Learnings from 1,000+ Near-Death Experiences — Dr. Bruce Greyson, University of Virginia

Preview (0s)

• A patient, referred to as Al, reported having a near-death experience during an operation, in which he rose up out of his body and observed the surgeons operating on him, including the chief surgeon flapping his arms like he was trying to fly (23s).
• The chief surgeon, who had been trained in Japan, confirmed Al's account, explaining that he has a habit of letting his assistants start the procedure while he watches them from a distance, using his elbows to point things out without risking contamination with his sterile hands (53s).
• The chief surgeon's behavior of flapping his arms or using his elbows to point things out is an unusual and idiosyncratic habit that the doctor had not seen anyone else do in over 50 years of practice (1m20s).
• Al's account of the near-death experience was verified by the chief surgeon's confirmation, despite the fact that Al was fully anesthetized and his heart was open during the operation, making it unlikely that he could have seen the events he described (1m31s).

Dr. Greyson’s scientific upbringing and his attraction to psychiatry. (2m2s)

• Dr. Bruce Greyson was raised in a scientific, non-religious household by his father, a chemist, who instilled in him a desire to gather information and study things that are not yet understood (2m30s).
• His father's influence led him to participate in experiments and develop an interest in discovering new data and understanding the world (2m41s).
• Dr. Greyson did not have an innate fear of death, as his upbringing led him to believe that when you die, that's the end, and there's nothing to be afraid of (3m35s).
• During medical school, Dr. Greyson was initially unsure of his career path but was drawn to psychiatry due to the many unanswered questions and unexplained phenomena related to the brain (4m0s).
• He was particularly fascinated by extreme conditions such as psychosis, hallucinations, delusions, schizophrenia, and manic depressive illness, as they presented different views of the world (4m46s).
• Dr. Greyson's interest in psychiatry was driven by a desire to understand the brain and its functions, which he found more intriguing than other areas of medicine (4m23s).

Dr. Greyson’s first encounter with a near-death experience (NDE) that changed everything. (5m15s)

• Dr. Grayson had a materialistic mindset during college and medical school, believing the physical world was all that existed, but an experience with a patient changed his perspective (5m41s).
• As a psychiatric intern, Dr. Grayson was called to see a patient who had overdosed and was unconscious in the emergency room, and he spilled spaghetti sauce on his tie while rushing to see her (6m9s).
• Dr. Grayson covered the stain with a white lap coat and went to talk to the patient's roommate, unbuttoning his coat due to the heat and inadvertently exposing the stain (7m2s).
• When Dr. Grayson returned to see the patient the next morning, she was barely awake and claimed to have seen him talking to her roommate down the hall, which was impossible since she was unconscious at the time (7m38s).
• The patient also described the conversation Dr. Grayson had with her roommate, including the questions he asked and the answers she gave, and mentioned the red stain on his tie, which left Dr. Grayson flustered and unsure of what to make of the situation (8m44s).
• Dr. Grayson initially thought the nurses might be colluding with the patient to trick him, but realized that no one except the roommate knew about the stain, and he was having trouble keeping his composure (8m56s).
• A patient who had attempted suicide by overdose described a near-death experience to her psychiatrist, which included leaving her body and seeing things accurately from another location, but the details were not thoroughly investigated at the time due to lack of knowledge about near-death experiences (9m6s).
• The psychiatrist, who was dealing with the patient's mental status, pushed the experience to the back of their mind and didn't think about it for about 5 years, finding it emotionally upsetting and unbelievable (9m27s).
• The psychiatrist later joined the faculty at the University of Virginia, where they met Raymond Moody, who wrote the book "Life After Life" and introduced the term "near-death experiences," prompting the psychiatrist to start collecting cases (9m51s).
• The psychiatrist began collecting cases of near-death experiences, finding them to be very common phenomena, but not often discussed, and has been trying to understand them for 50 years (10m22s).
• Initially, the psychiatrist assumed that a simple physiological explanation for near-death experiences would be found within a couple of years, but the more they learned, the harder it seemed to understand, and they have become more comfortable with not knowing all the answers (10m47s).
• The patient who had attempted suicide may or may not have had a real near-death experience, as her heart had not stopped, but was experiencing erratic arrhythmia, and the psychiatrist did not investigate it thoroughly at the time due to lack of knowledge (11m43s).

