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By Laurel Elders, MCC, CEC Are you half a person? Or would you say you are a whole person? These are not trick questions. They represent a looming cultural mindset. Science has proven that the way we’ve viewed personhood is really only half the story. We’ve been taught that our brains hold the entirety of our consciousness. Our bodies contain our emotions and personality, and… well, that is about it. What if we truly are more than merely flesh and bone and chemical brain-body responses? What if there is more to us than our measuring devices reflect? What if, all this time, we’ve only been treating half the person in our medical models and therapies? Even at the birth of the Scientific Revolution, as early as the 1600s, our science was still in its infancy. Since then, we’ve made massive leaps in being able to perceive a more complete picture of reality through the lens of quantum physics, mathematical probability, cellular complexity, DNA, and atomic understanding. It turns out that modern science has discovered that human consciousness is much more than the brain. But don’t take my word for it. Let’s go straight to the science. There are three scientific explorations worth calling attention too. These are cellular complexity, extrasensory capability, and – believe it or not – near-death experiences (NDEs). “Near Death” means the person clinically died (no heartbeat, no brain waves, etc) yet didn’t end up dying after all. They came back to life either by medical intervention or just came back to life without any medical intervention. Or, in some cases, someone is literally “near death” but does not clinically die, yet proceeds to have an experience of consciousness leaving the body, and their reports are factually verifiable. After more, and more skeptical and often atheistic physicians began coming across validated NDEs, the research has now expanded globally, is recorded in prominent medical journals, and is reshaping how we relate to human potential. “Being a scientist, you don’t run away from things you don’t understand. You run towards them to try to understand them.” – Dr. Bruce Greyson, MD Top researchers and leaders in these discoveries include:
In their words: “Patients have told us things that we can't explain, and so our temptation is to just sort of brush it off in one way or another, and I think that that's probably not the most helpful way, and it's certainly not the most scientific way to approach it. I think instead we should try to understand it more and learn what we can about some of those stories that are some pretty hard to explain stories otherwise.” - Lance Becker, MD, Professor of Emergency Medicine “Many patients have a delirium or will have hallucinations due to severe life-threatening illness. Those patients are generally confused. They are disoriented, and it is distinctly different than what people with a near-death experience report. People with a near-death experience report clarity. They will return with very clear, focused messages and a purpose to their life. This is completely different from an acute, confused state.” - Tom Aufderheide, MD, Professor of Emergency Medicine Facts to consider: Brains deprived of oxygen lose coherence; they don’t gain it. Dreams and hallucinations can go in any direction, from a storyline to complete chaos, or shifting into non-reality (as seen with hallucinogenic drugs and common nightly dreaming). NDEs, however, are consistent and coherent despite culture, location, beliefs, or age. If they were dreams on steroids, everyone’s experience could be just about anything from seeing purple elephants to becoming the president of the United States. Yet, that is not what is being described. Dr. Steve Taylor shares in his Psychology Today article, “…not all—or even most—psychedelic experiences are life-changing. …. In contrast, NDEs are almost always transformational.” – Psychology Today, Why Do Near-Death Experiences and Psychedelics Have a Transformational Effect? Another question worth consideration: How could thousands of people across the world “dream” or “hallucinate” (as some people theorize NDEs must be) the same things? How can someone have any coherence or vivid memory with zero blood flow of oxygen and zero brainwaves? The birth of modernized medicine means that people who have died can now be brought back to life more frequently and death can be prevented in many cases. What does this teach us about – not who we are – but also about what we are? It turns out there is more to us than previously believed possible. Let’s meander further down the rabbit hole of the evidence-backed physicians and explore a few newly illuminated facts. But first, a story. Over twelve months ago, I was baffled. I ran across a video interview of an orthopedic spine surgeon, Dr. Mary Neal. She was on a rafting trip in Mexico when she was pinned under 8-10 feet of water for over 24 minutes. After that amount of time had passed, the search crew switched from rescue mode to body recovery mode. Dr. Neal miraculously came back to life without any brain damage. (click here if you wish to review facts on brain injury and prognosis research) In the interview I saw, she relayed how she didn’t experience death or ever black out. She experienced feeling “alive and then more alive.” Then she experienced what all NDE reports state. She experienced her consciousness leaving her body and going to be with the people looking for her. Her experience is similar to thousands of people around the globe, across cultures, across age differences (4 years to elderly – see Line of Evidence #7 if you are interested), and across religious beliefs (including non-religious, atheistic beliefs). (one of her interviews, if you are interested, is here) Further, considerations from the researchers: "There is currently more scientific evidence to the reality of near-death experience (NDE) than there is for how to effectively treat certain forms of cancer." — Dr. Jeffery Long, Radiation Oncology Physician, NDE Researcher “I think that if we want to look at this in an unbiased manner, and I realize this may challenge some people's opinions and beliefs, we have to look at this with humility and recognize whatever beliefs we've had in the past may not have been the complete picture and that science has entered into a completely uncharted new territory. And we're making remarkable discoveries in this new area of life beyond death.” - Sam Parnia, MD, PhD Dr. Neal experienced what most people report in NDEs. According to John Burke’s research, there are 40 commonalities. Here are just seven highlights (verified): 1. CLINICAL BLINDNESS People clinically blind gained vision of all surroundings while outside of their bodies. They could verify what they saw, including the outside surroundings of where they died or were close to death. 