Materialists embraced spiritual values after NDE

In research with psychiatrist Surbhi Khanna, Bruce Greyson found that experiencers “described a greater sense of well-being from their new spiritual attitudes and strivings, which helped them cope with challenges. They also reported more daily spiritual experiences, such as feelings of awe, gratitude mercy, compassionate love, and inner peace than people who had come close to death but didn’t have near-death experiences. Our studies and the research of others also found that people who have had near-death experiences report a heightened sense of purpose, increased empathy, awareness of the interconnectedness of all people, and a belief that all religions share certain core values. Near-death experiences often lead to a paradoxical decrease in devotion to any one religious tradition, despite a greater awareness of guidance by and connection to a higher power.”

Greyson says he found “spiritual growth most striking in those who were materialistic before their near-death experiences. For example, “Naomi, a pediatrician who had always considered herself an atheist, described becoming more compassionate and less competitive after her near-death experience at age thirty-four when she bled out due to hemorrhaging stomach ulcer.”

I remember, she writes, the spring after this event occurred with startling clarity. Everything in the environment took on an almost magical quality, as if I was seeing everything for the first time. Trees and flowers blossoming took on new dimensions that I had not ever appreciated before; I almost felt as if I was on a chemically induced high. I will certainly never take being alive again for granted. I also felt that when faced with death again I would be fearless, as this was clearly not a negative experience. I have used this insight to help the families of many of the handicapped and terminally ill children I take care of, with good results. I also developed a strong spiritual sense and now strongly believe in a higher power, where I had previously been essentially an atheist.

No other experience to date has had such a profound impact on my life. I am must less striving in the workplace. I also feel that material goods, although nice, do not define the spirit or essence of the individual. My life is more balanced than ever before. I am much more open to meditation and other ‘alternative’ medical techniques. I am now attempting to use lifestyle modifications and not medication to control my medical problems. I feel I have developed more compassion for my patients and have become a better doctor for this I am still integrating many aspects of this experience, and find it is good to contemplate it from time to time to refocus myself and see the larger picture. I suspect it will always be a source of growth for me.

Bruce Greyson, After: A Doctor Explores What Near-Death Experiences Reveal about Life and Beyond, 176-181.