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Near death experiences have been reported worldwide. They are a fairly common occurrence. In fact, while I sat at my father's side, the nurse told my sister and I that all of the nurses in the ward believed that those who were near death could hear people who talked to them. When I asked why, she explained that all of them had seen people whose hearts had stopped or been in a coma come back and give detailed accounts of things that had happened to them when near death. She said it should have been impossible for them to give such accounts.
My wife also told me a story of her grandmother who had a stroke. She was taken to the hospital and put on life support (much like my father after his heart attack and subsequent heart surgery) and when she went in to visit, my wife told her grandmother she was pregnant and that she needed to come back to see her great-grandchild.
She did come back and upon awakening, she asked the nurse to see her grandchild.
While my father laid in bed on life-support - as his body continued to fail him - people came and went to say their goodbyes. My aunt (his sister) who we rarely see because she lives out of town came down to visit and when she took his hand and told him she loved him, his heart rate went up and he nearly suffered another heart attack. The same happened when my mother visited him. After that, we were no longer allowed to touch or talk in his presence in case it would worsen his condition.
It's common for people who have near death experiences (from here on out referred to as NDE) to describe a white light, angels, deceased loved ones and a feeling of peace and love among other things. It also doesn't seem to matter whether they were religious or not and in many cases, it changes the survivors life forever.
Fairly new studies have tried to explain away NDE experiences. Some say that C02 levels in the blood rise upon cardiac arrest and that can produce the symptoms usually associated with NDE. Sometimes, mountain climbers suffer NDE-like experiences at higher altitudes, which adds credence to that theory. Others research points to the brain trying desperately to make sense of the sensations and trauma of impending death.
Others believe that NDE's are a result of our consciousness, spirit or soul coming un-tethered from our physical bodies or brain.
From a National Geographic article that explored the link between C02 levels and NDE experiences:
The study is among the first to find a direct link between carbon dioxide in the blood and near-death experiences, or NDEs, said Christopher French, a psychologist at the Anomalistic Psychology Research Unit of the University of London, who was not involved in the new research.
The hospital study bolsters previous lab work done in the 1950s that found "the effects of hypercarbia [abnormally high levels of CO2 in the blood] were very similar to what we would now recognise as NDEs," French said in an email.
The research also supports the argument that anything that disinhibits the brain—damages the brain's ability to manage impulses—can produce near-death sensations, he said. Physical brain injury, drugs, and delirium have all been associated with a disinhibited state, and CO2 overload is another potential trigger.
Still, not all scientists are convinced: "The one difficulty in arguing that CO2 is the cause is that in cardiac arrests, everybody has high CO2 but only 10 percent have NDEs," said neuropsychiatrist Peter Fenwick of the Institute of Psychiatry at Kings College London.
What's more, in heart attack patients, Fenwick said, "there is no coherent cerebral activity which could support consciousness, let alone an experience with the clarity of an NDE."
The main alternative is that near-death experiences are "evidence of consciousness becoming separated from the physical substrate of the brain, possibly even a glimpse of an afterlife," the University of London's French noted.
But for him, at least, "the latest results argue strongly against such a hypothesis."
As you can see, science is trying to grapple with the phenomenon known as NDE. While the research doesn't seem to be conclusive either way, some scientists are convinced that NDE's have been explained by science.
Another interesting article on NDE's can be found on the BBC:
One of the most frequently reported features of near-death experiences is an awareness of being dead - but the researchers say these feelings are not limited to near-death experiences.
There is a condition called "Cotard" - or "walking corpse" syndrome, where a person believes they are dead. It has been seen following trauma and during the advanced stages of typhoid and multiple sclerosis.
Out-of-body experiences, where people feel they are floating above themselves, are also commonly reported.
But Swiss researchers found such experiences could be artificially induced by stimulating the right temporoparietal junction in the brain that plays a role in perception and awareness.
The "tunnel of light" sensation reported by those who believe they are having a near-death experience can also be artificially induced.
Pilots flying at G-force can sometimes experience "hypertensive syncope" which causes tunnel-like peripheral or even central visual loss for up to eight seconds.
And a US study suggested the light at the end of the tunnel can be explained by poor blood and oxygen supply to the eye.
The feelings of bliss and euphoria, meanwhile, can be recreated with drugs such as ketamine and amphetamine.
The paper also suggests the action of noradrenaline, a hormone released by the mid-brain, can evoke positive emotions, hallucinations and other features of the near-death experience.
Writing in the journal Trends in Cognitive Science, the researchers say: "Taken together, the scientific experience suggests that all aspects of near-death experience have a neuro-physiological or psychological basis."
Dr Sam Parnia, director of resuscitation research at the State University of New York and author of What Happens When We Die said: "Every experience, whether near-death or otherwise such as depression, happiness and love is mediated by the brain.
"In fact many experiences share the same brain regions, and so it is not unusual to be able to reproduce them.
"Discovering those areas or reproducing them, doesn't imply the experience is not real. By the same token, we wouldn't say love, happiness and depression are not real.
"Furthermore many people accurately report "seeing" events taking place at a time when the brain doesn't function (such as during cardiac arrest). These cannot be explained by brain changes, since the brain had shut down and 'flatlined'.
"While seeming real to those who experience them, near death experiences provide a glimpse of what it is like to die for the rest of us".
And it may be that humans aren't the only ones who experience near NDE's or who have spiritual experiences either. Some research suggests that many animals may experience the same sorts of things as humans do when near death. The difference being that they can't verbalize it like humans can.
In an effort to understand NDE's in humans, some researchers have begun to study other animals. Here's what one article had to say about the matter:
"In humans, we know that if we disrupt the (brain) region where vision, sense of motion, orientation in the Earth's gravitational field, and knowing the position of our body all come together, then out-of-body experiences can be caused literally by the flip of a switch," he said. "There is absolutely no reason to believe it is any different for a dog, cat, or primate’s brain."
Other mammals also probably have near-death experiences comparable to those reported by certain humans, he believes. Such people often say they saw a light and felt as though they were moving down a tunnel.
The tunnel phenomenon "is caused by the eye's susceptibility to the low blood flow that occurs with fainting or cardiac arrest," he said. "As blood flow diminishes, vision fails peripherally first. There is no reason to believe that other animals are any different from us."
Nelson added, "What they make of the tunnel is another matter."
The light aspect of near-death experiences can be explained by how the visual system defines REM (rapid eye movement) consciousness, he believes.
"In fact," he said, "the link between REM and the physiological crises causing near-death experience are most strongly linked in animals, like cats and rats, which we can study in the laboratory."
Mystical experiences -- moments that inspire a sense of mystery and wonderment -- arise within the limbic system, he said. When specific parts of this system are removed from animal brains, mind-altering drugs like LSD have no effect.
Since other animals, such as non-human primates, horses, cats and dogs, also possess similar brain structures, it is possible that they too experience mystical moments, and may even have a sense of spiritual oneness, according to Nelson.
As you can see, research is still ongoing when it comes to NDE's. Some believe it is a spiritual or religious experience, while others firmly believe that it can all be explained using natural science. For some it's easy to believe in NDE's, especially if you happen to believe in an afterlife, ghosts or other supernatural phenomenon. For others, it's much more difficult.
One thing is for certain though - we'll all get to find out the truth of the matter at some point.