2. LIFE REVIEW People were taken for a life review that addressed the same thing: What impact on others did you have in your lifetime, positive or negative? (If these were mere dreams, people would likely experience subjective reviews and focus on things like what they accomplished, or their awards, or what they liked) 3. LIFE IMPACT During a life review, they feel the emotional impact of their choices on others and also the ripple effects of their choices. 4. LAWS OF PHYSICS Space and time fall away, everything is seen as energy. For example: they can think a thought and instantaneously move from their hospital bed to the next floor and be present for a conversation between their doctor and spouse and then accurately report the exact conversation and details about the room (all while their body is back in the hospital bed, either clinically dead or close). 5. CHOICE TO RETURN – OR NOT Some are given a choice to come back. Others are told, “It is not your time.” Those people are sent back regardless of whether or not they wanted to. 6. EVERYTHING IS ENERGY They have a body but a spiritual body – everything is made of light/energy. There is a theme of a man made of light and radiant love who comes to protect or guide them. This being, or other beings, often convey information that can be verified. Ex: Colton Burpo, a four-year-old who almost died in surgery, talked to his parents about his other sister. He didn’t have another sister, so they questioned him. He said he had met his sister, who was never born. Colton was never told about his mother losing a baby before he was born. His story was so compelling, a movie was made of the entire unfolding. (An interview of the actual family, if you are interested, is here) 7. SENSORY ENHANCEMENT They report gaining more senses than what the body has. They can see, hear, touch, feel, and see colors beyond comprehension. What is fascinating about Mary’s and thousands of other reports globally is that they reveal five profound truths. We will get to those in a minute. For now, please meet Pam Reynolds. Pam had a life-threatening brain aneurysm of her basilar artery. The aneurysm was located in a potentially hazardous area for normal surgical intervention. However, not operating was much more life-threatening, so Pam agreed. Neurosurgeon, Dr. Robert Spetzler, with the Barrow Neurological Institute out of Phoenix, Arizona, took the lead on Pam’s case. Pam’s procedure was coined “Operation Standstill.” They had to perform a cardiac standstill. This entailed stopping her heart, lowering her body temperature to prevent cell damage, taping her eyes shut, and having speakers emitting constant 100-decibel clicks (think as loud as a speeding train) so they could confirm there were zero brainwaves responding and that it was safe to then drain her blood. In essence, Pam would be medically dead for the procedure and brought back to life after it was safe to restore blood flow. Pam cannot physically see, hear, or be dreaming. Yet, she reported:
She then proceeded to have the spiritual elements of an NDE that most people report. Pam recalled speaking with her deceased grandmother and uncle, who said it wasn’t her time and escorted her back to her body. All of the facts she reported were later confirmed in her medical records and surgical notes. Pam shared the details with her lead neurosurgeon, Dr. Spetzler, who said, “From a scientific perspective, I have absolutely no explanation about how it could have happened.” Dr. Michael Sabom, an Internal Medicine/Cardiologist and NDE researcher, was the one who conducted validity testing on Pam’s case. Dr. Sabom began researching NDEs to disprove them. Before he began his clinical research, he referred to NDEs as “hogwash!” The entirety of Pam’s reports were all verified and yet unexplainable by current scientific understanding. If we do have a consciousness that lives beyond the body, and that is the reality of who we are, then I propose we’ve missed the boat. We’ve been medically treating half a person. We’ve been medically studying a partial picture. We’ve been therapeutically relating to people as if they were their brains and bodies, and thinking the Spirit meant we should go meditate to calm the brain/body. Yet, it turns out we are in fact much, much more than previously scientifically perceived. “A man should look for what is, and not what he thinks should be.” Albert Einstein How can we use current data to inform our therapies, our medicine, our education, our human potential, and the future of possibility? What does this teach us about our wholeness, our fullest capacity to heal, and our innate human virtues? What does this inform us about spirituality and spiritual depth? Are we willing to stop studying human potential by attempting to fragment our parts? How can these discoveries enhance our self-discovery and Integrative Intelligence? These discoveries have the potential to shape the future of how we approach medicine and can redefine the definition of therapy. What an exciting new frontier into human potential! Bibliography:
Resources & Links:
For more information on cellular complexity, intelligent design discoveries, evolution theory and extrasensory scientific discoveries, you may be interested in some of these resources:
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DISCLAIMER:
The articles provided here on Integrative Intelligence do not capture, nor claim to capture, the full breadth of human dynamics. These articles offer a glimpse into new possibilities when we become more integratively aware and develop our scope of wisdom through a more interconnected lens. There are many facets to a single prism. These are but a few facets to help inspire a deeper and broader exploration. ARCHIVES:
October 2025
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