Pam Reynolds' NDE
Encyclopedia
Pam Reynolds Lowery from Atlanta, Georgia
was an American singer-songwriter. In 1991, at the age of 35, she claims to have had a near-death experience (NDE) during a brain operation. Her claim of NDE is one of the most notable and best documented in NDE research
because of the unusual circumstances under which it happened. Reynolds was under close medical monitoring during the entire operation. During part of the operation she had no brain-wave activity and no blood flowing in her brain, which left her clinically dead
. She made several observations about the procedure which later were confirmed by medical personnel as surprisingly accurate.
This famous near-death experience claim is considered by many to be proof of the reality of the survival of consciousness after death, and of a life after death. However, critics have brought forward several points against this interpretation. See also the Critical Analysis section.
She died from heart failure, on Saturday May 22, 2010 at Emory University Hospital, in Atlanta, GA.
aneurysm
in her brain, close to the brain stem
. Because of the difficult position of the aneurysm, Dr. Robert F. Spetzler
of the Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix, Arizona
decided that an unusual surgical procedure, hypothermic cardiac arrest
, had to be performed. During this procedure, also known as a standstill operation
, her body temperature was lowered to 60 °F (16 °C), her breathing and heartbeat were stopped and the blood was drained from her head. Her eyes were closed with tape. Small ear plugs with speakers were plugged in her ears. These speakers emitted audible clicks which were used to check the function of the brain stem to ensure that she had a flat EEG
(a non-responsive brain) before the operation proceeded. The operation was a success and Reynolds recovered completely.
These examples appear to show that she was able to see and hear during the operation.
The longer she was there, the more she enjoyed it. But at some point in time she was reminded that she had to go back. Her uncle brought her back to her body. When she looked at her body she didn't want to go back in. Her uncle tried to persuade her, but she kept refusing. Then she saw her body making a jump (caused by the defibrillation
to start up her heart). Her uncle gave her a push and she was back in her body. Reynolds noticed that the sensation of returning to her body was like that of jumping into ice water.
. Critics have brought forward several points which attempt to refute this interpretation.
When Reynolds heard someone say her veins were too small, medical personnel were apparently still connecting her to the heart-lung machine. At this point she was merely under general anesthesia (which can quite often fail to render a patient completely unconscious as well as causing dysphoric effects including confusion about ones position in their body). However, there is no evidence to suggest that the anesthesia failed to render Pam Reynolds completely unconscious. This appears to show that her supposed Near "Death" Experience began hours before she even "died," and indeed if the second part of the operation had been called off for some reason, many of the supposed "death" experiences would have happened even though all she was subjected to were anesthetic drugs. She may have had the claimed experiences before or after the standstill, when she was merely under general anesthesia and the brain was still active.
There is also no explanation as to how Reynolds was able to describe the surgical tool used to remove her skull cap which she had never seen.
Critics also contend that EEG monitoring is not 100% reliable. Sometimes the brain has activity that is not registered by the equipment. However, there is no evidence that suggests that the EEG used to monitor Pam Reynolds' brain activity malfunctioned. Ear plugs cannot perfectly block all external sounds and people with ear plugs may still be able to hear sounds in their environment. However, the ear-plugs used also emit a constant bleeping sound. The technologist who was responsible for inserting the molded ear plugs in Spetzler's patients during the time period when Reynolds' surgery was performed, stated that after the ear plugs were molded into each auditory canal, they were further covered with mounds of tape and gauze to seal the ear piece into each ear canal, making it extremely unlikely that Reynolds could have physically overheard operating room conversation. However, the lead intraoperative neurophysiology monitoring (IONM) practitioner at Barrow Neurological Institute, who was lead technologist there at the time of Pam Reynolds' NDE, revealed that the mounds of tape used to seal the ear piece were made from a thin plastic film used to cover incision wounds called Vi-drape, which has minimal sound-occluding effects since it was designed for an altogether different purpose. The gauze and micropore tape also have minimal sound-occluding effects since they were only designed to prevent blood and other fluids from entering Pam Reynolds' ear canals. The ear pieces used were also not made-to-order to mold to Pam Reynolds' ear canals, but generic Hal-hen earplugs.
