What Causes Near Death Experiences? | Answers With Joe 

Everyone try to ignore the giant zit trying to take over my nose...

I nearly died seven years ago while I was working as an arborist and a log fell from about 50 feet and landed on my back. My back was broken in ten places and I had eleven broken ribs, some of which punctured my lungs and I was asphyxiating on my own blood. It sounds like a horrible experience to go through but it was actually the most peaceful experience of my life. I’ve never been a religious guy and this experience didn’t change that for me but it was something that changed my outlook on life for the better. No bright lights or dead relatives or anything, just peace and an overwhelming feeling of incredible love for my then three year old son. Took me a couple years to get proper use of my legs back and then a few more to be able to walk unassisted again and last year I took my old arborist job back and I’m still doing it to this day.

I technically died when I was a kid, had a horrible ear infection, very sick, blah blah. My heart stopped. I remember my Grandpa telling me to go back home, he loved me but I couldn't visit yet, he'd be there when I came back. I was 6. I didn't put much weight into it, and thought it was a dream. Later I got into a bad car wreck, I was 18. Rolled a car off a cliff, smashed it against a tree. I remember hearing my Grandpa telling me I was hell bent on coming back, stop it, it wasn't my time. I waked away from the accident without a scratch. Became a little more relevant but I still didn't really care. Years later my daughter had a seizure and her heart stopped. When she came back and was better, she told me that this old man told her this family is just hell bent on visiting, and that he knew me and told her to tell me that it wasn't her time either. I had a little more respect for the afterlife after that. Coincidence? Yep could be. Don't know. Don't care if no one believes it, and I guess that's what makes this subject so tough. Your personal belief should be just that. Your belief can be shared, but shouldn't be forced on anyone else, and it shouldn't matter who believes you. Ok you asked for these sappy comments so there ya go. LOL

I personally have been electrocuted and had a NDE, over 40 years ago. I know there are some people who are dishonest and make things up. After all, some people are charlatans, and will take advantage of others, especially for money. A person has to have discernment and common sense to separate the truth from the nonsense. I know that NDEs occur, because I had this experience. I'm not writing a book, nor asking anyone for money. I just relate my experience to others. The dying part was terrifying. But then I came out of my body. I noticed right away that it was very calm and peaceful. I felt completely free for the first time in my life, and it felt like I was floating on air. What a euphoric feeling. Then I saw my body. The first thing I thought of is that I'm dead. But somehow I was still perceiving and thinking. My sense of awareness and conscientious was very clear. I thought: I don't feel dead. I feel better than I've ever felt. Then I had a feeling of being loved, and this feeling was becoming more and more intense. So intense that it felt a bit too uncomfortable. Then it seemed to slow down a little bit. Then it felt like I was being embraced. Not a human touch, but still felt like an embrace. Then I sensed what I call the "Oneness". Kind of like the oneness of the universe, or the oneness of everything. This entire place was filled with love and oneness. Then I went back into my body right after this. Someone in my workplace realized what was going on, and disconnected the electrical current. I recovered from my ordeal, and I'm still here to relate my story, many years later. I'm not a religious person, but I consider myself to be spiritual. I know what I experienced was real. There is something out there. Call it the Source, the Divine, God, the universal consciousness, the light, or whatever else you choose to call this. I know I encountered the light on that day, and the light and myself are at peace with each other. The unconditional love I experienced was so far off the scale that I cannot describe this in words. It's different than the kind of love we experience in our Earthly lives. Simple words can't do this kind of love justice. But it's perfect unconditional love.

You know what, Joe, I love that you always seem to leave us with an "it's all good, go live your life" sentiment. It's very comforting in light of the existential anxiety inducing subjects you talk about. Thanks!

My favorite quote I’ve heard in recent years is that “Magic is just science we haven’t discovered yet.” Love ya Joe. Recently found your channel and I can’t get enough of it.

I just turned 36 yesterday, and It's a major milestone in my life! I had a cardiac arrest (not a heart attack) in May this year. Passed out and fell over in a store, thankfully my friend knew CPR. Paramedics got there a min or two later, but it took them 25 minutes to bring me back to stable. They had to shock me 6 times. I woke up in the hospital 3 days later with no memory of it, or leading up to it. Turns out I have a big (half-enlarged) heart, lol. I'm now living round two with an S-ICD (defibrillator, not pacemaker) implanted on my left side and am thankful every day for the science and medicines available now, which kept my brain alive so I can still be me.

I went into cardiac arrest when I was in the second grade from an asthma attack, I experienced nothing. No thoughts, only a very vague sense that some time had passed. I went into a coma a few years ago from my type 1 Diabetes, I was moving and got the flu, a friend came by and found me a few hours away from death. That time I was in a delirium of strange dreams, but nothing spiritual.

Joe, can you do a video entirely on DMT? I'd love to hear your take on it.

I had an experience of near death with anaphylaxis. It was not as dramatic as some others here. But I was in an altered state and saw the medical team working hard to save me. I felt no fear though I knew I was dying and felt incredible love for the people working on me. I came away from the experience with no fear of death and a deep sense of gratitude for life.

You should write a book about this! Available on Amazon for $10.99!

