Mark B NDE

Experience Description

It was a hot September, summer day. I was visiting my father, stepmother, and step sisters because my parents were divorced and both had remarried. We all went on a road trip to swing in a large lake. I wasn't a very good swimmer, so I never went into deep water. There was a very long pier that went out into the lake. My older sisters were all at the end of the pier. I was running to be with them. I slipped on the wet pier and went sliding under the side railing and into the deep water below. I hit the water and sunk. I then came up one time and but sunk back down. I never came back up.

I remember standing flat-footed on the bottom of the lake. I was just standing there, not panicking but just peaceful. I remember looking all around me in awe. It was so beautiful. The plants were swaying with the current and fish were swimming by me. From a distance, I could see a bright light. It was getting closer and closer. Right as the light was about to consume me, I woke up choking on water with someone pushing on me to clear the water from my lungs.

My sister had dove into the lake to find me. What seemed like a long time under the water wasn't as long as I thought or felt. After this experience, many thing started happening to me. I never thought that my experience could be the cause until recently when I was watching a program on TV. Something told me I should look up my near death experience.

Background Information:

Gender: Male

Date NDE Occurred: September 1980

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? No. Drowning. Life threatening event, but not clinical death

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? Less consciousness and alertness than normal. Hard to explain because of panic

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness? When I came up in the water before I went back down.

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 slow, like a minute was an hour

Were your senses more vivid than usual? Incredibly more vivid

Please compare your vision during the experience to your everyday vision that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. Very clear. If there were high definition in that time that would have been it.

Please compare your hearing during the experience to your everyday hearing that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. I don't recall hearing at all

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 Very bright and far at first but became closer and closer with a bright white, soft glow

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

What emotions did you feel during the experience? Peace Angelic

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

Did you have a feeling of joy? incredible joy

Did you feel a sense of harmony or unity with the universe? I felt united or one with the world

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? Moderately important to me

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

Have your religious practices changed since your experience? Uncertain. I was too young at the time but I do not go to church now as I did when I was young

What importance do you place on your religious/spiritual life after your experience? Moderately 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

Did you have a change in your values and beliefs because of your experience? Yes A deep connection with earth, animals and nature

Did you seem to encounter a mystical being or presence, or hear an unidentifiable voice? No

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? God definitely exists

During your experience, did you gain information about the existence of God? Uncertain I was so overwhelmed with joy and peace that I don't believe I was thinking beyond that feeling

Do you believe in the existence of God after your experience? I am uncertain if God exists

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 probably 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? Unknown

Do you believe in an afterlife after your experience? An afterlife definitely exists No

Did you fear death prior to your experience? I moderately feared death

Do you fear death after your experience? I do not fear death

Were you fearful living your life prior to your experience? Moderately 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 probably meaningful and significant

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? No

During your experience, did you gain information about life's difficulties, challenges and hardships? No

Were you compassionate prior to your experience? Moderately compassionate toward others

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? Moderate changes in my life. Shortly after the experience, I would be visited at night by figures, usually three at a time. Recurring dreams. As I got older I could feel spirits in places. I would get an overwhelming feeling about strangers, especially evilness. When I enter a Catholic church I immediately start crying uncontrollably and spiritual feelings overwhelmed me. This happens only in a Catholic Church and I did not grow up Catholic

Have your relationships changed specifically because of your experience? Uncertain. I was too young to understand what impact my experience has had on my relationships prior to the experience.

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. It is very clear as far as my visual experience but I can't remember anything after the experience on that day

Do you have any psychic, non-ordinary or other special gifts after your experience that you did not have before the experience? Yes I feel spirits if they are in a room. I can see evil in people I don't know. Received visits from spirits or beings

Are there one or several parts of your experience that are especially meaningful or significant to you? When I was at the highest level of peacefulness

Have you ever shared this experience with others? No

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 was definitely real but was too young to understand the impact and relating my experience to what happened afterwards.

What do you believe about the reality of your experience now? Experience was definitely real. Very real and I am learning so much as I dig into my past

At any time in your life, has anything ever reproduced any part of the experience? Yes When I visit the aquarium I have the feeling of wanting to go back to the experience