The Complete Idiot's Guide to Near-Death Experiences [1 ed.] 0028632346, 9780028632346

Table of contents :
Cover
Contents at a Glance
Contents in Detail
Foreword
Praise
Introduction
What You'll Find in This Book
PART 1 - THE EXPERIENCE / THE EXPERIENCER
1 - The Resurrected
A Brief History
What Is the Near-Death Experience?
A Closer Look at Some Near-Death ScenarioFeatures
But What's Typical?
The Birth of a Controversy
2. Types of Experiences
To Each His Own
Problems in Communication
A Common Range of Patterns
Some Examples of Each Type
3. Near-Death Look-a-Likes
Near-Death-Like Experiences
The Unpredictability of Near-Death-Like Episode
Indirect Near-Death-Like Events
Empathic Experiences
Near-Death Scenarios as Guided Visualizations
4. The Innocents
Child Experiences: A Breakthrough in Understanding
A Guide at Death's Door
Womb with a View
Choosing Genes and Physical Characteristics
Typical Behavior After the Experience
5. Suicide Enigmas
A Picture Too Pretty
What Those Who Attempt Suicide Say
Depression and Suicidal Tendencies Afterward
The Challenge With Children
PART 2 - AFTERWARD
6. Lives Turned Upside Down
Feelings After Being Revived
A New You
The Strain on Relationships
Lifestyle Switch-a-Roos
Deity Reigns
7. The Undeniable Aftereffects
Connecting the Dots
Common Psychological Aftereffects
Common Physiological Aftereffects
Synesthesia and Electrical Sensitivity
The Need Factor
8. Startling Differences Between Child and Adult Experiencers
Don't Assume Anything
Jump-Starting Intelligence
Far Apart
Talking About It
9. Blocking Out the Experience
Why Adults Tend to Remember and Kids Tend to Forget
You Be the Judge
A Child's View
Aftereffects Can Take a Back Seat
Tips to Identify Child Experiencers Who Can't Remember
10. Medically Speaking: A Challenge to Healthcare Providers
Please Believe me
So You Said You Wanted Evidence
Suggestions for Healthcare Providers
Unique Health Issues
Professionals Willing to Speak Out
PART 3 - TIME OUT FOR QUESTIONS
11. Are the Dead Really Dead?
Real Tales from the Crypt
The Newly Dead Who Greet the Newly Dead
As Dead as You Can Get
When Two or More Die Together
Symbols Surface
12. Heavy on Research
Raymond A. Moody Jr., Ph.D., M.D.
Kenneth Ring, Ph.D.
Michael Sabom, M.D.
Margot Grey, Ph.D.
P.M.H. Atwater, Lh.D.
Melvin Morse, M.D.
Arvin S. Gibson, B.S.M.E.
Peter Fenwick, M.D., F.R.C.Psych.
Cherie Sutherland, Ph.D.
Bruce Greyson, M.D.
Groundbreaking Early Projects
13. Scientific Naysayers
It's All in the Brain: Biological/Physiological Causes
It's All in the Mind: Psychological Causes
Having an Experience Is Not Proof
A Lack of Agreement Among Researchers
So, Where Are We?
14. Debunking the Debunkers
It's All Subjective
But I Don't Want to Die
Who's That Knocking on My Head?
Mr. Sandman, Send Me a Dream
The Dying Brain Theory
A Few Extras
15. Religion's Got a Gripe, Too
It's in the Bible
Repercussions
The Devil's Handiwork
We Got Here First
PART 4 - TAKING A LEAP BEYOND
16. Viewing Storylines in Different Ways
Sometimes We Can Mix Things Up
How We Can "Stage" Storylines
Another Look at the Need Factor
The Teachings of Swedenborg
A Back-Glance at Shared Experiences
17. Some Striking Effects
Poof! Go Limitations
Poof! Go Illnesses
Poof! Goes Death's Sting
The Unexpected from Violence
The Unexpected from Death Dreams
18. The Importance of Otherwordly Journeys
Exceptional Human Experiences
The "Other Worlds" of Myth and Legend
The Four Levels of Otherworldly Imagery
Feeling Alien
19. The Possibility of Altenate Realities
Is there an Afterlife?
I Came, I Saw, I was Born
Why Do I Feel Like I've Been Here Before?
An Altered View of Reality
A Spectrum of Realities
20. Transformations of Consciousness
A Larger Genre
Higher Consciousness
Turbulent Transformations
Tranquil Transformations
The Crown Jewel of Enlightenment
21. The Lights of Enlightenment
The Light of God/The Devil's Dark
Three Types of Subjective Light
''The Darkness That Knows"
More of Light's Mysteries
The Energy Charge of Enlightenment
PART 5 - BACK DOWN TO EARTH
22. Brain/Biology Link
Brain Shift
The Limbic System and Emotions
The Theories of Melvin Morse, M.D.
The Importance of "Future"
Adaptation or Evolution?
23. But Are All the Claims True?
Don't Rock the Boat
The Mighty Sword of Scientism
No Saints or Angels Here
"I was God. God was Me"
Testing the Spirits
24. Integrating the Near-Death Experience
For Adult Experiencers
For Child Experiencers and Their Parents
For Significant Others
Integration's Four Phases
Creative Approaches to Therapy
25. Redefining How Life is Viewed
Implications from Near-Death States
The Animating Force That Drives Us
The Reality of Spirit
The Big Picture
The Law of Grace
26. Message for the Millenium
An Agency of Change
Evolution's Next Step
The Global Village
Social Justice and Human Rights
What's the Near-Death Experience All About?
APPENDIX A - BRIGHT NEW WORDS GLOSSARY
APPENDIX B - INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR NEAR-DEATH STUDIES - IANDS
APPENDIX C - FURTHER READING
APPENDIX D - WEB SITES
APPENDIX E - GETTING IN TOUCH
INDEX

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