Have you ever had a true out of body experience?

[Muenkel 0]

My memory is coming back in pieces since I suffered my head injury back in August. One of the memories was an out of body experience. I actually was above my body looking down at it on the floor. I don't believe I was dead, just in trauma. I told my neurologist about it and he wasn't surprised as he said my head injury should have been fatal. It was very surreal.

Anyone else ever experience the same thing?

Chris

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Chris

[quade 4]

I have had -extremely- vivid dreams where within the context of the dream I've asked myself the question of whether I was dreaming or not and concluded I was awake, only to find out later that I was, in fact, asleep and dreaming.

The mind is very complex and very good at fooling you when you're asleep or near sleep.

On the flip side of things, I've been with people that have -completely- forgotten what I would consider to be rather significant events only a few hours after the fact and these people weren't drugged or drunk, but rather lost in that area between being awake and being asleep.

Memory is a really strange thing.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[Antithesis 0]

my car was run over by an 18 wheeler in a head on collision when I was 17. I swear that I saw everything that happened from outside the vehicle. But who know's for real in things like this that you cannot measure or make proof of. My situation was tramatic as well. Even though I wasn't injured I was definately shaken up a bit. Weeeeiiirrrdddddd~!!!!!

I travel the land, Work in the ocean, Play in the sky

[WrongWay 0]

I once had one on a rough landing after a skydive. There were many nasty circumstances mixed with my inexperience at the time that caused me to do a low turn. You guessed it, I was still diving and WHAMMO. I swear I saw it happen in slow motion. I just laid there for a while, the side of my body I hit was all BLACK, but I walked (or limped) away from it, no broken bones. I'm a lucky bastard.

BTW, I made one more jump much later that day.

Wrong Way
D #27371 Mal Manera Rodriguez Cajun Chicken Ø Hellfish #451
The wiser wolf prevails.

[OzoneJunkie 0]

I used to have OBEs when I was younger - used to get feverish, have strange dreams, OBEs, etc.

In the past 10 years I've had a few, but not injury related. Meditation, lucid dreaming, etc. type stuff.

[Faber 0]

i have one each time i mastrubate or have sex

Stay safe
Stefan Faber

[turtlespeed 226]

So Munkel,
What did you do to yourself?
I still haven't been able to find that thread.

I'm not usually into the whole 3-way thing, but you got me a little excited with that. - Skymama
BTR #1 / OTB^5 Official #2 / Hellfish #408 / VSCR #108/Tortuga/Orfun

[alanab 0]

Quote

So Munkel,
What did you do to yourself?
I still haven't been able to find that thread.

some info is in this thread: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=708430#708430

[The111 1]

Not really, but I'll share some thoughts about this.

For a long time I thought that we were confined to our physical bodies and that OBE's were simply hallucinations or imagined things. I pointed out that they most often occured when the person was either severely injured or near death, and that in this state our mind doesn't work reliably and can easily imagine things.

Recently though, I've changed my mind a bit. For one, I've come to believe that we are more than our physical bodies here on this earth. Believe it or not, I attribute this belief at least partially to skydiving. Unless you are someone who believes skydiving is entirely safe, the choice to skydive is an economical one: you choose whether it is more important to have fun (experience good feelings and sensations) but risk your physical life, or vice versa. By choosing to skydive, you place a higher level of economical importance on your emotions and feelings (non-physical things) and a lower level of importance on your body (your physical life). At least, this is how it's happened with me, I think.

Anyway, since I now believe there is something "non-physical" inside me that will outlast this body (I'm not concerned about my "mortality"), it makes sense to me that OBE's occur near death. Since we are so accustomed to using our bodies, we don't know how to use that "non-physical" part of ourselves without our bodies. But near death, our bodies are very close to the end of their function. So it would make sense that maybe we start making that transition away from the physical and get a brief glimpse of what we are without it. But then as the body rapidly recovers we are bound to it again and returned to our normal physical confines.