Joe, I spent the past few days binging your videos. I'm up for a promotion at work that, if I got it, would mean I could buy food without counting pennies, and getting lost in your channel gave me an excellent distraction from all the anxiety. So thank you for that, a hundred times over. I feel like I've gotten to know you a bit, which is just a weird side effect of watching someone with your conversational style talk for hours. Anyway, I hope you know that you're great at what you do, and I've learned so much from your channel. My favorite things are definitely your appreciation of your Answerphiles/Patreon supporters, the tangent cam, comedy bits, and the woo woo alarm. It blows me away that you're so good at researching topics you might not know anything about and turning that learning into a video that's not just informational, but super entertaining.

My friend's dad was dead for three minutes and he said that it was like trying to explain a new colour.

I thought I was gonna die once, my car was spinning out of control on an icy overpass, and I just thought "well, this is it". I totally got the sensation of time slowing down and I had a super fast stream of consciousness and memories, my brain was just flooded with information in what I'm sure was a just few seconds...🤷

Well, I was involved in a kind of shared experience. Once, shortly after midnight, I was in an accident and had an OBE. I was a point of consciousness watching the paramedics try to resuscitate me. I could tap into the emotions of the paramedics and the crowd watching. A couple of days later, I discovered that my phone had several missed calls each from my mother and aunt. It turns out that both had awakened at the moment of my accident with a terrifying sense that something bad had happened to me, so they called me to see if I was okay. They live about five hundred miles apart, but they both woke up from a dead sleep terrified for my safety.

Recovering from a dental operation, I found myself flying round the ceiling, looking down at other patients and watching my dad sat by my bedside (on some good stuff there!). Years later, just before my cancer op, I went for a walk. Suddenly, colours turned really vivid (almost psychedelic), the grass and trees were waving side to side as if dancing, and I felt really light like my feet were walking on air. It was just great, I felt so happy and couldn't give a damn about the cancer. After my op, the surgeon sympathised with all 'the pain' he thought I must've been experiencing whilst waiting for my operation date. I told him I had none at all, only this amazing sense of euphoria - which had now completely gone. Naturally-occurring brain chemicals inducing hallucinations as the body faces death definitely gets my vote.

I had an NDE in 1968. To me it was real. It was far more focused and linear than an hallucination. I learned a lot and benefited greatly. I asked if I should spread the word and was told, "Do nothing. Everything is as it should be." So I did nothing.

I'm 73 and have taken LSD, and other 60s non-addictive drugs but the only angel I've ever seen I can remember is the one I saw last month when I was with a dear friend who died beside me in the hospital. I was not ill but I am empathic and I seemed to just follow her into a beautiful universe made of light where, somewhat removed from her, I witnessed her reuniting with people she'd loved and who had loved her while they were all alive, etc. I reluctantly put up this comment and expect insults, but there it is.

I had an NDE several years ago and have gained a sense of peace form the experience. While I can't prove it to anyone. I can say that it touched the very core of my being and left me a better person.

I had the experience but wasn't dying. At the time I did not know that that could even happen. It was profound, the light was more of an intense explosion that never got bigger, I was a piece of light traveling toward this bright explosive light along with thousands of other pieces of light (other beings i think) I knew every thought, experience that each of these other entities had ever experienced all at the same instant in my mind BUT i realized if i continued into the light I would no longer be me and I wanted to continue as me so at that instant I was back in my body, I thought about this experience my whole life and I do believe it was not a brain chemical release that tricked me. Because at 19 years old (68 now) I could not have even imagined being able to have all of that information at the same time or the amazing spectacle of that explosive light. I tried to make it happen again with no success. And there was nothing special that triggered it I was just sitting in a chair thinking deeply about how to solve a problem. I am not as afraid of death now but other than that Its just another story.

What causes near death experiences? Well, almost dying for one.

Good morning joe!! Just found your channel a week ago. Been binge watching all of your videos. Wish I had found this channel sooner.

I also had a very creepy near death experience my book is available on amazon at only 9.99

I've had 3 of these odd experiences. All similar yet different. First time at 14, cardiac arrest, slowly raised out of my body(I was facing down, seeing the docs and nurses still working on me) , white light all around and no longer curious because I somehow instantly understood everything. Second time at 15, was after walking into a corner store and getting ready to pay at the counter, I suddenly walked into the store again and stopped because I realized I had just done this...then I looked over at the counter and saw myself standing there..I walked over to myself and when I got really close to inspect, I was suddenly back in my body with the cashier visibly annoyed and repeating the amount. Third time at 36, I was meditating and suddenly popped into a dark space & thought:"this is weird"...I had no body yet was very conscious & all my thoughts kept popping up in front of me. All of a sudden, I knew to turn and look behind me, there, I saw a glowing tree being(felt and kinda looked female). It reached out and touched what would have been my chest(if I had a body), I instantly burst into tears...it was so intense that I popped back to me meditating yet still weeping profoundly and uncontrollably for the next couple of minutes. I'm so far, not completely sold on any explanation for these experiences...at first I was frustrated with not knowing but I have come to appreciate it. The questions are sometimes more interesting and exciting than the awnsers. ;)

It would be interesting to see how many NDEs happened in a hospital situation under florescent lights. Many years ago I participated in a health study at my state's university which included a blood draw. I spent most of the day before the appointment running errands (middle of August and hot) in a car with pretty much a non functioning air conditioner. The study was right before dinner so I was dehydrated, hungry and overheated and totally set myself up for passing out. The room I was in for the draw was lighted by florescent lights so when I started to go out it seemed like I was going into a tunnel of light. Basically my vision narrowed and the light was actually just the lights in the ceiling. I didn't die and come back but I have heard that can be an explanation at least for that part of the phenomenon. Oh and as far as the kid riding a rainbow horse with Jesus that's has to totally be his parents looking for cash. I can't prove it but would bet money on it.