It has been pointed out that proponents have generally misrepresented the amount of time which Reynolds was flatlined: the actual surgical timeline suggests that her brain stem activity was fully flatlined for a period of only five to six minutes at most. Her experiences before and after the standstill could have felt coherent regardless: loss of consciousness would not necessarily have interrupted the hallucinations. Most people do not experience or remember "gaps" between being awake, dreams, and awaking again. However, according to the uncorroborated timeline, about five minutes after her brain "shut down", she began to experience the sensation of being lifted out of her body. Her brain did not show any activity until after she already had this experience.
Doubting that the NDE happened during the standstill:
Other:
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
was an American singer-songwriter. In 1991, at the age of 35, she claims to have had a near-death experience (NDE) during a brain operation. Her claim of NDE is one of the most notable and best documented in NDE research
Near-death studies
Near-death studies is a school of psychology and psychiatry that studies the phenomenology and after-effects of a Near-death experience .-NDE :...
because of the unusual circumstances under which it happened. Reynolds was under close medical monitoring during the entire operation. During part of the operation she had no brain-wave activity and no blood flowing in her brain, which left her clinically dead
Clinical death
Clinical death is the medical term for cessation of blood circulation and breathing, the two necessary criteria to sustain life. It occurs when the heart stops beating in a regular rhythm, a condition called cardiac arrest. The term is also sometimes used in resuscitation research.Stopped blood...
. She made several observations about the procedure which later were confirmed by medical personnel as surprisingly accurate.
This famous near-death experience claim is considered by many to be proof of the reality of the survival of consciousness after death, and of a life after death. However, critics have brought forward several points against this interpretation. See also the Critical Analysis section.
She died from heart failure, on Saturday May 22, 2010 at Emory University Hospital, in Atlanta, GA.
Diagnosis and operation
A CAT scan revealed that Reynolds had a large arteryArtery
Arteries are blood vessels that carry blood away from the heart. This blood is normally oxygenated, exceptions made for the pulmonary and umbilical arteries....
aneurysm
Aneurysm
An aneurysm or aneurism is a localized, blood-filled balloon-like bulge in the wall of a blood vessel. Aneurysms can commonly occur in arteries at the base of the brain and an aortic aneurysm occurs in the main artery carrying blood from the left ventricle of the heart...
in her brain, close to the brain stem
Brain stem
In vertebrate anatomy the brainstem is the posterior part of the brain, adjoining and structurally continuous with the spinal cord. The brain stem provides the main motor and sensory innervation to the face and neck via the cranial nerves...
. Because of the difficult position of the aneurysm, Dr. Robert F. Spetzler
Robert F. Spetzler
Robert F. Spetzler M.D. is a neurosurgeon and the J.N. Harber Chairman of Neurological Surgery and Director of the Barrow neurological institute in Phoenix, Arizona. Additionally, Spetzler is Professor of Surgery, Section of Neurosurgery, at the University of Arizona College of Medicine in Tucson,...
of the Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
decided that an unusual surgical procedure, hypothermic cardiac arrest
Standstill operation
Standstill operation is a surgical procedure that involves cooling the body of the patient and stopping blood circulation. It is used to repair brain aneurysms and aortic arch defects....
, had to be performed. During this procedure, also known as a standstill operation
Standstill operation
Standstill operation is a surgical procedure that involves cooling the body of the patient and stopping blood circulation. It is used to repair brain aneurysms and aortic arch defects....
, her body temperature was lowered to 60 °F (16 °C), her breathing and heartbeat were stopped and the blood was drained from her head. Her eyes were closed with tape. Small ear plugs with speakers were plugged in her ears. These speakers emitted audible clicks which were used to check the function of the brain stem to ensure that she had a flat EEG
Electroencephalography
Electroencephalography is the recording of electrical activity along the scalp. EEG measures voltage fluctuations resulting from ionic current flows within the neurons of the brain...
(a non-responsive brain) before the operation proceeded. The operation was a success and Reynolds recovered completely.
NDE part 1
During the operation but prior to her being put in cardiac arrest, Reynolds later reported hearing a sound like a natural 'D'. The sound seemed to pull her out of her body. She reported floating around in the operating room and watching the doctors performing the operation. She felt more aware than normal and her vision was more focused and clearer than normal vision. She made several observations in this state, for example:- She noticed the doctor using a drill to open her skull. It surprised her that it looked like an electric toothbrush, not like a saw as she expects. It is later confirmed that the drill used by the doctor was similar in appearance to an electric toothbrush.
