The Near Death Experience as a Product of Isolated Subcortical Brain Function

Abstract

This paper attempts to show that the sequence of a typical near death experience (NDE) is predictable and reproducible, enough to suggest that the NDE is a symptom of a specific altered mental state seen in a large number of medical and surgical conditions. I attempt to explain on an anatomical, physiologic, and psychological basis how NDEs might be caused, and suggest that NDEs might even be the basis of religion. I also describe an NDE of a 38-year-old insulin-dependent diabetic who developed hypoglycemia secondary to a lack of caloric intake to support her daily insulin usage. She did not appear to be life-threatened from a cardiovascular standpoint. During the hypoglycemic spell, the patient appeared to be in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Following resuscitation with an intravenous injection of dextrose, the patient returned to a normal mental status, but recounted a typical NDE.