10 Stories Of People Who Met Death And Returned To Tell It

You hear plenty about fear around dying, but the people who briefly crossed that line often talk about something very different. They describe scenes and sensations that changed how they move through the world afterward. Follow along with this list, because their return stories offer a perspective many never expect to hear.

“All The Fear Was Gone” – Author And Cancer Survivor Anita Moorjani

Inside a 2006 coma caused by late-stage lymphatic cancer, Anita Moorjani observed the hospital room with sharp, panoramic clarity. She sensed her deceased father nearby and felt every fear dissolve into unconditional love. Thirty hours later, she returned, improved rapidly, and eventually shared her recovery in “What If This Is Heaven?”

“It Was Really Bright” – Childhood Survivor Annabel Beam

A thirty-foot fall into a hollow tree left eight-year-old Annabel Beam trapped for six hours after years of battling severe digestive disorders. She later described sitting on Jesus’s lap in a bright heavenly space where he promised healing. When firefighters freed her, the illnesses disappeared, inspiring the book “Miracles From Heaven” and its film adaptation. 

“The Most Glorious Feeling” – Orthopedic Surgeon Tony Cicoria

Lightning cut through a pay-phone receiver while orthopedic surgeon Tony Cicoria finished a call during a 1994 lake house visit. He claimed to have seen his body on the ground, watched CPR begin, then rose toward his children before entering a bluish-white light filled with peace—right before slamming back into life.

“I Experienced An Overwhelming Sense Of Peace” – Mother And Author Tessa Romero

During a sudden cardiac event that caused her heart to stop for twenty-four minutes, Tessa Romero later explained that she saw the medical team working intensely to revive her. She described watching her own body as doctors delivered chest compressions and called out instructions, yet she felt no fear—only deep peace. That experience became the foundation of her book “24 Minutes On The Other Side.”

“I Felt My Soul Come Right Out Of My Body” – Author Ernest Hemingway

People rarely imagine Ernest Hemingway describing anything softly, yet his account from World War I sounds almost delicate. After a mortar blast, he said something like his soul slipped out “like a silk handkerchief,” drifted around briefly, then returned to his body, snapping him back to life again.

“A Serene, Dark Space” – Artist And Composer David Ditchfield

British artist David Ditchfield’s near-death experience began after a speeding train pulled him underneath its carriage in 2006. While surgeons worked, he entered a calm, dark realm lit by pulsating orbs and radiant beings. Recovery also unlocked unexpected artistic gifts, later showcased in The Divine Light and his memoir “Shine On.”

“Just This Total, Total Blackness” – Sepsis Survivor Tommy McDowell

Nothing prepared Tommy McDowell for the void he encountered during sepsis-induced organ failure in 2023. He recalled a darkness without form, sensation, or sound, so complete it terrified him. His cry for God broke the emptiness, followed instantly by the overwhelming comfort he said he felt beyond anything life had offered.

“Time Wrapped In On Itself” – NDERF Contributor, Age Four

There was nothing familiar about the hospital room to the four-year-old girl who later shared her story with NDERF. A high fever pushed her into a strange clarity where she viewed herself on a gurney, floated upward, and moved through moments from different ages as time folded together before a sudden return.

“Three Beings Made Of Shimmering Crystal” – NDERF Contributor Laurie

Laurie’s rafting trip at nineteen took a sudden turn when rapids pulled her under. After losing consciousness, she found herself in a cloudlike room facing three crystal beings that communicated telepathically. They shifted into angelic forms, showed her a golden field, and then released her as a kayaker pulled her out.

“I Had the Vision Of Seeing A White Light” – Actress Jane Seymour

While filming “Onassis” in 1988, Jane Seymour went into anaphylactic shock after an antibiotic was accidentally injected into a vein. She later said she saw her own body on the table as doctors shouted orders, attempted resuscitation, and rushed to stabilize her. That experience reshaped how she viewed life and the physical body.