I’ve studied NDE’s for a while now. It started when my dad was dying and I wanted to know more about a possible afterlife. Maybe they are simply hallucinations that our brains create to make death less scary? But some cases really make me wonder. The cases where patients who were brain dead at the time, were able to tell surgeons specific details of things the staff was doing and saying while they were dead. How can we explain that as a hallucination? Doctors have confirmed that what some of these patients described, actually happened exactly as they described. It’s a mystery that we will likely never truly have an explanation for.

In the 20 minutes it took me to watch this video, 1,470 people watched it. You are one of my favorites on youtube, Joe, and I think the rest of the Tube-O-Sphere agrees with me.

Last year I went into the hospital and admitted because I had pneumonia but didn't know it and during the surgeries they were doing on me (tracheotomy and having three chest tubes put in, a sack of fluid drained that was in between my heart and lung) my left lung collapsed and during that, the nurse said I died. I don't remember anything from it but when I woke up, before the nurse said anything to me, I knew something happened and had a very strange feeling. It was a good feeling, too. When the nurse told me about it, I wasn't scared or worried. It just felt very different. Interesting video. Thanks for making it. =D

My mothers heart stopped 3 times with an arithmia condition. She said she remembers seeing nothing. All she remembers is the trauma of consciousness when she was brought back. Kind of a peacefulness being shattered (her words). The one thing she gained from this experience is a complete lack of fear about dying.

Last time I went to a rock concert it was so loud I couldn't hear a thing afterwards for about an hour. I was worried I'd never hear again but fortunately my hearing came back and I'm grateful every day for my hearing after my near-deaf experience.

I'm going to keep this short. I've had TWO near death experiences. This is what I think... I think we go through life KNOWING the answers to everything and for whatever reason, suppressing them. I believe a near death experience is the brains way of finding closure in a very quick manner before passing. To bring EVERYTHING you already knew to the surface in one massive surge. I wasn't shown anything I didn't already know. I was shown what I needed to see. It gave me perspective and completely changed the way I lived life. My near death experiences were exactly how they are typically described. The difference is, I realized that what I was seeing was everything that I knew and had seen, but was failing to acknowledge. I was FORCED to see everything all at once in a few brief moments.

I was deployed to Iraq, ever since that, life is pretty easy. I think of everything that is thrown at me as "at least I'm not being shot at", and it puts things into perspective.

I was at a party with my cousin once took some LSD and a few hours into it I felt like I had transcended into space, felt like I had become one with the universe, saw a "movie' of my life, felt an enormous sense of closure and joy, interacted with spirits, and realized the meaning of life. A few hours later I woke up in my cousins room and he described how I was just lying in his bed staring at the ceiling for 4-5 hours.

Thanks Joe, this video made my day. I had a NDE about twenty years ago. I can't say that I can remember having a "spiritual" experience as such but I did wake from a coma after 7 days thinking that I had lived an entire lifetime. It never hurts to have an open mind to these things I guess.

I worked in a nursing home for a few years. I was helping take care of a woman, she was dieing. Her daughter was with her. I was right across the hall when I heard her daughter call me. I ran over and just as I entered the room I saw as clear as day, a human size and shape cloud of "smoke" exit the top of the dieing ladies head and go straight up. It stopped me in my tracks. As soon as it was gone, her daughter asked me "did you see that?" I said " a wisp of smoke that came out of her head" she said "yes" I have no explanation.

I had a NDE in July 2017, after abdominal surgery got complications and went into septic shock and eventually ended up on a respirator and a comma. My NDE is a very personal and deeply spiritual tale. Not something to broadcast, what I can share is that you are expected to forgive and ask for forgiveness, so that you can be at peace and thus enter heaven. It changes your life forever and it is a huge blessing to experience and still live. My experience included prophecy, and an order of how heaven works. It is definitely hard to share this.

I had a near death experience of hell and can confirm there was a lot of Nickelback

An open mind doesn't hurt anyone.

I regained consciousness in hospital a few times after having seizures, but never had any recollection of anything at all. I think our spirit lives on in younger people with whom we shared the best of ourselves, that spirit lives on in them to share with the universe to continue exploring life and creating something positive from it.

My dad went into cardiac arrest, he was literally at the doctor for a heart problem so they were able to keep him 100% oxygenated and saved his life. He never even knew anything happened, he was in the middle of a conversation, and restarted the topic once he woke back up. So I think near death experiences have something to do with brain chemicals during the event.

You should do a whole video on psychedelics and DMT. I've personally had life changing experiences that absolutely facilitated me becoming a better person. There is a lot of potential in this world.

I've been having an existential crisis about this and the last bit of the video really helped me gain my perspective back. Thanks Joe♥️

i didn't have a near death experience but I was faced with my own mortality at 34. I recently had pancreantitus twice within 2 months. My doctor told me that had I not come to hospital when I did that my pancreas could have ruptured, gone into sepsis and potentially died. I'm a mother, a sister, a daughter and a girlfriend, this experience made me realize how much I love these ppl and how much they depend on me. I definitely live differently now, with intention and love. I currently have Covid 19 along with comprised organs so it's more important than ever to live in the moment and cherish my family and friends. We are only here for a limited time so you MUST make each day, each moment count! Please, never take your time here for granted, who knows what kind of impact you could make!

