NDE survivors are more spiritual and satisfied

Bruce Greyson writes in After: “Experiencers tend to see themselves as integral parts of a benevolent and purposeful universe, in which personal gain, particularly at someone else’s expense, is no longer relevant. They also report feeling greater understanding, acceptance, and tolerance for others.” Greyson concludes: “The most positive changes in attitude following near-death experiences were a more favorable attitude toward death, toward spirituality, and toward life, and a sense of meaning or purpose. Slightly lower increases, but still significantly improved, were attitudes toward other people and toward oneself. Attitudes toward religion and toward social issues were only slightly improved, and attitudes toward worldly things were more negative than before the near-death experience. All of these changes were virtually identical after the twenty-year lapse. None were significantly changed since the first time the experiencers were asked."

Greyson also compared those who’d had near-death experiences with others who’d nearly died but didn’t have near-death experiences—because nearly dying is such a huge event that it can bring about life changes. He explains: “I used well-accepted, standardized questionnaires that measured various aspects of spirituality, like satisfaction with life, connection to something greater, and a sense of purpose. What I found was that those who had near-death experiences were significantly more satisfied with life, more open to positive new directions in life, had more positive changes in relationships with other people, felt more personal strength, had greater appreciation for life, and felt they had undergone greater spiritual growth as a result of their near-death experiences. In addition, many people reported that since their near-death experiences they’d felt driven to engage in a quest for further spiritual growth.”

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Bruce Greyson, After: A Doctor Explores What Near-Death Experiences Reveal about Life and Beyond, 169-173.