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September 2024

24Q3V2

Jeff Long

Dr. Jeffrey Long

A new publication by Jeffrey Long, MD and Marjorie Woollacott, is the largest study on the aftereffects of near-death experiences ever published. It appears in the September-October edition of the peer-reviewed journal Explore:

(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S155083072400137X)

The study is now archived in the National Library of Medicine:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38996518/

An author of the study, "Long-term Transformational Effects of Near-Death Experiences," I am deeply committed to exploring the profound and lasting changes that individuals experience following near-death experiences (NDEs). This research, involving 834 participants who have undergone NDEs and 42 individuals who faced life-threatening events (LTEs) without NDEs, sheds light on the unique transformative power of these experiences.

One of the most significant findings in my study is the profound shift in values and spiritual beliefs that often accompanies an NDE. Individuals who experienced

NDEs reported a remarkable increase in their belief in God and the afterlife. In fact, belief in God almost doubled, from 37% to 72%, and belief in the afterlife surged from 25% to 84%. These shifts in worldview underscore the depth of the spiritual awakening that NDEs can trigger. By contrast, those who faced life-threatening events without experiencing an NDE showed only modest changes in their beliefs.

Another critical finding is the substantial reduction in the fear of death among those who experienced an NDE. Many participants reported a newfound understanding of death, viewing it not as an end but as a transition. The percentage of NDE survivors who no longer feared death rose dramatically from 13% to 77%. In comparison, individuals who survived life-threatening events without an NDE saw only a smaller reduction in fear, from 36% to 55%. This striking difference highlights the deep, comforting insight that NDEs provide into the nature of death.

Beyond spiritual beliefs and fear of death, NDEs also foster significant changes in how individuals approach life and their relationships with others. Many participants described a newfound sense of interconnectedness with others, a deeper empathy, and a heightened compassion for those around them. Compassionate behavior increased substantially, with 78% of NDE survivors reporting enhanced compassion compared to just 25% before their experience. This shift toward a more altruistic and loving approach to life is one of the most inspiring outcomes of NDEs.

In addition to these psychological and spiritual transformations, NDEs often lead individuals to reevaluate their life priorities. Many participants expressed a shift away from materialism and superficial concerns, focusing instead on the meaningful aspects of life, such as relationships, love, and spirituality. This reorientation of values often results in a simpler, more fulfilling way of living, where inner peace and connection with others take precedence over the pursuit of material wealth.

What makes these findings especially powerful is the clear contrast between those who experienced NDEs and those who did not. While both groups faced life-threatening situations, only those who experienced an NDE reported such significant, long-lasting changes in their beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors. This suggests that the near-death experience itself, not merely the proximity to death, plays a crucial role in catalyzing these profound transformations.

 

In conclusion, the research demonstrates that NDEs are not just fleeting moments of spiritual insight. They are life-altering experiences that fundamentally reshape how individuals perceive the world, their purpose, and their relationships with others. These transformations are long-lasting, providing individuals with a renewed sense of purpose, love, and peace. Through this study, I hope to contribute to a deeper understanding of the powerful, positive impact NDEs can have on those who experience them.

Jody Long

Jody Long

WE NEED A HERO

While that may sound a bit tired from theatrical overuse, sometimes we need to be reminded of who the real hero might be. I'd say that right now with the increasing polarity that our hero is you and your soul.

In all the times of great tribulation, the devils get bigger and the angels much larger.  But duality is part of what we came to earth to experience. It helps us clarify who we are and what we need to do for one of the greatest tests of our lifetime.

History tells us a lot about why people fight. Surviving World War I, World War II, and the Depression gave the name to those survivors as the "Greatest Generation." But I think one of the most telling of these devastations is the heroes on both sides.

What did those people have to do to reach inside of themselves and become the very best they could possibly be under the worst circumstances they found themselves in.

What was their soul purpose?