Development of the NDE scale and its characteristics. (12m21s)

• The NDE scale was developed in the late 1970s by a group of researchers, including the speaker, after Raymond Moody's book sparked interest in studying near-death experiences (14m26s).
• Initially, researchers had different ideas about what constitutes a near-death experience, so a survey was conducted to gather the most common features, resulting in an initial list of 80 features (15m13s).
• The list was then given to near-death experiencers and researchers to narrow down the most important features, eventually resulting in a consistent list of 16 features that define a near-death experience (15m51s).
• The 16 features include changes in thought processes, past memories flashing before one's eyes, strong feelings of emotions, and a sense of being unconditionally loved by a brilliant light (15m58s).
• The NDE scale was developed based on these 16 features and has been used as a standard to decide which phenomena are near-death experiences and which are not (16m27s).
• The scale has been translated into more than 20 languages and used in thousands of studies worldwide, with attempts to refine and improve it over time (16m34s).
• Despite attempts to add new features to the scale, the original 16 features remain effective in identifying near-death experiences (16m51s).
• The development of the NDE scale aimed to provide a structured way to investigate and test hypotheses about near-death experiences, following the scientific method to avoid fooling oneself or being fooled (13m29s).

Challenges in studying NDEs and distinguishing genuine experiences. (16m59s)

• Separating genuine near-death experiencers from those with false positives can be challenging, and researchers must consider various factors to distinguish between the two groups (16m59s).
• Some individuals may fabricate near-death experiences to gain attention, be seen as messiahs, or feel enlightened, and these cases are usually easy to identify by their behavior, such as immediately going on talk shows to share their experiences (17m47s).
• Researchers often exclude individuals with blatant psychosis from studies, but some people with less intense mental illnesses, such as personality disorders, may be included and may have a tendency to exaggerate their experiences (18m6s).
• People with personality disorders may have an intense need for confirmation and may latch onto the idea of near-death experiences as an explanation for feeling different, even if they did not actually have such an experience (18m24s).
• A study was conducted on individuals who claimed to have had near-death experiences but did not score highly on the scale used to measure such experiences, in order to understand why they believed they had such experiences (17m12s).
• The study found that some individuals may be motivated to claim near-death experiences due to a desire for attention, a need for confirmation, or a tendency to exaggerate their experiences (17m15s).

Examples of NDEs and out-of-body experiences verified by third parties. (18m37s)

• Many people who have had near-death experiences report encountering deceased loved ones, which can be explained as wishful thinking or expectation, but in some cases, individuals encounter people who had died without anyone knowing about their death, making it harder to dismiss as expectation or wishful thinking (19m25s).
• A case from the first century AD, written about by the Elder, describes a similar phenomenon, and there are many recent cases, including 30 documented in a paper written about 12 years ago (20m1s).
• One case, involving a man named Jack, who had a near-death experience in the 1970s in South Africa, encountered his nurse, Anita, who had taken a weekend off and was unknown to have died in a car accident just hours before his experience (20m12s).
• During Jack's near-death experience, Anita told him to go back and find her parents and tell them she loved them and was sorry for wrecking the red MGB, which was a surprise gift from her parents for her 21st birthday, and Jack had no prior knowledge of the car or the accident (21m24s).
• When Jack awoke from his experience, he told the first nurse who came into his room about seeing Anita, and she became upset and ran out of the room, later revealing that Anita had indeed died in a car accident just hours before (21m52s).
• Jack's experience is an example of a case that cannot be easily explained by expectation or wishful thinking, and there are many other similar cases documented (22m33s).
• There are near-death experience cases known as Peak and Daran cases, where individuals encounter deceased people who were not known to be dead, and these cases are difficult to explain. (22m35s)
• The cases can be verified with third parties, and one such case is about a surgeon who was seen flapping his arms like a bird during an operation. (23m42s)
• The University of Virginia has a database of over 1,000 near-death experiences that have been validated as much as possible, and the individuals in these cases were close to death. (24m18s)
• Many more people have shared their near-death experiences, but not all of them have been included in the database due to a lack of confidence that they fit the criteria for being in the study. (24m31s)
• Near-death experiences were not commonly discussed in the past, especially in the 1970s and 1980s, due to fear of ridicule, being referred to a psychiatrist, or being shunned by others. (24m50s)
• A specific case involved a van driver in his mid-50s who had a near-death experience during quadruple bypass surgery, where he rose out of his body and saw the surgeons operating on him. (25m14s)
• The van driver reported seeing the chief surgeon flapping his arms like a bird, which was initially thought to be a hallucination, but was later verified by the surgeon himself. (26m5s)
• The surgeon explained that he had a habit of letting his assistants start the procedure while he prepared, and during this time, he would sometimes flap his arms to get into a rhythm. (26m40s)
• A doctor observed a patient, Al, who had a near-death experience and reported trying to fly, and pointed out that this behavior is unusual and unlike anything the doctor has seen in over 50 years of practice (26m51s).
• The doctor mentioned that during an operation, they use their elbows to point things out to avoid touching anything with their sterile hands, and noted that Al also pointed things out in a similar manner (26m57s).
• The doctor questioned how Al could have seen the events in the operating room, given that he was fully anesthetized and his heart was open, suggesting that it is unlikely he could have seen what he reported (27m18s).

