2000 North American Conference

A child who flies with Jesus, a man who looks down at heaven and up to hell, suicidal NDErs. Some NDEs can challenge the listener considerably more than the "normal" NDE. This presentation addresses strange and unusual NDEs that are just made for the camp-fire.

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Many human beings, fearing the dying process, the finality of death, and the unknown of after-death, have searched for confirmations other than religious and cultural, to prepare for these eventualities. Contemporary reports of near-death experiences have provided support for many after-death beliefs.

Materials for this session (opens in a new window)

ADC web site (opens in a new window).

This presentation reports on interviews with combat veterans from World War II, Korea, Vietnam and other operations, who report NDEs when "clinically dead" or close to death as a result of combat operations. Elements of the prototypical NDE were observed, as well as perceptions unique to the combat milieu. Post-war integration of the experience is often difficult and may be delayed during the period of resolution of other war trauma. Audio tape interviews are presented.

The "Less Than Positive" (LTP) near-death experience, or frightening near-death experience, is under-reported in large part because the majority of LTP experiencers assume that their account will be met with harsh judgment. I feel that rather than being a tool for intrinsic or extrinsic condemnation, LTP should be viewed as an instrument of spiritual growth. I feel that it has the potential to bring about as much or even more soul growth than the prototypical "Light" experience. More than 18 percent of the 350 cases in my on-going study are LTPs. Divinely positive messages may result from these frightening experiences.

Kenneth Ring argued that near-death experiences act as compensatory gifts, helping individuals cope with and understand life's difficulties. He saw NDEs as conferring "amazing grace" on individuals whose lives were spinning out of control toward self-destruction. Expanding that contention, we present evidence of seven categorical situations where participating in or knowledge of NDEs and nearing death awareness experiences serve as healing agents in facing one's own death or the death of a significant other.

In the process of interviewing individuals who have had a near-death experience, a significant number reported encountering beings who had been aborted, miscarried or stillborn. While many in the medical professions tend to view a miscarriage or stillbirth as a failure to have a child, these experiencers reported that they discovered that they had lost a child with a distinct identity/personality and that the child considered them to be their mothers/fathers. In some cases, the miscarried/stillborn child informed those parent(s) that their mission was not intended to be on this earth but in the world of spirits. These encounters of NDErs and those who were stillborn/miscarried/aborted raise some intriguing questions about long standing assumptions as to the status of the unborn.

The Contrasting Afterlife Descriptions of NDEs and Past-Life Regressions As Evidence of a Post-Death Division of Consciousness. NDE descriptions of the afterlife often stand in stark contrast to the afterlife descriptions emerging from Past-Life Regression research, which frequently paints the afterlife as an emotionless dark void of pure emptiness. While this void seems to have much in common with the peaceful tunnel experience commonly experienced during the first moments of NDEs, Past Life Regression subjects describe spending vast amounts of time, sometimes years or even decades waiting quietly alone in this passionless limbo, while NDErs commonly report spending only a few fleeting moments in this dark void. I propose that these two quite opposite afterlife models are taking shape in modern afterlife research precisely because two entirely different afterlives are indeed being experienced. The "Dark Void" experience seems to be exactly what a conscious half of the mind would experience if it was separated from the unconscious, and the "Realm of Light"/ "Realm of Bewildered Spirits" experience seems to be exactly what an unconscious half of the mind would experience if it was separated from the conscious mind after death.

The experiencer panels are always some of the high points of the conference. Each of the four or so experiencers on the panel tells his or her experience and answers questions from the audience.

IANDS' mission has brought worldwide attention to subjects that have been feared or ignored throughout history. IANDS has given credibility to the scholarly study and investigation of deathbed visions, out-of-body experiences, experiences of dying people, as well as the transformative experiences of the witnesses to such phenomena. One aspect of IANDS that has not been noted, to my satisfaction, in literature, television programs, or symposiums is the cultural changes that occur among everyone involved. This is the reason I share some of the details of my NDE and incorporate those details into a history of IANDS, showing how our missions have merged.

• one NDEr who spontaneously hears from dead relatives of persons who come to him in grief
• a professional medium who is also a near-death experiencer
• a scientist who learned to perceive and communicate with the departed even though he was not born with any special talent for this and is not an NDEr.

This presentation discusses the necessity for experiencers of expanded consciousness (whether NDE or other spiritual opening) to engage in ongoing, in-depth inner transformational work, that incorporates moving through shadow material and learning to identify and integrate the Light. This necessary work is what naturally occurs when one travels the Mystical Path, and is what needs to be done at this next phase in our evolution. The five stages of the mystical path are described. The benefits and difficulties inherent in traveling such a path are also discussed, and resources for assisting in this process are offered.

A researcher panel consists of several people who are doing research into NDEs talking about their current projects, results, difficulties, etc., with audience participation.

Ever been labeled "confused," "hysterical," or even psychologically unstable, when sharing a near-death experience with a member of the medical community? One experiencer's account and what she did.

One year before this talk, preliminary findings on Gay/Lesbian/Bisexual/ Transgender individuals who participated in a study was presented to the IANDS community in Vancouver, Canada. This first-of-its-kind, gay-identified NDE study examined questionnaires and individual stories for themes of interest. Additional data has been gathered and is presented. Specific areas of review are on recently gathered autobiographical data for 21 subjects, a review of specific themes in stories/questionnaires, sexual identity questions relating to time during the NDE, and sexual identity issues that may have come up after the NDE.