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​What if I throw out the name of Erwin Rommel? Many people won't recognize his name, but many people will remember him as one of Hitler's top generals who was in charge of the North African campaign and that he went by the name of the "Desert Fox." Just as General Robert E. Lee was lauded for his tactical brilliance in the face of enormous odds, little food or supplies, and responsibility for many lives; the same was true for Rommel. Even though Rommel was part of the Nazi regime, and initially "drank the reason-blinding cool-aid" so to speak, he held to strong moral principles and even died for helping in a foiled assassination attempt when he realized what a crazy-man Hitler had become.

A hero is confronted with many choices; and many times, must choose between a bad outcome or an even worse one. Sometimes, it means that there are no winners. But, the soul isn't judged on what the winners think or how history is spun. It actually depends on how loving is the heart-choice and the lessons learned from the decision.

As we wade through this time where people are between a rock and a hard spot, look into your own heart. Think of ways to be more loving and compassionate to as many people as possible. Go back to Maslow's Hierarchy of needs.  Before they can think of more abstract concepts, their base needs have to be taken care of. Food and shelter are the most important. Being unkind to a starving person, or ignoring people with dirty water to drink, or those who are addicts, makes no sense. They are tests of the soul. What are we going to do when we are confronted with such realities?

Consider a plan. Consider that it is rare to be able to help someone unless you help yourself first. Look at your strengths and your weaknesses. Do you have a way to minimize triggers while maximizing your gifts you have?

Many people can benefit from meditation. Meditation can lead to strength and positive feelings. It also can help you discover your soul purpose. What is it you have come here to learn? Can you stay loving and firmly resolved to do the right thing in the face of adversity? When we are able to understand some soul-truths, then it makes sense to have a plan or put yourself in a position to help others.​

Whatever you do, try to look at this part of your life without fear. Excessive fear will keep you bound to the negative part of earth because the higher rational mind cannot make good choices. Turn off the news. Surround yourselves with good friends. Focus on parts of life that reduce the drama in your surroundings.  Walks outside in safe areas help relieve stress. Find that knowledge within yourself and become the hero through preparation, proper choices, and plenty of loving kindness.

Can we become the next Greatest Generation? We certainly have the chessboard set up to become

the best we can be.

Namaste, much love and peace,
Jody Long

Spotlight

NDERF Spotlight: Stacey Long

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MEET STACEY LONG

Stacey, our new Project & Events Manager, brings a wealth of kindness and assistance to our team. With a background in public health and business, she is passionate about educating others in the science of Near-Death Experiences (NDEs) and spiritual growth. She is committed to helping people understand their own gifts. Stacey is spearheading the NDE 101 education project and signing on those groups interested in our “Introduction to Near-Death Experiences” presentation. She is growing to be a valuable resource for our ongoing efforts to support and inform the community. If you are interested in signing up your group for an online or in-person presentation please reach out to Stacey at Stacey@nderf.org.

Book Review

NDERF Book Review

by Diane Dobry ED.D.

What Comes Next: An investigative reporter uncovers Quantum Physics’ hidden afterlife hypothesis. Michael Schmicker. 2024:Palladino Books,US

Who of us has not wondered what happens when we die? We grow up with religious organizations telling us what to believe based on faith and some manner of holy writings appropriate to each denomination, or scientists who have given us the sense that there is no evidence of the continuation of consciousness once the brain and body have stopped functioning. That is not to say that some scientists have not been curious enough to investigate, but many were not willing to rock the Materialist boat to push for exploration, as many were ridiculed, shamed, or ignored.

The author, Michael Schmicker, is an investigative journalist who was a

what comes next.jpg

freelance correspondent in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War, and an Op-Ed contributor to The Asian Wall Street Journal.  Schmicker turned his investigative attention to the paranormal and unexplainable-- topics that included ghosts, spirits, and reincarnation—after working as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Thailand, where the people he met had no problem accepting the reality of the spirit world and had experienced such phenomena, themselves. It was when he returned to the U.S. that Schmicker discovered that one of his relatives, a Catholic priest, had a daily diary filled with many personal ESP experiences.

Up until that time, Schmicker had accepted Newtonian physics and materialist science’s message that there was no evidence supporting the reality of occurrences like ESP, telepathy, spiritual interactions or even an afterlife and heaven. Without evidence, there was no basis for belief in the possibility or reality of these events happening or being anything other than chance or folktales.