Again, I haven't had an OBE (I've had lucid dreams, but I do still consider those to be imagined realities for the most part), but I have heard many accounts of people near death "seeing the light" or having an OBE or whatever, and this is the best explanation I can offer.

www.WingsuitPhotos.com

[skydiver51 0]

I have had several near-out of body experiences. When I like get really drunk and puke, it feels like my guts are comming outa my body. Anyone else had them???

[OzoneJunkie 0]

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(I've had lucid dreams, but I do still consider those to be imagined realities for the most part)

Mmm, perhaps, when we define our realities based on the "normal, waking" perception of reality. But, if when we die, we shed our physical, and time-space becomes less "defining" of our reality, then dreams may be closer to life-after-death than normal reality. If you were so inclined to believe in such things...

[Paige 0]

I've never had one sober, but I can tell you after a hard night of partying sometimes I feel like I've left my body.

Tunnel Pink Mafia Delegate
www.TunnelPinkMafia.com

[jlmiracle 7]

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... then dreams may be closer to life-after-death than normal reality.

I sure hope not because I have the most bizarre dreams. I don't want to deal with godzilla in my next life.

and no I don't believe I have had an OBE.

Muenkel - get better soon.

Judy

Be kinder than necessary because everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.

[OzoneJunkie 0]

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... then dreams may be closer to life-after-death than normal reality.

I sure hope not because I have the most bizarre dreams. I don't want to deal with godzilla in my next life.

Then you gotta learn how to lucid dream. You could BE godzilla

[riddler 0]

I used to have what some people might consider out of body experiences when I was a kid. They were always related to flying or falling, and were the first thing I experienced when I fell asleep as a child. Very real sensations.

I don't really believe in them - I think it's a manifestation of your brain, at the onset of a chemical reaction that is typically triggered by a traumatic experience (in my case, dramatic fear of heights).

Many people claim that you can experience the same thing with sufficient dosages of Ketomine, but I've never tried that.

Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

[ACMESkydiver 0]

I've had several, and yes they are very real. It's part of the attraction I have to skydiving...interestingly enough, I've never told anyone this before, but freefall is the closest 'fully alert' state that you can come to an OBE, in my opinion. I think I have authority to speak on this? Had about a dozen. I've let it go recently; mental strength is similar to physical muscles; exercise them and practice or you lose it.

Goes along with ESP as well, which again, interestingly enough I have never discussed with any skydivers...I didn't want to freak anyone out , I know people view all of this differently, and honestly I've kind of been afraid of other peoples' judgement of me or the inevitable 'proove it' crap if I ever brought it up. My gifts or abilities are not to 'prove' to anyone. They are only for me )

Anything I have 'seen before' has been for my safety or my children's safety, and I see precognition as a gift to give me strength and guidance when needed. I have a few examples of what that's like, but I'd prefer to do that in a PM if you wanted to know...again, I'm pretty shy about all this...and I've never discussed it in front of a forum or even in front of more than 1 person!

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[mujie96 0]

I have the dreams where I dream I'm asleep and can't wake up.

Just keep swimming...just keep swimming....

[weegegirl 2]

I haven't had one myself, but my father has. A long time ago, my father was pronounced dead upon arrival at the hospital, after a very serious accident. I guess he kind of tested fate. Several minutes later, a herd of doctors were able to revive him. Though there is no way in hell to prove it, and I would never question my father's word (as he is a very honest man), he claims to have had an out of body experience. As far as I know, the doctors never doubted his experience.

[Muenkel 0]

Like I said, I don't believe I was dead and I never saw a light. I was just looking down at my body. As pieces of my memory come back, not only do I remember the OBE but also times when I just wanted to go to sleep. I was not drowsy, I just wanted to let go. But I fought those because I was afraid if I did, I would never wake up. I also had many blackouts during that time. Blackouts...meaning my mind just wandered off to God knows where and I was completely unaware of my actual circumstances. None of this surprises the neurologist.

