Experience Description

I was so tired I wanted to take a nap in the afternoon. I could not sleep. After a short while I felt my heart rate increase way over two hundred, I’d guess. Then it stopped altogether. Three men, two of whom I did not recognize, stood at the foot of my bed commenting, between themselves, on my condition. They had neither faces nor bodies, but they were there and recognizable as people. Then one turned his attention to me and advised me to get to the hospital as soon as I could. I should not choose to die at this point. He was the one I recognized. He was great grandfather, who died about seventeen years earlier. I had only a few brief memories of him but have had memories of even earlier events. I had been losing blood for three days and did not recognize the fact.

This was the first of two such events nine years apart, both regarding blood loss from ulcers. However, I also know it is possible for one person to share in the after death experience of others. I have called people to ask, ‘Who is dead this time.’ Also, if I am with someone when the visual part occurs, they see it as well. That is comforting at first, but later it is unnecessary in terms of assessing your mental health. There is no conversation just visual events. In Newfoundland this is called the Fetch, and while not common, it is spoken of in writing and by those who feel it. It seems it does not have to be someone you know. However the visual from a close relation is staggeringly beautiful.

Background Information:

Gender: Male

Date NDE Occurred: Easter Sunday 1973

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? Yes Other: Loss of blood over three days.


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

Did you feel separated from your body? No 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? More consciousness and alertness than normal It was the same as if I was working intently on something I was deeply interested in. that is as close as I can describe it.

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness? I was aware of every moment and remember every detail.

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 was intense on the guys at the foot of the bed. I could not see the rest of the room, only a haze of a different color. The bed did not seem to be part of it either.

Please compare your hearing during the experience to your everyday hearing that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. After the pounding of my heart stopped I heard only the voices.

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

Did you pass into or through a tunnel? No

The experience included: Presence of deceased persons

Did you see any beings in your experience? I sensed their presence

Did you encounter or become aware of any deceased (or alive) beings? Yes There was no doubt the guys were not normal humans. They were there but they were not. My great grandfather I recognized even though I saw no face. The second part of your question refers more to the ability to know when someone else has died. I have six such experiences, but that is six different stories.

Did you see, or feel surrounded by, a brilliant light? No

Did you see an unearthly light? No

Did you seem to enter some other, unearthly world? A clearly mystical or unearthly realm The whole scene was unreal and it appears as though I knew I was lying on my back with people at the foot of the bed. But neither the bed nor room were the same. They had more of a blending of colors.

The experience included: Strong emotional tone

What emotions did you feel during the experience? Curiosity. Nothing else.

Did you have a feeling of peace or pleasantness? Relief or calmness

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? No

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? Unaffiliated- Atheist

Have your religious practices changed since your experience? No

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

What is your religion now? Unaffiliated- Atheist

Did your experience include features consistent with your earthly beliefs? Content that was entirely not consistent with the beliefs you had at the time of your experience I have had no belief in god since age 5 and a blasphemous attitude before that. I thought and think of it as a joke.

Did you have a change in your values and beliefs because of your experience? Yes Others have become important. Not to the point of great sacrifice, but I understand them a great deal of the time.

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 Three beings who spoke between themselves and then one who spoke to me.

Did you see deceased or religious spirits? I sensed their presence

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 Seems the others were individual sharing information as if each had an opinion.

Did you believe in the existence of God prior to your experience? God does not exist

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 does not exist

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 not 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 does not exist

Do you believe in an afterlife after your experience? An afterlife definitely exists Yes I just knew these people were dead and they were there for me. There was an acceptance I felt between the moment my heart stopped to the time the men showed up a short span it seems but I accepted I was dead but still aware.

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? Are not meaningful and significant

Did you believe that our earthly lives are meaningful and significant after your experience? Are not 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? Greatly compassionate toward others

During your experience, did you gain information about love? Yes There was a feeling they had great feeling for me and interest in whether I "chose" to live or die.

Were you compassionate after your experience? Greatly compassionate toward others

What life changes occurred in your life after your experience? Large changes in my life I care less for material things but comfort is important for me. If I can make others comfortable I will try.

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

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 remember much more (it seems) than other people and even about events concerning others than they do. I remember this in great detail and the memory stirs me often.

Do you have any psychic, non-ordinary or other special gifts after your experience that you did not have before the experience? No

Are there one or several parts of your experience that are especially meaningful or significant to you? Feeling my heart stop and not being at all distressed.

Have you ever shared this experience with others? Yes Right away. My mother understood, but everyone else said I was crazy or dreaming.

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 went to hospital and when they tested me for speed of bleeding they had to set the instrument very deep to get one drop of blood.

What do you believe about the reality of your experience now? Experience was definitely real It happened twice and there have been other indicators of after death existence I see as well.

At any time in your life, has anything ever reproduced any part of the experience? Yes Nine years later I had a catastrophic blood loss and little time to get to hospital where they could not find any of my rare blood. I had to have a live donor. I had the same experience but was only asked to have patience and told I would not die that day.

Is there anything else that you would like to add about your experience? We are in a transitory place where our bodies keep us available to reproduce before we become, let's say, born into somewhere else. I have no answers with details. It is just something I see from what I call evidence and others call hallucination. We are no different from a baby in a womb who is surprised by his birth. We cannot see what is beyond in anything more than short glimpses and experiences that are compelling enough to deliver a message. My second son was born with one hundred percent awareness and the look on his face for days was only describable as surprise. That is what awaits us all, good or bad.