My husband was in a coma for 15 days 13 years ago. He tells about being lying is a sort of boat waiting for the rope to be cut so that he could go down the river, and that someone just came and said that it was not his time. He also tells a lot of stories where it is obvious that he was just listening to the discussions around and then translating them to dreams. Probably the one with the boat followed a discussion between nurses of something. A year later, my son was born with a life threatening heart condition and had to have 8 hours of open-heart surgery at 8 days old. These things gave us a whole different perspective of life. But it is really hard, not to be taken by routine and pressure. In any case, it has for sure shaped mine and my husband's careers. We for sure privilege being able to spend time with our kids.

The most compelling NDE components to me are the out of body awareness anecdotes that are verified by others, I’d like to see a whole program on those (That have been authenticated)

I had a near death experience but not so near to get the DMT trip or see the light. I was 8 years old and nearly drowned in a river. A complete stranger pulled me out of the rapids. Even though I was young it impressed upon me greatly and I have taken on the challenge to save the lives of as many people as I can. Some you can’t save but you can help. Some you can’t help but you can help the surviving loved ones. This has helped lead to a very fulfilling life and I have a stranger to thank for it.

Almost lost my life on several occasions, but 2 in particular came very close and i was 100% convinced i was about to die as i was losing consciousness. No near death experience, just pure terror right up until the second i went fully unconscious. Ive never felt fear like it and wouldnt wish it upon anyone. Unfortunately as i live with multiple life threatening and life limiting conditions, i dont doubt i will have to stare death in the face plenty more times to come until one day my body is just too far gone to be saved. Sounds morbid, but when you life with the conditions i have theres no shying away from death and the real possibility that i might not be alive in a week, a month, a year, 5 years, or 10 years time. My health is too unpredictable with rapid declines so my doctors cannot give an estimated timeline, and im thankful for that in a way. I wouldnt want to know. The knowledge that my time left could be very short is a big motivation to live and love harder and be thankful for everyone and everything. Living with severe illnesses and disabilities has definitely changed me and given me so so much gratitude for every tiny thing in life. My most used words in conversation are probably 'thank you' or 'im so grateful for...' and i dont ever pass on an opportunity to say 'i love you' to my friends and family. Facing you own mortality changes you; different people might be affected in different ways, but i dont think its possible to come so close to losing your life and come out of it as the same person you were before.

I had around a 50% chance of death a couple years ago. I had just had my entire colon removed a few days before and it'd apparently sprung a leak, causing sepsis. If the leak had been further in, it would've been closer to 75% chance of death... I was at a fever of 103 and the surgeon who specialized in these surgeries was out of town. So his protege told me explicitly "I'm not the kind of surgeon who normally does these... we could wait a day and run more tests... but you probably won't be here by then." So I signed the papers... what else? I have a newfound appreciation for "Don't fear the Reaper" by Blue Oyster Cult, but I didn't have any near-death experience that I recall. I do recall, however... A few days later, the day after I got out of the ICU, that I had this very vivid flash of memories of an old classmate of mine at around 2AM. I hadn't seen or thought about her in years... I knew something bad had happened to her. Turns out later that morning I'd found out from another old classmate friend that she'd been murdered by her boyfriend at 2AM that morning... the same time as I'd had the vivid memories of her. Maybe it was the morphine, but maybe it wasn't. I've learned to trust those dreams, as they've been right more often than not. I dreamt of my father's passing one month before it'd happened, dreamt of it as it happened. It's what motivated me to make a DVD slideshow for his birthday, which was later shown at his funeral. My original intent was the funeral, I'd started it at 4AM just a month before his birthday, and few days more than a month before he'd passed. I'd dreamt my Scoutmaster had died of a heart attack around 6 months before he did. I was an adult leader at this point, but he'd been my childhood mentor. I actually got up the nerve to talk to him, and tried encouraging him to try the diet that had helped my father so much (my father lived 12 years after that widowmaker only to die from a stroke)... He brushed it aside, and I walked away feeling helpless. More often than not, I am. Hell, I've chatted with my grandparents as well. My grandfather visited me on his birthday, and we didn't even realize it was his birthday until we'd spent an entire day looking for old photos... none were on display of him in the entire house. We had to check the bible his father had brought back from Dublin because nobody was really sure.... He'd been dead since 11 years before I was born. He'd shown me all around the places where he'd grown up, married, and raised my father. I'd never been to any of those places before. Certain elements, such as the cemetery having green fence with yellow masonry at the base were just like the actual place he was buried. It was the last thing he'd shown me before I'd awaken... the place where he and my grandmother were buried. I totally knew he was dead in the dream, but it didn't matter... It wasn't like any dream anyhow. There was nothing strange about it. It was the most normal and casual encounter you could imagine. My grandmother visited me on her 100th birthday... simply to say "hello" and "do what you know is right". My father visited me one night, just "popped in" a random dream, and said he just wanted to "stop by and say 'hi' ". He then said "they're having a party for the massless" and I just knew that was him... him and his morbid humor.

Ego deaths are intense. Losing track of your own identity is TERRIFYING. It can be a useful learning experience though, because it teaches you how to go with the flow and not feel worried about all the dark but inevitable realities we have to face in life and death. When you learn how to accept the ego death as it's happening, it's still jarring, but it can be equally blissful and calming too. It gives you an opportunity to experience reality as pure consiousness that hasn't been augmented by the biases of your identity yet... kind of like being a newborn baby again.