Thus began Schmicker’s quest to find “the best scientific evidence for other so-called ‘paranormal’ phenomena reported by humans for centures….”  His first book on this subject, Best Evidence, published in 2000, detailed his findings. The book offered experiences, vison and reports of several phenomena being studied by researchers at Princeton, Harvard, the University of Arizona and the University of Virginia School of Medicine.  Yet skeptics refused to look at the evidence based on the argument that “these phenomena can’t exist: therefore, they don’t.”

The premise of this book, What Comes Next?, is this:  Newtonian materialist science says that the only acceptable evidence can be physical evidence. Since an afterlife would not be a physical place or experience, there could be no evidence studied or used to conclude that an afterlife, heaven, or even a divine presence exists.

Enter Quantum physics, which suggested, according to multiple Nobel Prize-winning scientists working in that field, that our consciousness survives death.  Schmicker explains that “Quantum Physics is currently science’s most precise, powerful, proven theory of reality.”

For that reason, the book lays out two parts:

Part I – the personal story of Schmicker’s investigation, and
Part II – the hard scientific evidence supporting the afterlife argument this book makes, aimed at skeptics in search of evidence.  

Thus, the premise of the book is that “Near-Death Experience research says our consciousness survives death. Quantum physics explains why this is scientifically possible and logical.”

Schmicker describes the publications and experts he focused on in accumulating the evidence, stressing that he leans toward Nobel Prize winners whose opinions reflect innovation, deep knowledge and experience, rigor, and an almost universal respect of their peers. For NDEs, Schmicker relied on medical researchers rather than anecdotal reports.

Consciousness—which includes experiences ranging from “vivid color sensations…the faintest background aromas…thoughts on the tip of the tongue…musical experience…existential angst…the taste of peppermint to the…experience of selfhood,” all of which have a “distinct experienced quality”—was defined by Newtonian physicists to be merely a product of the brain. Yet critics of this consciousness-from-matter point of view, including Australian philosopher David Chalmers, called this “the hard problem” facing Materialist neuroscientists—that “consciousness emerging from matter is not something one would logically predict from Newtonian physics. Chalmers points out that some scientists insist that it is merely an illusion.

Schmicker reports that non-Newtonian-focused scientists and neurologists determined that the higher mental functions “such as consciousness, reasoning, imagination and will—are not produced by the brain” because the mind is non-physical.” They suggest that, based on near-death experience research, the mind acts like a radio transmitter and the brain is like a radio receiver.  If you turn off the receiver (the brain) it does not stop the transmitter (the mind) from continuing to transmit, in the same way that turning off or destroying a radio does not stop the music that can be played on the radio.  The radio is not creating the music, it is just facilitating the transmission of it.

The book also touches on Neuropsychiatrist Peter Fenwick’s explanation that the brain filters consciousness, but only allows us to perceive a small part of what exists in the same way that we know about x-rays, infrared radiation and microwaves because we have instruments that can detect them.  Ironically, then, since consciousness exists apart from the brain and continues to exist even after the brain has died, it is only in death that we can become fully conscious.

Humans have been reporting near-death experiences for more than 2000 years, and when surgeons and physicians began reporting the near-death stories of their patients—children and people blind from birth among them—scientists could no longer dismiss the reports and statistics, as well as the fact that survivors worldwide were reporting having the same experiences. But it was not until 2001 that a Dutch Cardiologist, Pim Van Lommel, published a 20-year systematic study in a controlled environment involving near-death experiences of hospital patients who survived a cardiac arrest. “Their experiences are identical, irrespective of whether they believe that death is the end of everything or whether they believe in life after death," Van Lommel wrote.

As an additional part of his findings, Schmicker writes about more than just NDEs and out-of-body experiences and their connection to Quantum Physics’ discoveries. The book also includes a discussion of how our conscious awareness is the basis of physical reality before death, findings that are even more complex than the principles of physics outlined above. It is worth the read, as it piggybacks on Lynn McTaggart’s The Field, Fred Allen Wolf’s Taking the Quantum Leap, and David Kaiser’s How the Hippies Saved Physics.

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