FOR many of us, the experience of death seems like something we can never have any insight into.
But researchers interviewing people whose hearts stopped have shed light on what might happen when we die.
The one-of-a-kind study interviewed patients who survived cardiac arrest
The first-of-its kind study found that that nearly 40 percent of people undergoing CPR after cardiac arrest had memories or some perception of things happening around them and had dreamlike experiences.
Many even recalled the experience of death.
And many showed signs of brain activity up to an hour after their heart had stopped and medics began administering CPR, according to electroencephalogram (EEG) scans.
The findings open “the door to a systematic exploration of what happens when a person dies,” scientists said.
Dr Sam Parnia, senior study author and critical care physician at NYU Langone in New York City, said: “Although doctors have long thought that the brain suffers permanent damage about 10 minutes after the heart stops supplying it with oxygen, our work found that the brain can show signs of electrical recovery long into ongoing CPR.
“This is the first large study to show that these recollections and brain wave changes may be signs of universal, shared elements of so-called near-death experiences.”
The study – published in the journal Resuscitation – examined 567 patients at 25 US and UK hospitals who received CPR after suffering cardiac arrests between May 2017 and March 2020.
They interviewed 28 of the 53 survivors to examine what – if anything – they recalled from their near-death experiences and how much they were aware of.
Two of the cardiac arrest patients emerged from their coma during CPR and another two did so during the post-resuscitation period.
One survivor recalled: “I could feel someone doing something on my chest. I couldn’t feel the actual compressions, but I could feel someone rubbing quite hard. It was quite painful.”
Another said: “I remember when I came back and they were putting those two electrodes to my chest, and I remember the shock.”
Three experienced dreams or dreamlike experiences, with one remembering walking into a puddle but “I was not wet and I sort of melded into the pavement”.
“There was a fisherman singing a sea shanty over me and it was raining,” they went on.
Six were able to recall the experience of death.
One of the survivors described it like this: “I was no longer in my body. I floated without weight or physicality. I was above my body and directly below the ceiling of the intensive therapy room. I observed the scene that was taking place below me.”
Another felt like they were heading towards a destination: “I remember entering a … tunnel.
“The first feeling was a feeling of intense peace. It was so calm and serene with an incredible amount of tranquillity. All of my … worries, thoughts, fears, and opinions were gone.
“The intensity of the tranquillity was so incredible and overwhelming that there was no fear in what I was experiencing. I had no fear about where I was going and what to expect when I arrived there.
“Then I felt warmth … Then there was the desire to be home.”
One of the stereotypes of near death experiences is people’s memories flashing in front of them like a Rolodex.
This is what happened to one survivor, who said: “I caught glimpses of my life and felt pride, love, joy, and sadness, all pouring into me. Each images was of me, but from the standpoint of a being standing with me or looking on…
“I was shown the consequences of my life, thousands of people that I’d interacted with and felt what they felt about me, saw their life and how I had impacted them.”
And some remember seeing love ones.
“I remember seeing my dad,” one patient said, while another heard their dead grandma saying “You need to go back”.
Researchers also looked at the brain wave activity of cardiac arrest survivors and tested if participants could recall certain sights and sounds.
During resuscitation, they placed headphones on patients and played three words – apple, pear, and banana – while using a tablet to display 10 images.
Only one of the 28 participants correctly remembered the sequence of words, but recalled the images.
The research team said further studies need to be done on what people after dying and the psychological outcomes of emerging from cardiac arrest.
“The recalled experience surrounding death now merits further genuine empirical investigation without prejudice,” they wrote in the study.
The scientists thought their findings might also “guide the design of new ways to restart the heart or prevent brain injuries and hold implications for transplantation”.
What is cardiac arrest?
Cardiac arrest refers to when your heart suddenly stops pumping blood around your body.
It’s different from a heart attack, which is when supply of blood to heart is suddenly blocked, usually by a blood clot. But the heart still pumps blood around the body.
Cardiac arrest is caused by a dangerous abnormal heart rhythm – known as arrhythmia – which happens when the electrical system in the heart isn’t working properly, according to the British Heart Foundation.
Not all arrhythmias are life-threatening, but some mean that the heart cannot pump blood around the body.
People might not experience any symptoms at all prior to cardiac arrest, Johns Hopkins Medicine said, but some might have:
FatigueDizzinessShortness of breathNauseaChest painHeart palpitations (fast or pounding heart beat)Loss of consciousness
If someone is in cardiac arrest, they collapse suddenly and are:
unconsciousunresponsivenot breathing or not breathing normally – they might be making gasping noises
Resuscitation Council UK said NHS ambulance teams attempt resuscitation in approximately 30,000 people experiencing cardiac arrest each year.
Meanwhile, 1 to 1.5 out of every 1,000 people admitted to hospital yearly experience the condition.
Cardiac arrest is an emergency and having CPR and defibrillation can more than double your chances of surviving it, according to the British Heart Foundation.