What 81,053 NDE Reports Reveal

Report fear of death completely eliminated

Among 7,600 NDE experiencers who reported aftereffects, 42% said their fear of death was completely eliminated — the highest rate of any experience type.

Out-of-body perception is the most reported NDE element

More than one in four NDE reports describe leaving the physical body. The four most common elements — out-of-body (27%), meeting deceased (20%), bright light (19%), and cosmic knowledge (10%) — form the core NDE phenomenology.

Not all NDEs are peaceful — some are terrifying

About 2,000 NDE reports include hellish or distressing elements. Suicide attempts and spontaneous onset have the highest distressing rates.

Report becoming more spiritual or deepening existing beliefs

50% of NDE experiencers became spiritual for the first time. Another 25% reported a deepening of existing spiritual beliefs.

Different triggers produce different NDE profiles

Cardiac arrest NDEs show the highest rates of tunnels and bright light. Drowning NDEs are the most serene. Each trigger produces a distinct phenomenological pattern.

20% encounter deceased loved ones during their NDE

Meeting deceased loved ones is the second most common NDE element. Deceased relatives outnumber encounters with divine figures by more than 30 to 1.

Overwhelming majority are direct personal accounts

74,569 of 81,053 NDE reports are first-person accounts from people describing their own experience, not hearsay or secondhand stories.