In the movie Ghost townRicky Gervais’ character finds out that he died temporarily during a routine operation and the hospital staff didn’t tell him. She confronts her surgeon, played by Kristen Wiig:
Wiig: “Everybody dies.”
Gervais: “Yes, but usually at the end of their lives and only once…”
Many of us think that death is a one-time deal. However, millions report getting surprisingly close. In a inquiry in 35 countries, the prevalence rate for near death experiences (NDEs), which is 10%.
What happens in your dying moments?
A surprising discovery is that the brain doesn’t just shut down when we’re done. A study of comatose patients showed a cascade of activity in different areas of the brain.
Researchers are working to match these nerve changes to what a person feels and thinks. Of course, they can’t do that with people who “don’t make the return flight.”
But some take it back.
What do people report from NDEs?
Many studies show common themes, including a peaceful feelinga a bright light, an encounter with another being, a clear mind, a dark place, an altered sense of time, and coming back to life.
Here is a prototype example memory:
I left my body and saw people working on me. Then, I swam towards the bright light. I met my grandmother again. I’m thinking, “I’m dead. This is great!” Someone said I should go back and suddenly I was in the hospital.
The good news: Most people report pleasant feelings
Most NDE descriptions suggest a happy ending.
Researchers in France and Belgium he realized that peaceful feelings prevailed in the experience. Many also reported that they suddenly understood everything and felt joy.
In a multidisciplinary study of cardiac arrest survivors, some patients report feeling great peace and love while receiving CPR.
These findings suggest that the soundtrack to our final performance should be good – more like Louis Armstrong’s What a wonderful world from The Rolling Stones Paint it black.
The not-so-good news is that for some, a near-death experience is a bad trip. In a sample14% mentioned sad features.
A new theory: the hypothesis of sleep at the moment of death
Significant patterns in NDE memories have inspired scientists to look at biological explanations. Can we link changes in brain activity to people’s NDE reports?
Persuasive theories have been published – e.g. Model NEPTUNE (A psychological evolutionary neurophysiological theory of near-death experience perception).
But recently a new theory has emerged. It builds on past models but adds a few interesting claims.
According to the hypothesis of fatal sleep proposed by StrapThe movie that plays near the end of life is best described as a dream-like state that our brain creates.
The chain of events begins when the brain is deprived of oxygen, such as during cardiac arrest. This is followed by an increase in gamma waves and a flood of emotional neurotransmitters, including serotonin.
At some point, input from the outside world—from the eyes, ears, etc.—is cut off, and the brain only generates thoughts and feelings from within. Our life memories are visible.
But they are not chosen at random. Instead, the history of a person’s emotional life determines the tone of the image – whether it is a comforting scene or a terrifying scene. One who has endured injury or unresolved blame They will probably experience sad thoughts, even hell, near death. Someone with a history of safe and loving relationships can expect a happy state.
Cultural and religious background also shape NDE narratives. For example, in Christian cultures, a bright light is seen as a being of light, but in Japan it is an inanimate object—perhaps just a really bright light.
Many, many elements of this new NDE theory have played key roles in previous models, including gamma increase, continuous activity, memory activation, cultural influenceand similarities between dreams and NDEs.
Near-death experiences are essential reading
Evidence Testing: Does the evidence agree with the new theory?
Many of the mechanisms proposed in the sleep-at-death hypothesis are actually evidence-based. Old and established theories also contain these reliable scientific findings. For example, EEG studies in near-death patients have shown similar brain activity patterns observed in memory retrieval.
But some claims in the sleep hypothesis of the moment of death remain speculative.
The biggest unanswered question involves the driving force behind a person’s dominant emotional history.
In this theory, a person’s accumulated emotional past—for example, having a life defined by love or moral guilt—determines that the end of life will be pleasant or hellish.
Heaven or hell? It seems that this is an effect that most people will be interested in, to say the least. Is there evidence to support it?
No. Although interesting, this idea has not been tested.
Overall, the new theory brings together scholarship from a variety of fields. However, the newly proposed components still await experimental testing.
What to expect when you finish
So what will you experience in an NDE (and maybe when the lights go off permanently)?
Well, maybe nothing. less than 40% people report having any conscious experience. A study of ICU patients put the number even lower, 15%.
If you have an NDE, chances are you will experience feelings of peace, love, and understanding. Wait. Do our last moments sound like an Elvis Costello song?
I think it’s a good way to go out.
