Do near-death experiences really exist?

Near-death experiences (NDEs) are intense personal experiences that occur in people who are close to death or have been through a life-threatening situation.

These experiences are often characterized by elements such as seeing a bright light, feeling peaceful, experiencing an out-of-body experience, or reliving important moments in life. However, the question of whether near-death experiences are “real” is complex and depends on how you define “real.”

Many scientists believe that near-death experiences can be explained by physiological and neurological processes that occur in the brain during extreme stress, hypoxia, or other life-threatening situations. Changes in brain activity can cause hallucinations, the feeling of being out of body, and other typical features of NDEs.

Some psychologists view NDEs as a way for the mind to cope with extreme fear and the threat of death. The experience of peace and acceptance may be a psychological mechanism to make the confrontation with death less frightening.

Although many people report that their NDEs feel "more real than real," there is no objective scientific evidence to support that these experiences are anything more than neurological or psychological phenomena. The nature of consciousness itself is still a great mystery to science, and NDEs touch on fundamental questions about what consciousness is and how it works. Some scientists see NDEs as a challenge to explore these questions further.

Source: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11910-019-0983-2

Author: Prof. Dr. Dirk Devroey - Latest update: 2024-08-13 - Copyright: Clinifacts 2025