We’ve heard of individuals who have gone through a near-death or life-threatening event experiencing everything from a bright light to seeing lost loved ones again. And one woman who was declared “clinically dead,” has shared what she saw when it happened to her.
Back in February of 2023, Lauren Canaday, who had been living with controlled epilepsy for many years, experienced a sudden cardiac arrest which caused her heart to stop for over 20 minutes. And as a result, she now calls this her “second life.”
Taking to an AMA (ask me anything) sub-Reddit thread, she shared a bit more about what happened on that fateful day.
She explained: “It took 24 minutes for EMTs to resuscitate me. After 9 days in the ICU, I was declared ‘cognitively intact’ and have no visible brain damage on MRIs. I also have a normal EEG despite a history of seizures and status epilepticus for over 30 minutes right after resuscitation.”
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This isn’t always the case when such a cardiac event takes place. In fact, according to The American Heart Association, “73 percent of out-of-hospital cardiac arrests occur in the home, and 90 percent of these are fatal.” So, it could have been a very different story. But, thankfully, Lauren was able to make a full recovery.
It did, however, leave people feeling curious as to what, if anything, she saw or experienced during the period of almost half an hour when she was unconscious.
Talking to Newsweek, she recalled that while she can’t remember any specific visions or shapes, it wasn’t what we might expect.
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"I have this gut feeling that it was friendly and peaceful even though I can't report any shapes or personas or visions of that time," she explained. "I feel like I dissolved, and it was just really nice."
Instead of it being a negative feeling, she had “a strong sensation of peace about the time when I was out of consciousness,” and it has since given her a new outlook on life, with her now taking the time to appreciate and enjoy the little moments in life.
"I remember a lot of very serene moments in and after the hospital, like none of the worries I used to have mattered, and I got insanely excited about things like cheeseburgers. Things just felt very simple," she said.
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Now, “status and career success don’t matter beyond survival needs, creature comforts, and helping others,” with her focusing on taking life at a slower pace, from walking and hiking whenever she can to meditating and getting an early night most evenings.
Following her neath death experience, she concluded that even though she “wasn’t religious" before it, she is now "definitely more spiritual."
Ellis Cochrane