I almost internally bled to death after a routine drain pull post-mastectomy. There are a few things that I find interesting about the whole experience. One: I quite suddenly became aware that I was either dying or passing out when my vision started tunneling and was able to communicate to my partner that I needed to get to an ER and my surgeons personal number was on my phone. Two: I knew blood wasn't getting to my brain and engaged in deep slow breathing in an effort to survive. Three: Ever since this happened 19 months ago, I have these very emotional and strange moments where I'm both very aware that I almost didn't have this moment and then I truly wonder if this is a pre-death hallucination that feels complex and long but that it's still August 8th 2018 and I'm dying in the Target parking lot in Holyoke while my partner is inside buying paper towels. Four: I never feel as far from death as I used to.

I personally don’t think people monetizing their experience makes it any less valid lol.

Occam's razor isn't about the simplest answer, it's the one which makes the fewest assumptions.

my partner and I got hit by a drunk driver a few months ago. the crash was bad--the first responders were surprised to see that everyone involved had survived. while I don't fully remember the details of what happened in the seconds that we were actually crashing, I do remember time slowed way down and it felt like we were crashing for a few minutes. I remember feeling like I wasn't sitting in the passenger seat anymore, but more like I was floating above my right shoulder? in my mind, everything felt calm and quiet (even though the crash would have obviously been deafening--my partner was driving a large truck, the other car was an SUV, the truck's front axle snapped off, and we hit a hydro pole). I remember feeling like I snapped back into my body after we hit the pole but not yet being sure if I'd died or not. I actually struggled with that for about a few months after the crash, feeling like I actually did die that night and life afterwards was just an elaborate hallucination. really, that feeling hasn't left me, I just don't think about it as often anymore. during the crash, I came face to face with how the brain can distort our perception of time so I've found it difficult to fully accept that I actually survived, that this isn't all just a byproduct of the brain's DMT release when we die. the only thing really keeping me from letting that thought consume me is that, if this truly is all hallucination, I might as well enjoy it.... haha this is my way of saying that I 0/10 recommend having an NDE lol. also, don't fucking drink and drive. thanks for the video, Joe!

A related topic...I was with my dad when he took his last font breath...peacefully passing...nothing but a warm sense in the air...then one year later, visiting my mom for a time...one morning was awoken by what I perceived as my dad’s clear voice which simply stated “Your mother is dead”....I shook it off , thinking what a strange thing to come out of nowhere in the middle of my head...got up...went upstairs from the den....walked into the kitchen...glancing into the living room, saw my mom sitting on the couch...walked over to the sink and saw her through the open bay ...called to her..but she was still....she had indeed passed...so...I received some specific and factual information...from my dad?....where was he? This is termed not an NDE but a ADC...after death communication....it happened to me...long story aye? But I marvel about this experience often...

I don't know much about death, but I know that Life is amazing! All this biology in our body working in balance to give rise to our consciousness is simply mesmerizing!

I’m so glad Google recommended one of your videos one random Tuesday. Love your channel.

I found this channel last week and I can’t stop watching your videos! Keep up the stellar work, Joe!

I had a NDE once when I overdosed. I remember looking down at the scene happening, the 3 people I was with running around the car to the back seat where I was sitting lifeless. I watched them call 911 and panic, trying to give me CPR and checking my eyes for reaction and try waking me up for a few minutes before I actually did wake up. It was a really interesting experience. The second time I overdosed, I just remember seeing nothing but blackness before responders hit me with narcan.

Joe, the more I watch, the more I love you as a person! if you take what you said you believed about being judged about whether or not you bring people together or you tear people apart so to speak you brought a lot of people together in my opinion you inspire hope in me you make me think question I just think you're amazing

Even though there are days where I wish I hadn’t survived, nearly dying, and having constant hallucinations, did help me appreciate life to a degree. Especially at such a young age. It’s a lot to deal with, especially when you learn how much it upset your doctors. But it helps you gain some confidence - one of my therapists said I must have a strong core to have survived all this, and bounced back as fast as I did. The PTSD part I could do without...

Loved the “live your best life” message towards the end!

This gave me anxiety, made me cry. I don't want to die.

Which clone are you?!

I had a NDT...sorta. I had surgery, reacted 'badly' to some medication, my heart stopped and I quit breathing for a few... afterwards, when I was asked what I saw (by my believer grandmother), she was so disappointed when I said 'nothing'. I felt more relaxed than I ever felt. I've never felt like I had such a relaxing 'sleep'. Except there was nothing. So I didn't feel like I had been asleep. It's been 20 years since then so I can't recall that feeling anymore but someone in another comment said it's like trying to describe a color to a blind since birth person- you can't know until you experience it yourself. But I've never heard why I didn't experience anything.

Old video, but I'll add this anyway. I had a moment 10 years ago or so where I was basically forgetting to breathe(long story). I was very tired at the same time, so I came to realize that if I did fall asleep, there was a very good chance that I wouldn't wake up. When faced with that, I felt at peace. I accepted that this was it, and nothing more would happen after that. Since then I have had the realization that Tyler Durden helped Jack come to. I don't fear death. Someday, I will die, and that's that. Can't fear the inevitable, and can't change what I can't control. This is my one shot, and I'm going to enjoy myself while I have the ability to. It's given me a somewhat zen outlook on life. I don't let the little things get to me. I don't worry. I just love life, and when it's over, I'll solute those who were there to make it all worthwhile, and make sure that I've made their lives worthwhile as well. -Worrying is like a rocking chair. Gives you something to do, but doesn't get you anywhere.