Attempts to explain NDEs through biological mechanisms. (27m28s)

• Attempts to explain near-death experiences (NDEs) through biological mechanisms include lack of oxygen, a cascade of neurotransmitters, and the introduction of drugs, but these explanations have been found to be insufficient (27m39s).
• Research has shown that people who have NDEs actually have a higher oxygen concentration than those in similar situations who don't have an NDE, suggesting that lack of oxygen is not the cause of the experience (28m59s).
• The higher oxygen level in NDE cases may be related to the memory of the experience rather than the experience itself, as those with lower oxygen levels may not be able to remember the experience later on (29m58s).
• The use of drugs, particularly those given to dying patients, has been found to decrease the likelihood of reporting an NDE, although some drugs like ketamine and psychedelic drugs can mimic certain features of NDEs (30m5s).
• However, these drugs do not produce the whole phenomenon of an NDE, including the blissful feelings and accurate out-of-body perceptions (30m32s).
• Studies have shown that out-of-body perceptions reported in NDEs can be corroborated by third-party witnesses, with one study finding that 92 out of 100 cases were completely accurate (30m58s).
• Examples of hospital settings where NDEs have been reported and corroborated by multiple credible witnesses include cases where patients see deceased individuals who no one knew had died yet (32m6s).
• Other examples include patients who claim to leave their bodies and see things from an out-of-body perspective that they shouldn't have known about, such as unusual details about the medical staff or equipment (32m21s).
• These cases provide evidence that NDEs cannot be fully explained by biological mechanisms and suggest that there may be a non-physical aspect to consciousness (32m42s).

Does the manner of someone’s misadventure have a bearing on their NDE? (32m44s)

• Near-death experiences (NDEs) can be studied from a pathology perspective, with conditions like cardiac arrest providing fertile ground for research (32m45s).
• The manner of death does not significantly affect whether someone will have an NDE or the type of experience they will have (33m10s).
• However, there are exceptions, such as intoxication at the time of the near-death event, which can make the experience less likely to occur, fuzzier, and harder to remember (33m18s).
• Most research on NDEs has been conducted with cardiac arrest patients due to the large population and minimal complicating physiological problems (33m32s).
• Cardiac arrest patients are considered a "clean population" to study because many of them are otherwise fairly healthy, making it easier to isolate the effects of the near-death event (34m0s).
• Despite this, the majority of people who report NDEs did not have cardiac arrests, with only around 20-30% of reported cases involving cardiac arrests (34m17s).
• Other common causes of NDEs include accidents, injuries, combat injuries, falls from great heights, and drowning (34m26s).

Prevalence and consistency of NDEs across cultures and time. (34m40s)

• The nature of reported near-death experiences (NDEs) has been studied to determine if it changes over time or varies across cultures, and research suggests that knowing about NDEs does not affect whether someone will have or report one (34m41s).
• A study comparing 20 NDE cases from before Raymond Moody's 1975 book with 20 recent cases found that people reported the same phenomena before and after the book's publication, indicating that knowledge of NDEs does not influence the experience (35m52s).
• Most NDE accounts start with the person saying they cannot describe the experience, and they often use metaphors to convey what they saw or felt (37m1s).
• People from different cultures use different metaphors to describe their NDEs, based on their cultural or religious background, but the actual phenomena they report are the same worldwide (37m34s).
• For example, people from Christian cultures may report seeing God or Jesus, while those from Hindu and Buddhist countries may use different terms, such as a "yud" or a messenger (37m42s).
• The use of metaphors to describe NDEs can vary greatly across cultures, with people using terms like "tunnel," "well," "cave," or "long tail pipe" to describe a similar experience (38m10s).
• Despite the differences in metaphors, the actual phenomena reported in NDEs are consistent across cultures and time, with similar accounts found in ancient Egypt, Rome, and Greece (38m31s).