- She heard a female voice say, "We have a problem. Her arteries are too small." It is later confirmed that the doctors first tried to connect the heart-lung machine to the right leg. But the arteries were so small that they switched to the left leg.
These examples appear to show that she was able to see and hear during the operation.
NDE part 2
At some point during the operation she noticed a presence. Then she was pulled towards a light. As she got closer the light became very bright. She began to discern figures in the light, including her grandmother, an uncle, other deceased relatives and people unknown to her.The longer she was there, the more she enjoyed it. But at some point in time she was reminded that she had to go back. Her uncle brought her back to her body. When she looked at her body she didn't want to go back in. Her uncle tried to persuade her, but she kept refusing. Then she saw her body making a jump (caused by the defibrillation
Defibrillation
Defibrillation is a common treatment for life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias, ventricular fibrillation and pulseless ventricular tachycardia. Defibrillation consists of delivering a therapeutic dose of electrical energy to the affected heart with a device called a defibrillator...
to start up her heart). Her uncle gave her a push and she was back in her body. Reynolds noticed that the sensation of returning to her body was like that of jumping into ice water.
Timeline
The following time line is based on the book Light & Death from Michael Sabom. It shows that the total surgery lasted about 7 hours and the standstill took less than 1 hour. The events in the operating room that Reynolds was able to recall (the surgeon using a drill on her skull and a female voice saying her veins are too small) happened before the standstill. The entire part 1 of the NDE happened before the standstill. Part 2 of the NDE happened during and/or after the standstill.| The operation | The NDE |
|---|---|
| 7:15 Reynolds is brought into the operating room, still awake. | - |
| Reynolds receives thiopental (also called pentothal although the book actually says penthathol) through IV Intravenous therapy Intravenous therapy or IV therapy is the infusion of liquid substances directly into a vein. The word intravenous simply means "within a vein". Therapies administered intravenously are often called specialty pharmaceuticals... for general anesthesia. |
- |
| Reynolds' body is lifted onto the operating table. Her eyes are taped shut. Small, moulded speakers are inserted into her ears. | - |
| A thermistor Thermistor A thermistor is a type of resistor whose resistance varies significantly with temperature, more so than in standard resistors. The word is a portmanteau of thermal and resistor... is placed deeply into her esophagus Esophagus The esophagus is an organ in vertebrates which consists of a muscular tube through which food passes from the pharynx to the stomach. During swallowing, food passes from the mouth through the pharynx into the esophagus and travels via peristalsis to the stomach... to measure core body temperature. EEG electrodes are taped to the head to record cerebral cortical brain Cerebral cortex The cerebral cortex is a sheet of neural tissue that is outermost to the cerebrum of the mammalian brain. It plays a key role in memory, attention, perceptual awareness, thought, language, and consciousness. It is constituted of up to six horizontal layers, each of which has a different... activity. |
- |
| 8:40 Reynolds' entire body, except for her head and groin, is blanketed with sterile drapes. | - |
| Spetzler begins the surgery by opening the scalp and then carving out a section of the skull Human skull The human skull is a bony structure, skeleton, that is in the human head and which supports the structures of the face and forms a cavity for the brain.In humans, the adult skull is normally made up of 22 bones... with a Midas Rex bone saw Bone cutter -Unpowered:Unpowered bone cutting implements include varieties of hacksaw and sabre saw. In many applications, the saw is used in specialised jigs to provide accurate, measurable cuts, e.g. in knee surgery... . |
Reynolds' NDE begins. She hears a natural D. It feels like the sound pulls her out of her body. She looks down and sees several things in the operating room. She feels very aware and her vision is more focused and clearer than normal. She notices that her head is shaved in another way than she expected. She sees the 'saw thing' (bone saw). It looks like an electric toothbrush, has a dent or groove at the top where the saw connects to the handle and it has interchangeable blades which are placed in what looks like a socket wrench case. She hears the saw crank up, but doesn't see where it is being used on. It hums at a relatively high pitch and then suddenly goes 'Brrrrrrrr'. |