20+ Million Near Death Experiencers and still they argue it. Gotta love humans! (IIANDS.org is the International Association of Near Death Experiencers)

When I was 9 my family was told that I had 3yrs max and I knew I was dying, I felt my body decaying, I knew my parents would cry when they talked to my doctor alone, I may have been young but I accepted that my time was running out. I’ve never been religious but even then I felt that someone was waiting for me. After we found out that my body was screwed but not screwed enough to kill me I was already friends with death and the idea that something is out there, I just don’t know what it is yet. I may not have died but I looked death in the face and gave it the middle finger.

Occam's razor actually gives preference to the explanation requiring the fewest assumptions and conditions. It's usually stated as simplest but this can be misleading.

Joe reminds me so much of my husband sometimes, the way he definitely leans toward the skeptic side but then sort of come backs with a sentiment that makes you wonder what in the world his actual opinions are.

I had an NDE during an operation for ovarian cancer. I explained it to a nurse in the ICU. She sent another nurse into talk to me. I related the experience of standing in the operating theater watching the doctors trying to resuscitate me. I thought "Sorry, I'm leaving." I then turned around and walked thru the wall that was no longer there onto a path in a misty forest. As I moved along the path I saw tiny lights off to either side slowly pulsing off and on and knew them as people I had known. I felt peaceful. What appeared to be a young man walked up to me and asked me to come with him. I did. We went to a room with a conference table with people seated around it. I didn't count them, but probably about a dozen or so. They were dressed in white like doctors. They were talking. I asked my escort what they were saying. He held his finger to his lips. The " Doctors" stopped talking and looked at me as did my escort. He said they said "You have to go back, you have to learn and teach." I woke in ICU and said "shit." The nurses ran over saying " she's awake " and asked me if I was okay. I said I was cold and in pain. Then came warm blankets and unconsciousness. I woke later feeling less pained and upset. That is when I told the nurse. 38 years later I'm now retired.

Hi joe love your video's can you do a video on further manned space programs like China india and iran and a video on aspergers because I have aspergers I'm 14 as well love your video's

I’ve never commented on a RU-vid video and probably won’t again but I was moved by this video. I really like these videos and am currently going through your catalog. Really glad I found you, Joe. You asked a question. I had a near-death experience when I was seventeen. Then I had a few more. Some were caused by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The worst were caused by a pernicious illness which wasn’t diagnosed until I was thirty-eight. I’ve spent the last five years reversing the effects. I’ve been fortunate enough to shed myself of the emotional trauma and baggage. Life outside my front door continues to be scary, frustrating, and dangerously stupid, but I…I…took the road less traveled by. For years I asked myself the Time Machine question: If I could go back in time and meet myself as an infant with the knowledge I have now, knowing what lay ahead for this child and that a simple pillow over his face would spare him from a lifetime of physical and psychological torture, what would I do? I never had an answer until now. Tragedy, sometimes, has a healing effect. I’m still afraid of dying, however, I’m no longer afraid of death. Every day from this until my last will be beautiful simply because I am not supposed to be here to see it. Thank you for what you do.

I was in a room once with someone genuinely threatening to kill me. They were armed, and a martial artist. I was not, and am not. I took a breath, closed my eyes, and told myself that this was the end. It took a little less than a second for me to come to complete peace with death. I think they saw that my fear had left because after I opened my eyes they were noticeably unnerved by something. I stayed calm and talked them down with the help of my girlfriend and some of her friends.

I didn't have an NDE but I did have cancer and when I found out that it had spread to my lymph nodes and I actually had a % number on the odds of surviving it was very unsettling. It is all good now and I've been cancer free for almost 5 years now and I'm trying to live my best life now and I'm very happy to get another chance.. Having any kind of experience that brings you face to face with the very real possibility of dying or like some people actually dying, It changes something inside and it's really does make you think about how fragile life is and how SHORT it is. I doubt many people can say this but cancer saved my life.. I was a drug addict and was wasting my life but I've been sober now since I've been cancer free and I've learned to play guitar and how to stop and enjoy the little moments of beauty in life that people often ignore, I try to tell my family and friends that I love them more often and I don't take anything for granted anymore. I love life and I hope you all do too.. Live, learn and Love

I went to visit my eye doctor earlier in 2018 because things were getting blurry when I read. Once there he did all the checks and began to act nervous, he took a long break and did a few more tests then told me I had severe optic nerve edemas. The next day I was sent to an eye surgeon for a consult, they did a dye test and further testing and from there I was sent directly to the ER with a note saying this is a life or death situation pretty much. From there I was diagnosed with a large brain tumor, then scheduled for surgery the next day. For me, I had nearly 24 hours to think about all my mistakes, all the things I still wanted to do and is God real?? I spent 2 years in seminary school but at that time I had no relationship with Him. Right before surgery, it was literally all I could think about. Will I just float away? Will my consciousness be gone forever? What will happen to my loved ones.. They gave me some sedatives and bam I was out. Unfortunately, it was just darkness but I didn't die so I don't know. Maybe this isn't the place for this story, just sharing (:

I've had near life experiences.

