Danielle R Others

Experience Description

On August 10, 2026, I was in a nursing home learning to walk again after becoming an incomplete paraplegic due to cauda equina syndrome at L3-L4. I woke up with an overwhelming feeling that I was going to die. I called the nurse and doctor and told them, "I am about to die. I can feel it." They checked my blood pressure, and it was 70/20. I was immediately sent to the local hospital, where my blood pressure continued to drop and recover repeatedly. I also experienced episodes of vasovagal syncope, fluctuations in my pulse, increased seizure activity, and unexplained episodes of bradycardia and heart arrhythmias.

I had experienced an NDE years earlier when I was found unresponsive after an unknown amount of time, possibly due to seizures. I had stopped breathing, was placed on life support, and had to be shocked back multiple times. During that experience, I saw nothing but darkness and a complete void. However, what happened to me on August 10, 2026, was entirely different. I had two incredibly vivid near-death experiences that I feel are worth sharing.

As I lay on the hospital gurney, trying to convince the doctors and nurses that I was going to die at any moment, I felt an overwhelming calmness come over me. At the same time, I felt a growing sense of dread, almost like a blanket of doom, because I knew a seizure was coming.

I should explain that I have focal aware seizures, meaning I can remain aware of what is happening around me while actively convulsing. I can hear, see, and feel things, which makes the experience especially frightening because I am aware of everyone else's panic as well as my own.

But this time was different. A smile started creeping across my face. I almost wanted to stop myself from smiling because I didn't want the doctors and nurses to think I was faking anything. But what I was seeing was beautiful. It was calming, black, and somehow shiny. It was the universe! It was absolute, and I was certain I knew exactly what I was looking at. It was something I wanted to reach.

The smile came and went three or four times. I could hear the medical staff yelling about sepsis alerts and blood tests. The machines were beeping and screeching, and everyone seemed to be panicking. Yet I was completely calm and at peace. All I could see was the beautiful stars of the universe.

It was almost like that sensation when you stand up too quickly and everything goes black, something I jokingly call "the free high." Eventually, my seizure began to subside. That was all I saw during my first NDE that day, the beautiful, vast universe. But it made me smile and brought tears to my eyes. I wanted so badly to go there. It felt as though I had been there before or somehow knew that I belonged there.

When I came back to my surroundings, all the doctors and nurses were gone. There was no one there to greet me as I recovered from the seizure. I simply slipped back into whatever was happening around me. But after experiencing that beautiful universe, returning to ordinary reality made me begin questioning everything about life.

My second NDE was completely different. I suddenly found myself in a dreamlike setting on a road at dusk. Everything was dark, with an unusual reddish color. There were three or four versions of me lined up along the road, almost as if I had parallel-parked myself, except without any cars! Each version of me was crouched in the fetal position, like the position we learned in school during tornado drills, with our heads down and covered.

Suddenly, a male being descended from the sky. He seemed to be a guide, perhaps my guide. But I couldn't quite figure out whether he was guiding me or whether he was actually another version of myself in male form. Maybe he was my own ego or something similar. I still don't know.

The guide approached the first version of me on the road and tried to lift my body and soul out of that position. But every time he tried, I was too heavy, and he had to put me back down. He wasn't upset or frustrated. He didn't say anything. He simply lowered me gently back into place.

Each time he put me down, I was suddenly sucked back into real life. I would gasp and find myself back on the hospital gurney, looking around the room. No one was there, just me and the medical machines making all kinds of noise.

After a few seconds, I would slip back into that other reality, back to the road, the reddish dusk, and the guide.

Then the guide approached the second version of me and tried again. He attempted to lift my body and soul, but once again, I was too heavy. He couldn't pull me out. He didn't seem upset about it. He simply placed me gently back down, and I immediately gasped and returned to the hospital gurney.

Then I slipped back into the scene again, where the guide approached the third version of me. He tried once more to lift me, but the same thing happened. After that third attempt, I was suddenly drawn back into my physical body. This time, the doctor and nurse were finally there, and I stayed in the present. And here I am, telling you the story!

But there is something that still fascinates me. There was a fourth version of me on that road.

I believe those four bodies have something to do with my near-death experiences. I have had three NDEs in total, including the two I experienced that day and the earlier one when I was placed on life support and saw only darkness and a void.