| Spetzler removes the bone flap from the skull. The operating microscope is swung into position over Reynolds' head. At the same time, a female cardiac surgeon Cardiac surgeon A cardiac surgeon is a surgeon who performs cardiac surgery—operative procedures on the heart and great vessels.-Training:A cardiac surgery residency typically comprises anywhere from six to nine years of training to become a fully qualified surgeon... locates the femoral artery Femoral artery The femoral artery is a general term comprising a few large arteries in the thigh. They begin at the inguinal ligament and end just above the knee at adductor canal or Hunter's canal traversing the extent of the femur bone.... and vein in Reynolds' right groin. These turn out to be too small to handle the large flow of blood from the heart-lung machine. Thus, the left femoral artery and vein are prepared for use. |
Reynolds hears a female voice saying that her veins and arteries are very small. |
| Spetzler inspects the aneurysm with the operating microscope. He finds that it is very large indeed. He decides that hypothermic cardiac arrest (standstill) is necessary to complete the operation. | |
| 10:50 The heart-lung machine is connected to Reynolds' body. Her blood is cooled down. | - |
| 11:00 Reynolds core temperature is about 75 °F (24 °C). The cardiac monitor (ECG) Electrocardiogram Electrocardiography is a transthoracic interpretation of the electrical activity of the heart over a period of time, as detected by electrodes attached to the outer surface of the skin and recorded by a device external to the body... indicates cardiac malfunction. |
- |
| 11:05 Reynolds receives a massive dose of potassium chloride Potassium chloride The chemical compound potassium chloride is a metal halide salt composed of potassium and chlorine. In its pure state, it is odorless and has a white or colorless vitreous crystal appearance, with a crystal structure that cleaves easily in three directions. Potassium chloride crystals are... . Cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest, is the cessation of normal circulation of the blood due to failure of the heart to contract effectively... is complete. Her brain waves become flat. The brain stem responds more and more weakly to the clicks from the ear speakers. |
- |
| 11:20 Reynolds' core temperature is about 60 °F (16 °C). The brain stem no longer responds to the clicks from the ear speakers. The brain is shut down. | - |
| 11:25 The heart-lung machine is disconnected from Reynolds' body. The head of the operating table is lifted and the blood is drained from Reynolds' body. | Reynolds feels like she is being pulled, but not against her will. She is going on her own accord because she wants to go. She feels like going through a tunnel vortex. She comes into a bright light. She begins to discern several figures, including a grandmother and an uncle. They stop her from going further because she would not otherwise be able to go back into her body. |
| The aneurysm is now deflated and Spetzler removes it. The heart-lung machine is turned back on and pumps warmed blood into Reynolds' body. | - |
| Reynolds' brain stem begins to respond again to the clicks from the ear speakers. Also, waves of electrical activity from her higher brain centers begin to appear on the EEG screen. | The deceased relatives seem to be feeding Reynolds, not with food but with something sparkly. She feels like being nurtured and made strong. |
| 12:00 A problem arises as the heart monitor begins to register ventricular fibrillation Ventricular fibrillation Ventricular fibrillation is a condition in which there is uncoordinated contraction of the cardiac muscle of the ventricles in the heart, making them quiver rather than contract properly. Ventricular fibrillation is a medical emergency and most commonly identified arrythmia in cardiac arrest... . Efforts to correct this with additional warming are unsuccessful. Two defibrillator paddles are placed on Reynolds' chest and her heart is shocked two times. This solves the problem. |
Reynolds' uncle takes her back through the end of the tunnel. She sees her body but doesn't want to go in. It looks dead and she is scared of it. Then her uncle pushes her. The tunnel seems to push her and her body seems to pull her. When she goes back into her body it feels like diving into a pool of ice water. |
| 12:32 Reynolds' body temperature is about 90 °F (32 °C) and the heart-lung machine is turned off. Her body is deinstrumented. Spetzler assistants take over the closing surgical duties and music in the background begins to play. | Reynolds regains consciousness and hears the song Hotel California being played. |
| 14:10 Reynolds is taken to the recovery room. She is still intubated Intubation Tracheal intubation, usually simply referred to as intubation, is the placement of a flexible plastic or rubber tube into the trachea to maintain an open airway or to serve as a conduit through which to administer certain drugs... for respiration Respiration (physiology) 'In physiology, respiration is defined as the transport of oxygen from the outside air to the cells within tissues, and the transport of carbon dioxide in the opposite direction... , but in stable condition. |
- |
Critical analysis
Pam Reynolds' NDE is sometimes seen as evidence of the survival hypothesisSurvivalism (life after death)
Survivalism refers to the belief in the survival of the conscious self after the death of the physical body. Survivalists attempt to prove survival with the methods of science, using as evidence such things as psychic phenomena, near-death experiences, out-of-body experiences, electronic voice...