How new tools may deliver scientifically viable NDE evidence. (38m50s)

• Scientists from other fields may approach near-death experiences (NDEs) with genuine curiosity and a desire for proof, but may also look for ways to demonstrate or disprove hypotheses from a materialist perspective (38m51s).
• Despite 50 years of research, a simple physiological explanation for NDEs has not been found, but new technologies such as sophisticated neuroimaging, better computer algorithms for analyzing EEGs, and a wider range of psychedelic drugs may provide new insights (39m51s).
• These new tools may help study the brain in ways that were not previously possible and could potentially provide a physiological answer to explain NDEs (40m3s).
• However, even if a correlation is found between a brain wave activity or chemical and an NDE, it does not necessarily mean that it is causing the experience (40m37s).
• Finding physiological concomitants of an NDE may reveal the mechanism for the experience, but not the cause, as correlation does not imply causation (41m12s).

Promissory materialism. (41m21s)

• Promissory materialism is a philosophical position that assumes a physiological explanation for near-death experiences (NDEs) will be found someday, but this stance is not scientific because it can never be disproven (41m34s).
• This approach is not a viable way to deal with NDEs, as it focuses on potential future explanations rather than interpreting the existing data (42m2s).
• Researchers from various fields, including spiritualists, materialists, neurophysiologists, and philosophers, agree on the phenomena of NDEs but disagree on their interpretation and ultimate meaning (42m18s).
• As a clinician, the focus is on how NDEs affect people's lives and what they do with the experience, regardless of its cause (42m34s).
• Common after-effects of NDEs include increased altruism and a feeling of connectedness (43m8s).
• Some individuals who experience NDEs may no longer be capable or willing to perform jobs involving violence, such as law enforcement or the mafia (43m24s).
• Counterintuitively, people who have attempted suicide and experienced an NDE are often less suicidal after the fact (43m37s).

Child vs. adult NDEs. (43m45s)

• Children and adults report similar phenomena in near-death experiences (NDEs), with the primary difference being that children do not have an elaborate life review, likely due to their shorter life span (44m9s).
• Children's NDEs tend to involve fewer encounters with deceased relatives, but they may encounter deceased pets, such as dogs or cats (44m27s).
• Children often struggle to put their NDEs into words, even more so than adults, and may be asked to draw what happened to explain their experience (44m41s).
• Researchers have found that children's NDEs involve the same phenomena as adults, despite the challenges in articulating their experiences (44m34s).
• To help children convey their NDEs, they are sometimes asked to produce artwork to explain what happened (44m46s).

Studying brain activity during NDEs. (44m50s)

• New equipment and technological capabilities, such as fMRI, Advanced Brain Imaging, computers, algorithms, and AI, can be used to analyze EEG and EKG data to study brain activity during Near-Death Experiences (NDEs) (44m52s).
• One possible approach to studying brain activity during NDEs is to use brain imaging techniques, such as fMRI, to simulate an NDE with exogenous compounds like psychedelics, as it is not feasible to slide a person into an fMRI machine when they are about to flatline (45m10s).
• Studies have shown that psychedelic trips associated with more elaborate mystical experiences are linked to less brain activity and less coordination among different parts of the brain, suggesting that the brain is "getting pushed out of the way" by these drugs (45m55s).
• Researchers have attempted to study brain function during cardiac arrest, but it is challenging, and several published studies have been criticized for their methodology, such as a study that claimed to have measured brain activity in dying patients but actually measured patients who were still alive and had a normal heartbeat (46m20s).
• A study published in a leading neuroscience journal claimed to have found a 30-second burst of activity in the brains of rats after their hearts stopped, but the data actually showed a slight increase in activity, not a surge, and the effect was not seen in anesthetized rats (48m4s).
• The study on rats also found that every single rat tested had this burst of activity, which is not typical of NDEs, as only 10-20% of people who come close to death report having an NDE (48m57s).
• Sam Parnia at NYU has measured EEG brain waves during cardiac arrest, but the data is limited, and it is unclear what can be learned from it, as the measurements were taken during brief periods of time when the body was still suffering from the shock of electricity or chest compressions (49m16s).
• Parnia's study found an increase in brain activity in about half of the patients, but there was no correlation between the increased brain activity and the reported NDEs, as the six patients who reported NDEs did not have the increase in brain waves (50m17s).

