What are the most common elements of a near-death experience, or “NDE”? We have an article that answers that question at length—be sure to read The Characteristics of a Near-Death Experience for a more detailed answer—but for now, let’s just briefly go over the most common elements of NDEs.
What are the most common elements of a near-death experience?
Many experiencers report having an out-of-body experience, often but not always at the start or end of their NDE. Some even say they’ve watched efforts to resuscitate them, or watched their own surgeries, accurately reporting events and conversations they weren’t conscious for.
You’ve probably heard references to “the light at the end of the tunnel” or “going toward the light”, either in everyday conversation or through pop culture. That’s another common element of near-death experiences. There’s almost always a sense of rapidly moving toward a light—a tunnel of darkness with an indescribable light at the end of it.
It’s quite common to also experience encounters with people or beings. This might be a person you’ve known (alive or deceased), pets, animals, or even other beings entirely, such as religious figures or beings experiencers can’t quite describe. During these encounters, communications are often between minds rather than through spoken words.
There’s also typically an event NDE researchers refer to as a life review, where the experiencer relives moments from their life and feels the emotional impacts of those moments on other people involved. You might say this falls in line with the popular saying of someone having their “life flash before their eyes”.
NDEs also commonly include extremely intense emotions of either peace, security, and love, or horror, fear, and loss. This is often a defining characteristic of pleasurable and distressing NDEs. Many experiencers also note having heightened abilities to think clearly and observe their surroundings, and some even say they experience a flood of knowledge.
IANDS works tirelessly to research near-death experiences
The field of near-death studies is relatively young in the world of science. We’ve learned a lot about the nature of near-death experiences, but we still have a long way to go toward fully understanding them.
We know about the most common elements of near-death experiences through several decades of scientific research, analyzing thousands upon thousands of reports from the people who’ve experienced NDEs. And we’re confident that one day, this work will lead us to answers not only about near-death and related phenomena, but bigger questions about human consciousness and the nature of life.
Our website is jam-packed with useful information regarding near-death experiences and the scientific research involved in near-death studies. Consider spending some time to learn about near-death experiences, read useful information on NDE support, or peruse some of our research.
If you’re looking to support our mission at IANDS, you could donate to IANDS, become an IANDS member, join IANDS groups, or attend our annual conference. Or just share this article on your favorite social media platform and help spread the word!