I had a stroke 9 years ago. I was in a chair. I fell over. I said to myself I think I'm having a stroke. As was falling over I said to the Lord "I Repent". I wanted to clean up all my accounts w/ God. The Lord spoke back to me. He said "Don't bring it up again." This TV preacher I had seen by flipping thru the channels 2 months earlier came back to mind. I landed on the channel for 30 seconds. He said whenever you confess something to God, don't bring it up again. God doesn't want to remember what he's forgotten, and it's in bad taste. All I could see was white like the Matrix. I knew I was in my body. What did I do? Like any liitle kid, I tried to see beyond the veil, to no avail. I asked this question. "Will I live or will I die?" It seemed about 15 minutes had passed and these words were spoken to me from the Throne of Heaven. He said you will live and you will not die. I felt this information being downloaded into my spirit. I could start to see the room again. I tried to get up but half my body didn't work. I fell asleep and they found me a day later.

I found this answer in quora about the " tunnel of light " , it's really interesting. 👇 There’s a funny thing about the way the light receptors in our eyes work: they work backward. Well, a lot of the eye is backward, really. Anyone who believes in “intelligent” (ha!) design has never studied the microanatomy of the eye. But I digress. The receptors in our eyes-cones and rods-work backward. In total darkness, they fire as fast as they can, bam bam bam bam. When light strikes them, they stop firing. So the nerve cells connected to the rods and cones also work backward. When the rod or cone is firing, the associated nerve stopsfiring. When the rod or cone stops firing, that means light has struck it, so its associated nerve fires. (In strict scientific terms, depolarization of the rod or cone causes hyperpolarization of its associated ganglion.) So let’s think about this. You’re dying. The oxygen supply to your body is rapidly failing. Energy-intensive cells like the receptors of your eye run out of oxygen and stop working. What happens when the receptors in your eye stop working? They stop firing. How do the nerves in your optic system interpret it when the receptors stop firing? As light. --x--

I think I died of boredom in math class once. I was in 8th grade & hated that class. I hated my math teacher Mr Bradley, who would mock and tease me about my lack of math skills. I also hated some of the kids in that class, school bullies who lived to torment me, with Larry being at the top of that list. One day I was sitting at my desk while Mr Bradley droned on & on about some math type thing I can’t remember. I was utterly tuned out, just pacing myself till math class was over, when suddenly I noticed I was floating above myself! Everyone & everything was so golden and beautiful and I felt a powerful sense of being loved. I floated over the class and I felt so much love and compassion for each person there. Even the horrible Mr. Bradley! And most shocking of all - I felt I saw Larry for what he genuinely was, a beautiful sensitive and misunderstood boy. That’s when I got scared and wanted to get back to my body and BOOM!! I was instantly plopped back into my chair. I looked around to see if anyone noticed what had happened. Nobody did. They were all just sitting at their desks, pacing themselves until math class was over.

My bf and I met eachother and bonded over our near death experiences, not in the visual type but the emotions attached to being told you have limited time. I've never bonded more with anyone in my life. I found a spiritual growth that taught me patience. I feel and give more love now than ever before.

"Death is inevitable... It's a bummer" Put that on a shirt, Joe lol

Joe, you have to go and participate in an Ayahuasca ceremony, then come do a vlog on your experience.

Nice video Joe. I like how you gave a spotlight to each theory instead of straight up dismissing them like some communicators do. In my opinion the hallucination theory is unscientific as it dismisses a lot of evidence like veridical perceptions. A lot of scientists find NDE's troubling as it's quite world breaking for a lot of them. Even to me, the idea of the NDE sounds fucking ridiculous as it's so at odds with my own experience of the universe, but reading through a lot of research I haven't been able to dismiss them.

I once had a ‘near’, near death experience. It was a motor cycle crash. While travelling high speed through long grass, my bike hit an unseen wooden log. The impact threw me into a ‘hand-stand’ position on the bike handle bars. As this happened, I lost all sense of sound and my vision went into an ultra high-definition, high frame-rate slow motion. I remember calmly thinking, ‘Okay, the next thing will be my head hitting the front wheel. This will break my neck and I’ll be dead”. This silent, ultra-clear and utterly logical experience was for me, entirely peaceful. I felt a calm and quiet acceptance. It was almost beautiful - I even remember feeling grateful for my (then) 18 years on the planet. It turns out I didn’t die (obviously). I fell backwards, not forwards - and my backside hit the bike seat. Sound returned and I suddenly heard the bike engine screaming. I thought, “Oh, I have to save myself!” That I did and walked away without a scratch. What astounds me is what you’ve just read happened to me within a one maybe two second timeframe. So, here’s a quiet shout-out to the euphoric and lifesaving effects adrenalin. And thanks for the great video, Joe. x

I had a near death experience when I was 15. I was having a reaction to a medication I took earlier that morning. My heart rate dropped to 32 and my breathing completely stopped. My BP was somewhere in the 70/50 range. Needless to say I blacked out. It felt like I was falling through water. I landed in a completely dark room. I couldn't see but I knew exactly what the room looked like and where everything was. I was sitting on a stone chair almost like a throne. I wanted to stay there because I had never felt more at peace. I knew I was dying and was surprised that I was ok with it. Then something grabbed me below my arms and rushed me up back through the water and I woke up to nurses yelling at me telling me to breathe. That happened about 3 more times. Whatever it was that grabbed me had been with me my whole life. Or at least that's how it felt. I was an atheist before. Now I'm spiritual. I know now that there is an afterlife but it is completely different from anything I could read in a book. And for me, I still feel like whatever brought me back through that water is always right behind me

second! i think # 2 is the most likely also ive done a few psychadelics, and i can tell you that dmt is one of the scariest mind altering substance ive ever done i remember i had like a sense of major deja vu, its a whole different beast altogether. its as if the chemical has its own personality and it isn't nice nor pleasant yet not necessarily evil.