What’s happening when people report seeing dead loved ones during NDEs? (50m46s)

• When people report seeing deceased relatives during near-death experiences (NDEs), the age at which these relatives appear is often younger than their age at the time of death, typically when they were in the prime of their lives and healthy (51m37s).
• Most people describe seeing their deceased loved ones at a younger age, not when they were dying, although the exact age is not always specified (51m49s).
• Some individuals report not seeing a human figure, but instead sensing the presence of their deceased loved one through a feeling or vibration, which they associate with the person's essence (52m0s).
• The way people perceive and describe their deceased relatives during NDEs can vary greatly, and there is no way to validate these experiences objectively (52m15s).
• The brain's interpretation of what is seen during an NDE can also influence how the experience is described, making it challenging to understand the exact nature of these experiences (51m42s).

What can research tell us about the practical applications of NDEs? (52m20s)

• Research on near-death experiences (NDEs) is currently being conducted in various areas, including cross-cultural comparisons, neurophysiological changes, and other phenomena that mimic parts of NDEs, such as psychedelic drugs (53m11s).
• A desired area of research is the practical applications of NDEs, specifically how they affect people's lives, as current studies have focused on the experience itself rather than its aftermath (53m38s).
• Studies have been conducted on individuals who needed help readjusting to normal life after an NDE, examining what they needed help with, what was disturbing about the experience or its after-effects, and what types of help were sought and received (53m50s).
• Researchers have also surveyed physicians about their attitudes towards NDEs, asking if they would feel comfortable discussing the experience with patients and what barriers they face in doing so (54m30s).
• The most common barriers physicians reported were a lack of knowledge about NDEs and insufficient time to discuss the topic with patients (55m16s).
• To address these barriers, researchers suggest providing more training to physicians and restructuring their schedules to allow for more time to discuss NDEs with patients (55m29s).

Are there reliable ways to simulate an NDE-like state? (55m40s)

• The concept of simulating near-death experiences (NDEs) is explored, with reference to the movie "Flatliners" where medical students induce brief periods of death to experience NDE-like states (55m42s).
• NDEs seem to produce more out-of-body experiences than psychedelic experiences, but the reliability of this comparison is uncertain (56m22s).
• There are no reliable ways to perfectly simulate NDEs, but psychedelic drugs in a supportive environment may come closest to replicating some features of NDEs (57m26s).
• However, experiences induced by psychedelic drugs are not identical to NDEs, and individuals who have had NDEs often report that drug-induced experiences are not the same (58m40s).
• Research at Johns Hopkins found that psilocybin experiences led to a marked decrease in fear of death, which persisted at least a year after the experience (59m11s).
• The use of psychedelic drugs to study NDEs is still speculative, and more research is needed to understand the neural mechanisms underlying NDEs (58m26s).
• The brain changes observed during psychedelic experiences may not be the same as those that occur during NDEs, and this assumption requires further evidence (58m19s).
• The after-effects of NDEs, such as changes in personality and outlook, are often not replicated in drug-induced experiences (57m54s).

What distinguishes a true out-of-body experience? (59m30s)

• A true out-of-body experience is difficult to define, but it is distinct from the sense of not being aware of one's body, which can be produced by stimulating the temporal lobe of the brain electrically (1h0m20s).
• Real out-of-body experiences involve a sense of leaving one's body and being able to turn around and look at it from an outside perspective, whereas stimulation of the temporal lobe does not produce this effect (1h0m36s).
• People who have real out-of-body experiences often report being able to move around the room or go to distant places, and sometimes they can report things accurately that can be corroborated later on (1h0m58s).
• In contrast, stimulation of the temporal lobe produces sematic hallucinations, but not true out-of-body experiences, and these experiences are often described as feeling like one's legs are getting shorter or feeling like they are falling off a gurney (1h1m24s).
• Out-of-body experiences can also be induced by mystical experiences and psychedelic drugs, but it is unclear whether these experiences are the same as those that occur naturally (1h1m43s).
• One type of psychedelic compound that has been reported to induce out-of-body experiences is Salvia divinorum, also known as diviner's sage, which contains the kappa opioid agonist salvinorin A (1h2m42s).
• The experience of taking salvinorin A is often described as acutely dysphoric, or the opposite of euphoric, and is typically accompanied by a sense of intense fear or terror (1h3m20s).
• In one reported case, a person who took salvinorin A had a flattened, abstract experience devoid of time, space, and sense of self, but was still able to observe their surroundings from a detached perspective (1h3m59s).
• This person was able to corroborate their observations after the fact, even though they were unable to see anything outside of the fMRI machine they were in at the time (1h4m40s).

