above me but it was not the sun, it was omnipresent and brighter but not painfully bright.  Even though I was outside I felt like there was no top, no sky no limit. Also, I was very calm, my panic and fear were gone.  I was looking down on the water were I had gone under, I felt a little like a balloon floating up.  By this time some people on the beach noticed I had gone under the water and hadn't come up and there was a commotion on the beach.  A tall man with a beard and red shorts was the first to act and ran out onto the dock, jumped into the water and pulled me up.  He was followed by another man and my father.  I could see him holding me in his arms and then WHAM! I was back in my body and I started crying. 

Once I had gotten back to the beach and calmed down I tried to tell my mom that I was able to see them and that I watched the man jump in and save me and she said that was impossible because I was underwater.  I remember wanting to tell her what I saw but I couldn't describe it.  I was too young and I just didn't have the words.   

I never talked about it again until I was in college and I remembered it during a show on near death experiences on TV.  I was like hay that happened to me!   I told my girl friend at the time and read a book about it but I was still confused.  My experience was much shorter and I made no contact with other beings, I still wonder what it means. 

I think I kept it suppressed all that time because I felt like it could not have really happened it didn’t fit reality also my mom told me it was impossible.  But, it was always in the back of my mind especially when I would talk to friends that didn't believe in anything after death, I always felt like I knew something they didn't.  This out of body experience is the clearest memory I have from that age.  It probably lasted no more than 30 seconds but it was so sharp and real. By comparison, my other memories from that age are shadowy and foggy.  

I still will only talk about it to friends I trust, I think I just don’t want to deal with people who would question the experience.  Plus I am still working out what it means to me.

Was the kind of experience difficult to express in words? Yes     I was very young and I tried to tell my mother that I could see the people trying to rescue me but she kept saying that was impossible because I was underwater.

At the time of this experience, was there an associated life threatening event?          Yes     Drowning

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness?    During the out of body experience

How did your highest level of consciousness and alertness during the experience compare to your normal every day consciousness and alertness?    More consciousness and alertness than normal

If your highest level of consciousness and alertness during the experience was different from your normal every day consciousness and alertness, please explain:            It felt clearer and more real

Did your vision differ in any way from your normal, everyday vision (in any aspect, such as clarity, field of vision, colors, brightness, depth perception degree of solidness/transparency of objects, etc.)?  Yes     I could see all around me 360 degrees

Did your hearing differ in any way from your normal, everyday hearing (in any aspect, such as clarity, ability to recognize source of sound, pitch, loudness, etc.)?
            Yes     I think I just notice it less because the visual experience was so profound

Did you experience a separation of your consciousness from your body?     Yes

What emotions did you feel during the experience?            calm, peace, lack of fear

Did you pass into or through a tunnel or enclosure?          No      

Did you see a light?           Yes    

Did you observe or hear anything regarding people or events during your experience that could be verified later?          Yes     yes, but I never verified them.

Did you have any sense of altered space or time?   Uncertain      I guess yes, I was floating and the world seemed so much more open above me was bigger even though I was outside.

Did you have a sense of knowing special knowledge, universal order and/or purpose?     Yes            The experience was so fast and I was so young but I still remember a sense of return and that living was part of an education.

Have you shared this experience with others?         Yes     I never really talked about it until I was much older,  I told a girl friend in college, my twin brother, my ex wife and only very close friends since.  I still will only talk about it to friends I trust.  I am not sure how it affected the people I told, they were all pretty open to life after death and I think it just reaffirmed there beliefs.

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

How did you view the reality of your experience shortly (days to weeks) after it happened:            Experience was probably real    my problem was I was too young to explain it, and when I did my mom said I must be mistaken. but it was so real so I kept it to myself and than forgot until it reemerged while watching a show on near death experiences.

How do you currently view the reality of your experience:            Experience was definitely real    I was real, it happened and that's the only way I can explain it.

Have your relationships changed specifically as a result of your experience?           No      

Have your religious beliefs/practices changed specifically as a result of your experience?            Uncertain      I was too young to have strong dogmatic beliefs, but my family was catholic and I remember I wanted to become a priest when I grew up after this experience.

Did the questions asked and information you provided so far accurately and comprehensively describe your experience?         Yes     Yes, I rarely talk about it and answering the questions has helped give me words and understanding to the experience.  It has helped me look at it and realize how important it is to me.  I wouldn't have even been on this web site, if I hadn't gotten into a conversation last night about the subject and realized that the internet must have generated a ton of new information about NDE's.  It's great to see so many of my undeveloped conclusions and meaning of my experience put into words.  I didn't reveal to anyone last night my experience, it still feels too personal.