The weird thing is, I thought I recovered within days. Infact the following weekend, I flew to Nashville to meet Michele and Sinker. I knew I wasn't myself though. I tripped off the jetway, twisting my ankle. My driving was horrible, so much so that it scared the shit out of Michele and Michael. I finally relinquished the keys to them. I had a violent headache one of the days and I tripped and fell again at Andrew Jackson's plantation. Michele and Michael witnessed this one.

After I returned home, I lost my ability to speak and my balance was really bad. I also had severe vision problems. Things are still not right. In fact my prognosis is a 12-18 month recovery.

Maybe I did come close to death. It's just very hard to fathom. Who knows what more I will remember.

Just a really weird experience looking down at your own body all twisted on the floor.

I am one lucky bastard.

Chris

BTW, the funny thing is, some of my whuffo relatives immediately asked if this happened skydiving. When I tell them, the most I suffered skydiving has been some bruises and that it happened falling down the stairs in my own house, it leaves them very puzzled.

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Chris

[ACMESkydiver 0]

If it helps:

I was in a car accident when I was 12...my heart did stop beating on the scene. My mom asked me if I 'saw' anything right after the accident...told her that I didn't remember. I actually had a brain aneurysm (sp?) and severe amnesia for 3 days after the accident. THAT is a strange feeling. Seeing people and things that are some kind of memory, but having NO way to put names to them or any relevance...

Anyhoo, first intentional OBE was 4 years later. There is a theory that people that were near-death can induce OBE's easier...kind of like muscle memory...the soul remembers 'I've done this before' and has an easier time separating again. But like I said, haven't done that in about a year, so I guess I can't really speak to it as I am not 'current'?? Ok, just had to throw some skydiving in there somewhere...

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[Muenkel 0]

I'd rather not have a near death experience again. The next one will have to be the real deal or nothing at all.

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Chris

[Girlfalldown 0]

I don't know it this counts as an out of body experience but when I was a kid my older brother and his friends were playing on a dock and they threw this tarp on top of the water and would jump into it. It sort of sucked you into it. They were all big enough to touch the bottom and push back up but I was just small so I would hold the side of the dock when I jumped in. The last time I did it I accidently lost my grip and went almost all the way to the bottom. I remember just kind of sitting there in the water looking around. I felt like I was breathing. I know I was breathing. I wasn't gasping or choking or drowning. I tried to kick my feet but the tarp was wrapped around me holding me tight and I couldn't get to the top of the water. I don't know if I could really see this but it seemed like I was sitting on the dock watching this from outside the water. I could see the kids climbing out and back onto the dock. I could see them grab the tarp and start to pull it out. someone finally realized I was missing. One of the kids jumped back in and I managed to grab him. When he pulled me up everyone was just staring at me like I was some kind of ghost. They said I'd been down there for more then a few minutes. They thought I was dead. It was weird. The whole time I felt very calm.

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(Do not, I repeat DO NOT, take my posts seriously.)

[flygirl03 0]

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but freefall is the closest 'fully alert' state that you can come to an OBE, in my opinion.

*
i had one such dive.. i was so scared (jump IV) about jumping out the door.. that the whole dive was surreal. i had told others when i tried to describe it, that is was like an OBE...like someone else was doing it and i was watching... it wasn't a frightening thing just weird.
*
I dont think this is exactly the type of experience Muenkel is referring to...but i can sorta relate.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
earthbound misfit

[Lee03 0]

I don't know if this qualifies as an OBE or not, but I had a really weird dream last night. I was jumping with a buddy. Everything seemed to be going fine, Then I checked my altimeter and we were at 50 ft. Suddenly my buddy and I are standing on the ground, he reaches over and pulls my reserve, it opens and I go rising back up into the air, then come down for a landing. One of the weirdest damn dreams I can ever remember having!

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To put your life in danger from time to time ... breeds a saneness in dealing with day-to-day trivialities.

--Nevil Shute, Slide Rule