Mind vs. brain. (1h5m25s)

• The brain plays a role in mediating experiences, but certain phenomena suggest the existence of a mind beyond the brain, which cannot be fully explained by current knowledge (1h5m27s).
• The concept of the brain as a "reducing valve" that filters information for survival and creation, as proposed by Aldous Huxley, may be relevant in understanding the relationship between the mind and brain (1h6m12s).
• Damaging the brain can affect perception and cognition, but this does not necessarily prove that the brain is the sole creator of thoughts and experiences (1h6m42s).
• The idea that the mind is separate from the brain is not new, with ancient Greek physician Hippocrates suggesting that the brain is a messenger of the mind (1h7m41s).
• The brain has filters, such as the default mode network and the thalamocortical network, that selectively focus on certain stimuli and filter out others (1h7m48s).
• The brain and sensory systems also filter out certain types of sensory information, such as infrared and ultraviolet light, and sounds that are not within the human hearing range (1h8m21s).
• Near-death experiences often involve seeing deceased loved ones or leaving the body, which is not essential for survival and may be filtered out by the brain under normal circumstances (1h8m49s).
• If the brain's filtering mechanism is weakened or put on hold during a near-death experience, it may allow access to a non-physical consciousness (1h9m15s).
• The nature and location of this non-physical consciousness are unclear, and it is uncertain how it interacts with the physical brain (1h9m24s).
• From a materialistic perspective, it is also unclear how the brain creates abstract thoughts and processes information (1h9m52s).
• Regardless of perspective, it is acknowledged that the brain plays a role in perceiving and processing experiences, but it is unclear whether it creates them (1h10m35s).

Dr. Greyson’s career challenges and motivations for studying NDEs when few would. (1h10m48s)

• The history of science shows that things currently unexplainable may become explainable in the future, and it is likely that many current assumptions will be laughed at in 100 or 200 years, or even sooner with the rapid rate of technological change (1h10m54s).
• Studying near-death experiences (NDEs) can have career costs, similar to the challenges faced by researchers studying psychedelics a few decades ago, which was viewed as "career suicide" due to logistical nightmares and regulatory hurdles (1h11m56s).
• The career costs of studying NDEs were more significant in the 1980s, when most academic centers assumed that NDEs were just stories from a few crazy patients and not worth investigating (1h12m35s).
• The speaker was told that continuing to study NDEs would jeopardize their chances of getting tenure at one university, leading them to leave and join another institution where they eventually got tenure (1h12m49s).
• Despite the challenges, the speaker persisted in studying NDEs because they were intellectually curious and wanted to understand the profound effects these experiences have on people, which is important for their work as a psychiatrist (1h13m33s).
• The speaker believes that it is irresponsible to ignore NDEs and not try to understand them, and that studying these experiences in a scientifically respectable way can lead to publication in mainstream medical journals (1h13m56s).

Can studying twins find a genetic component to NDE susceptibility? (1h14m0s)

• A genomic study on extraordinary twin communication is being planned, which involves surveying 15,000 pairs of twins from a database in England to find out if there are any genes associated with their ability to communicate with each other at distant locations (1h14m25s).
• The study aims to identify the genes that may be responsible for this ability, which could potentially shed light on the genetics of near-death experiences (NDEs) (1h15m12s).
• Currently, there is no way to predict who will have an NDE, but a genetic study of people who have had NDEs and those who haven't may help identify a genetic component (1h15m43s).
• The idea of a genetic study on NDEs is inspired by the fact that 10-20% of people who have their hearts stop will have an NDE, and the possibility that there may be a genetic predisposition to having such an experience (1h15m33s).
• The study on twin communication could also raise questions about the potential for genetic engineering to enhance human capabilities, such as telepathy or extrasensory perception (1h16m41s).
• However, the risks and uncertainties of genetic engineering are also acknowledged, and the potential consequences of "messing with human genes" are unknown (1h17m47s).
• The planned study on twin communication is seeking a relatively small amount of funding, $50,000, to conduct the genomic analysis (1h18m0s).
• The study is not yet underway, but it has the potential to provide new insights into the genetics of human communication and potentially even NDEs (1h15m10s).