. Critics have brought forward several points which attempt to refute this interpretation.
When Reynolds heard someone say her veins were too small, medical personnel were apparently still connecting her to the heart-lung machine. At this point she was merely under general anesthesia (which can quite often fail to render a patient completely unconscious as well as causing dysphoric effects including confusion about ones position in their body). However, there is no evidence to suggest that the anesthesia failed to render Pam Reynolds completely unconscious. This appears to show that her supposed Near "Death" Experience began hours before she even "died," and indeed if the second part of the operation had been called off for some reason, many of the supposed "death" experiences would have happened even though all she was subjected to were anesthetic drugs. She may have had the claimed experiences before or after the standstill, when she was merely under general anesthesia and the brain was still active.
There is also no explanation as to how Reynolds was able to describe the surgical tool used to remove her skull cap which she had never seen.
Critics also contend that EEG monitoring is not 100% reliable. Sometimes the brain has activity that is not registered by the equipment. However, there is no evidence that suggests that the EEG used to monitor Pam Reynolds' brain activity malfunctioned. Ear plugs cannot perfectly block all external sounds and people with ear plugs may still be able to hear sounds in their environment. However, the ear-plugs used also emit a constant bleeping sound. The technologist who was responsible for inserting the molded ear plugs in Spetzler's patients during the time period when Reynolds' surgery was performed, stated that after the ear plugs were molded into each auditory canal, they were further covered with mounds of tape and gauze to seal the ear piece into each ear canal, making it extremely unlikely that Reynolds could have physically overheard operating room conversation. However, the lead intraoperative neurophysiology monitoring (IONM) practitioner at Barrow Neurological Institute, who was lead technologist there at the time of Pam Reynolds' NDE, revealed that the mounds of tape used to seal the ear piece were made from a thin plastic film used to cover incision wounds called Vi-drape, which has minimal sound-occluding effects since it was designed for an altogether different purpose. The gauze and micropore tape also have minimal sound-occluding effects since they were only designed to prevent blood and other fluids from entering Pam Reynolds' ear canals. The ear pieces used were also not made-to-order to mold to Pam Reynolds' ear canals, but generic Hal-hen earplugs.
It has been pointed out that proponents have generally misrepresented the amount of time which Reynolds was flatlined: the actual surgical timeline suggests that her brain stem activity was fully flatlined for a period of only five to six minutes at most. Her experiences before and after the standstill could have felt coherent regardless: loss of consciousness would not necessarily have interrupted the hallucinations. Most people do not experience or remember "gaps" between being awake, dreams, and awaking again. However, according to the uncorroborated timeline, about five minutes after her brain "shut down", she began to experience the sensation of being lifted out of her body. Her brain did not show any activity until after she already had this experience.
Books
- ISBN 0310219922 Light and Death by the founder of The Atlanta Study, Dr. Michael Sabom, about the case of Pam Reynolds and nearly 50 other cases.
- ISBN 1605140104 The Spiritual Brain by Mario Beauregard and Denyse O'Leary, which mentions Pam Reynolds' case and other evidence for spiritual experience outside the body.
External links
Asserting the importance of this NDE:- People Have NDEs While Brain Dead
- Beyond Brain Death by Pam Reynolds
- Additional Analysis of the Pam Reynolds Case
- Home page of Pam Reynolds
Doubting that the NDE happened during the standstill:
- Hallucinatory Near-Death Experiences Section on Pam Reynolds
- Discussion about Pam Reynolds NDE on randi.org, including important quotes from Light and Death
- Pam Reynolds Near Death Experience
Other:
- Pam Reynold's NDE formed part of a BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
documentary The Day I Died directed by Kate Broome, 2002.