Infinite _(conscious)_ existence would be way worse than life just being finite and ending with death. Imagine having to experience "just" one billion years - now multiply one billion with infinity; *_I think that would be actual hell._* The meaning of life is to give life a meaning. The goal of life is to make living a positive experience and get something out of it. *Everybody dies eventually.* You will be dead in a countable amount of years. All you can influence is the current moment, you can not change the past and the future is not happening yet. _All there is and all there always will be is “Now”._ Whatever _you_ want to do with your life, now is the time to do that.

Being rejected is a near death experience.

One conceivable way NDE's (near death experience) could have evolved is if they actually aid in the experiencer's survival by somehow bringing them back. It's possible that the relaxation of the mind and body during NDE's is what causes them to come back, therefore increasing the chances of it being passed on, whereas a stressful hallucination during NDE's would only put further stress on a dying body making them less likely to come back, and less likely for that trait to be passed on.

So over the summer I actually drowned. The technical definition is a stop in respiration due to liquid in the lungs, not death. So I was unconscious under water in my pool for about 3 Minutes. My brother and my dad pulled me out and flipped me on the ground and I started to breathe again. So, yay!!! According to the doctors I cane within seconds of not waking up, which at the time I didn’t put much thought into. In the hospital mentally I was fine, no breakdowns or anxiety or any thing. It wasn’t until my dad told me the story of when he dived down to get me, that I thought more about this. He said I looked dead. My mouth was open, eyes closed, head tilted to the side, and he had trouble lifting me out. So this got me thinking about this whole thing and life in general. While I didn’t have a near death experience I definitely have a new appreciation for things. One of the things I’ve been meaning to do but never got around to was to build a forge and try blacksmithing. After that whole fiasco I hurried up and built a forge and am still pounding steel which is super fun. In conclusion of this incredibly incoherent comment, yes i have a new appreciation for each day, and yes now I try new stuff because you never know when you’re time is going to be up.

And of course " speakers blaring Nickleback" LMAO!!!

"Death is inevitable" at 13:29. Some guys would argue with that ! Aubrey de Grey first in line.

Something I've thought about, similar to the last idea you present, is that if we're in a simulation, then our consciousness or spirit merges into or rejoins the 'great database' from which the simulation springs. This has led me to ask why would an entity create a simulation (if we're indeed in one)? The Matrix comes to mind, but instead of the banal use of our bodies as batteries, the entity is mining or cultivating ideas. Ideas cannot be 'produced' in the sense that we can make a movie or an automobile. Ideas can only come from education, experience, and creativity. If an entity needed or desired to explore countless ideas, then cultivating them via consciousness makes sense to me.

My asthma has "killed me off" twice so far. Once when I was six and once when I was eleven. I had no near-death experience in the "woo woo" sense, so it's nothing to the conversation. It was just grey and white static on all my senses. I don't really remember what I thought of life before, but I will admit that I get what people mean when talking about an appreciation for life. I like to think of it as being a "depressed optimist" because despite my own penchant for melancholy, I am always thinking that "this is fine" even when other people are freaking out and worried. I still get angry, but I don't really think I've really had any "I wanna die" moments in all my memory. At the same time, I don't really fear death and I over the years I'm starting to understand the fear of death even less, weird as that may seem. I'm still terrified of heights though. Fuck that.

I have been touched by this. I almost lost my mother to a stroke 15months ago. She is severly disbled now, but I still have a connection to her and that experience has changed me completely in how I consider time, money and relationships.

Hey Joe, have you had a near death experience before? If so, can you try to explain how you got into that position/what was going through your mind?

MAYBE we're getting resurrected into slave labor for the AI we will create soon.

The term "death denial" sounds like something the people on r/Athiesm would make up.

Not caused by a near death experience but rather hallucinations, but I once envisioned the entire explanation of the universe, how it came to be, what it is, and the relationship it had between everything within itself, from quantum to consciousness to the entirety of the mass of the universe, and the most wild thing about it was: (example needed) When uve been struggling with an assignment or solution to something for weeks to no success, and one day a friend or colleague one day just says "have u tried this" and then it just suddenly clicks to you like; "my god, that's soo incredibly obvious, how didn't I realise that much earlier"... and the degree my hallucination presented this explanation of the universe, it was incredibly intricate but equally obvious, unfortunately as easily as I snapped out of the vision, to jump up and proclaim to my friends what the meaning of the universe was, I just as easily lost the information, to this day I've tried soo hard to re-conceptualise the vision but it seems absolutely impossible now, if Neuro network becomes obtainable maybe it will unlock the memory for me again and MAYBE it might be true, and I could have an answer for us all, maybe it's just postualtion of information I've gathered over the years conceptualised into a hallucination, maybe one day I might find out, it would be kl to know though

Your explanations for DMT are really accurate. For someone who hasn't taken those things, your understanding is on the right path. We always want to translate understanding into what something in the greater picture 'look like' but with those hallucinations it's like more than sight, like a great awareness of huge shapes and the distances of those shapes. I can remember seeing a demonstration of how a photon moved through space on an animation type thing and it reminded me of said trip like I sensed I recognised it from there. And also that sound you used to hear when you called a home years and years before broadband and that person was online. It made a distinctive noise I want to know more about because that was in this trip too. I wonder if those geniuses have access to that part of their brain all the time.