The difficulties of replicating out-of-body experiences in controlled settings. (1h18m9s)

• There is a need for more controlled studies on out-of-body experiences (OBEs) in near-death experiences (NDEs), as current studies have been unsuccessful in replicating these experiences in a controlled setting (1h18m9s).
• Six published studies have attempted to study OBEs, but none have been successful, often due to a lack of NDEs in the sample or participants not describing seeing things from an anotic perspective (1h18m35s).
• A determined skeptic could argue that the lack of success in replicating OBEs suggests that they do not really happen, but rather are misinterpreted or fabricated by those who claim to have had them (1h18m58s).
• A large-scale study with a huge sample size would be necessary to study OBEs, as a study with 2,000 patients from various hospitals found nothing (1h19m25s).
• Neurophysiological research, such as that being conducted at the University of Leas in Belgium and University College in London, may provide insights into OBEs, but a good answer is likely to be a long way off (1h19m42s).
• A study design that takes into account the spontaneous nature of OBEs and the challenges of replicating them in a controlled setting is needed, as simply putting someone in a lab can change their behavior and make it difficult to study the experience (1h21m57s).
• The difficulty in replicating OBEs in controlled settings may be due to the fact that people are not the same in a lab as they are in their natural environment, and the experience may be disrupted by the controls and equipment used in the lab (1h22m1s).
• Sleep studies have shown that it can take people a day or two to adapt to a lab setting, and even then, the results may not be representative of their normal behavior (1h22m12s).
• Using mimics, such as drugs or brain stimulation, may be a way to study part of the OBE experience, but it would not be the same as the actual experience (1h22m45s).
• The challenge of studying OBEs is similar to that of studying other complex phenomena, such as the learning behaviors of chimpanzees, which may not be replicable in a lab setting (1h20m55s).

The mysteries of terminal lucidity phenomenon. (1h23m5s)

• One of the biggest open questions in the field of near-death experiences is how the mind and brain interact, and whether they can separate, with terminal lucidity phenomenon being one of the phenomena that addresses this question (1h23m36s).
• Terminal lucidity phenomenon refers to people who have had dementia for a while and cannot communicate or recognize family, but suddenly become completely lucid again, carrying on coherent conversations and expressing appropriate emotions, before dying usually within minutes or hours (1h23m55s).
• There is no explanation for the terminal lucidity phenomenon, and it is a dilemma because people with debilitating diseases like Alzheimer's disease can suddenly regain function, despite the fact that their brain is supposed to be deteriorating (1h25m11s).
• The brain filter mechanism theory could play a role in the terminal lucidity phenomenon, where the brain shutting down before death releases a filter that allows consciousness to flourish, but this theory is problematic because it doesn't explain how people can still speak and communicate if their brain is shutting down (1h24m32s).
• Speculative theories about the terminal lucidity phenomenon exist, but none of them make sense or have been corroborated by evidence (1h25m23s).
• The terminal lucidity phenomenon has been observed by multiple people, including the speaker's friends, who have directly witnessed the phenomenon (1h24m20s).

The concept of time in NDEs. (1h25m30s)

• Near-death experiences (NDEs) often involve unique perceptions of time, with some individuals reporting a past life review, recalling or re-experiencing events through the perspective of someone other than themselves, or experiencing events out of sequence (1h25m30s).
• The concept of time is often considered a fundamental constant, but NDE reports challenge this idea, suggesting that time may not be as static as previously thought (1h26m10s).
• Many NDE accounts describe a realm where time does not exist, with events happening all at once and no linear flow, which is difficult to relate to in everyday life (1h26m44s).
• Despite this, NDErs often describe their experiences in a linear sequence, implying a sense of time, which creates a paradox when trying to understand their experiences in the context of a timeless realm (1h27m0s).
• The linear passage of time controls much of our lives, making it challenging to comprehend a reality without time (1h27m31s).
• The concept of time in NDEs is complex and paradoxical, with individuals struggling to describe their experiences in a way that reconciles the two different perceptions of time (1h27m12s).
• Carlo Rovelli's work is mentioned as an example of how time is not always considered a static fact, and that digging deeper into the concept of time can be challenging (1h26m14s).