I believe the fourth body represents my last chance, something that has yet to be discovered. I don't know exactly what that means, but I feel there is a reason it was there.

These experiences were unlike anything I had ever known. The first filled me with peace and a powerful feeling that I belonged somewhere beyond this world. The second left me wondering about the guide, the different versions of myself, and why I kept being returned to my body. I still have so many questions about what happened, but I know these experiences were incredibly meaningful to me.

Background Information:

Gender: Female

Date of NDE: 08/21/2026

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? Yes
I was recovering in a nursing home from incomplete paraplegia caused by L3-L4 cauda equina syndrome when I woke with an overwhelming feeling that I was about to die. My blood pressure was 70/20, and I was rushed to the hospital. There, I experienced repeated drops in blood pressure, episodes of vasovagal syncope, irregular heart rhythms, bradycardia, and increased seizure activity. During this medical crisis, I had two vivid near-death experiences that were completely different from an earlier NDE I had experienced years before while on life support.

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

Did you feel separated from your body? I lost awareness of my body
I have focal seizures, so that is normal for me.

How did your highest level of consciousness and alertness during the experience compare to your normal everyday consciousness and alertness? Closest to death.
It was as if I unlocked a new level to life. Also, it was like I knew I'd been here before.

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness? More consciousness and alertness than normal

Were your thoughts speeded up? Faster than usual

Did time seem to speed up or slow down? Everything seemed to be happening at once; or time stopped or lost all meaning
I can't explain.

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 It was like I knew I wanted to go there, or I had already been there and knew exactly where I was.

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 remember hearing anything but what was going on in real time.

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 beings? Yes
There was a guide.

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

Did you see an unearthly light? No

Did you seem to enter another world? Some unfamiliar and strange place
A road out place, but it wasn't anywhere specific, just red.

What emotions did you feel during the experience? Peace, happiness, and love. I wanted to be in the universe.

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 understand everything? Everything about the universe
I can't explain, other than I knew I belong in the universe.

Did scenes from your past come back? No

Did you reach a boundary or limiting physical structure? Uncertain
I don't know.

Did you come to a border or point of no return? No

God, Spiritual and Religion:

What was your religion prior to your experience? Other or several faiths
Hoodoo, conjure.

Have your religious practices changed? No

What is your religion now? Other or several faiths
Hoodoo, conjure.

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
Unsure what differs at the moment, but I am open for debate.

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

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
I had a guide, but it may have been my own guide in a male 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? Uncertain

During your experience, did you gain information about universal connection or oneness? Yes

During your experience, did you gain information about the existence of God? Uncertain

Concerning our Earthly lives other than Religion:

During your experience, did you gain special knowledge or information about your purpose? Yes

During your experience, did you gain information about the meaning of life? Uncertain

During your experience, did you gain information about an afterlife? Uncertain
I believe we go back into the universe, but there is a guide that made me believe that I was here before for some reason.

Did you gain information about how to live our lives? Yes
Reincarnation may be more real than we think, for more of us than others, but not all of us have the choice.

During your experience, did you gain information about life's difficulties, challenges and hardships? Uncertain

During your experience, did you gain information about love? Uncertain

What life changes occurred in your life after your experience? Slight changes in my life

Have your relationships changed specifically because of your experience? Yes

After the NDE:

Was the experience difficult to express in words? Yes
It's hard to get people to understand or believe.

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 almost every detail, and I have the worst memory ever. My kids compare my memory to a goldfish, and I remember all the little things that happened during these encounters. That's how important they are.

Do you have any psychic, non-ordinary or other special gifts after your experience that you did not have before the experience? Uncertain

Are there one or several parts of your experience that are especially meaningful or significant to you? Yes, knowing I have one life left to live.

Have you ever shared this experience with others? Yes
Immediately, but people think I'm crazy.

Did you have any knowledge of near death experience (NDE) prior to your experience? Yes

What did you believe about the reality of your experience shortly (days to weeks) after it happened? Experience was definitely real
There is no doubt it was real. I know in my core that what I saw and felt was the real deal.

What do you believe about the reality of your experience now? Experience was definitely real
This was not a dream state. It was a knowing, an absolute. It was far beyond any explanation I can give someone who hasn't experienced it.

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

Did the questions asked and information that you provided accurately and comprehensively describe your experience? Yes