Auditory hallucinations after NDEs. (1h27m38s)

• Auditory hallucinations after near-death experiences (NDEs) refer to the phenomenon of individuals hearing voices long after their NDE, which is distinct from the auditory hallucinations experienced by schizophrenics (1h27m59s).
• A study conducted by psychiatrist Mitch Ler in Colorado surveyed a large sample of NDEs and compared their experiences of hearing voices to those of schizophrenics, finding significant differences between the two groups (1h28m15s).
• NDE individuals who reported hearing voices almost universally described them as helpful, guiding, and reassuring, which made their lives richer, whereas schizophrenics found their auditory hallucinations to be terrifying and wished they would go away (1h28m37s).
• The study suggests that the phenomenon of auditory hallucinations is not experienced in the same way by NDE individuals and schizophrenics, indicating that it may not be the same underlying phenomenon (1h29m6s).
• There is no available data on the degree of overlap between structural brain damage or other factors in the NDE group that reported auditory hallucinations, as the study did not include measures of brain function (1h29m23s).

Researchers who demonstrate open-mindedness and rigorous skepticism in NDE studies. (1h29m32s)

• Researchers who demonstrate a compelling combination of open-mindedness and rigorous skepticism in near-death experience (NDE) studies include Sam Parnia at NYU, a retired physician who is still involved in the field. (1h30m1s)
• Other notable researchers in the field include Peter Fenwick in England and Tim van Lommel in the Netherlands. (1h30m16s)
• Natasha Tassell-Matamua, a psychologist in New Zealand, is conducting interesting research in this area, including cross-cultural comparisons of Maori versus English NDE experiences and the after-effects of NDEs. (1h30m27s)
• A large research group at the University of Leuven in Belgium is also conducting research into NDEs, with many of the researchers being confirmed materialists, but the head of the lab, Steve Laureys, is more open-minded and compassionate about the impact of NDEs on individuals. (1h30m50s)
• Steve Laureys is a materialist but is open to exploring the meaning of NDEs and is compassionate about the effects on people who experience them, which is considered important for the research. (1h31m2s)
• There are several researchers around the world who are conducting good research in the area of NDEs with a combination of open-mindedness and rigorous skepticism. (1h31m19s)

The irreducible mind concept. (1h31m24s)

• The concept of the "irreducible mind" refers to a mind that cannot be reduced to chemical or electrical processes in the brain and can be independent of the brain (1h31m36s).
• This concept is explored in the book "Irreducible Mind: Toward a Psychology for the 21st Century", which examines various phenomena in everyday life that suggest the mind and brain are not the same thing (1h31m32s).
• The book discusses a range of phenomena, including near-death experiences, exceptional genius, and psychosomatic phenomena, which have been well-documented over the centuries (1h32m8s).
• These phenomena have occurred to perfectly normal people and do not seem to be compatible with the idea that the brain creates all our thoughts (1h32m21s).
• The concept of the irreducible mind is presented without referencing anything paranormal or parapsychological, instead focusing on empirical evidence from everyday life (1h31m51s).

Want to read Dr. Greyson’s books? Start with After. (1h32m27s)

• Dr. Bruce Greyson suggests that people who want to dive deeper into his work should start with his most recent book, "After", as it is geared towards the average person and written in accessible language (1h32m39s).
• "After" is subtitled "A Doctor Explores What Near-Death Experiences Reveal About Life and Beyond", making it a suitable starting point for those interested in the topic (1h33m6s).
• Dr. Greyson's other books, which are either solely authored, co-authored, or co-edited, are primarily written for academicians and are much harder to read, making "After" a better choice for the average person (1h32m54s).

Common characteristics and after-effects of NDEs. (1h33m13s)

• Near-death experiences (NDEs) are very common, with approximately 5% of the general population, or one in every 20 people, having had an NDE (1h33m34s).
• NDEs are not associated with mental illness, and people who are perfectly normal can have these experiences in abnormal situations, but they can happen to anybody (1h33m46s).
• NDEs can lead to profound, long-lasting after-effects, both positive and negative, that can persist for decades and never seem to go away (1h33m57s).
• People can find information about NDEs and related topics from Dr. Bruce Greyson (1h34m4s).

Parting thoughts. (1h34m5s)

• Dr. Bruce Greyson has a website at brucegreyson.com where more information about his work can be found (1h34m8s).
• Dr. Greyson has written several books, with a recommended starting point being "After: A Doctor Explores What Near-Death Experiences Reveal About Life and Beyond" (1h34m19s).
• The conversation with Dr. Greyson has covered the main points he wanted to share with the audience (1h34m30s).
• The show notes will include links to everything discussed, and can be found at tim.blog/podcast (1h34m37s).
• Dr. Greyson can be easily found by searching for his name, and the audience is encouraged to explore his work further (1h34m41s).
• The conversation concludes with a message to be kind to oneself and others, and to tune in next time (1h34m49s).