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WILLIAM J. SERDAHELY AND BARBARA A. WALKER
he or she has read. We know that Stuart's descriptions are not the
result of his reading about NDEs because he cannot read. Of course, it
is possible that Stuart could have viewed television programs on
NDEs, heard radio shows, or listened to someone read aloud about
NDEs. However, we asked Stuart if any other these possibilities were
the case, and he replied in the negative.
Stuart's NDE
In the fall of 1988, in Stuart's presence, his occupational therapist
was comforting a person who had recently lost a loved one. Audrey, the
therapist, had a copy of Raymond Moody's The Light Beyond (1988) and
was citing information from the book in an attempt to console that
person. She was telling the grieving person about NDEs and how
pleasant NDErs report dying seems to be. As Audrey was describing
parts of that book, she noticed Stuart had become excited and enthusi-
astic. Through a series of questions, she ascertained that Stuart had
had an NDE when he was two and a half years old, and because of his
speech limitations, he had had to wait almost 37 years to communicate
about his childhood NDE.
According to information supplied by Stuart's adopted mother, when
he was two and a half he was very ill. A precise diagnosis of the illness
was never made, but Stuart was said to have had a high fever, in-
creased spinal fluid pressure, and muscular contractions with in-
creased spasticity. It was during that period of illness that Stuart had
his NDE. The memories of his NDE remain vivid, even though almost
37 years have elapsed since his near-death experience. Stuart had
what Kenneth Ring would classify as a Stage 5 NDE (Ring, 1980).
During his NDE, Stuart felt peaceful and had no pain. He had a out-
of-body experience (OBE) during which he was able to look down upon
his body and the doctors and nurses ministering to him. He did not
recognize his body at the time of his OBE. Stuart's NDE did not involve
going into a tunnel or a darkness. Instead, he found himself in a misty,
bright, and narrow stairway with steps. The end of the stairway was
very bright, and there Stuart had a sense of being loved. However, he
was quite sure the bright light at the stairway's end was not God.
While he was in the light he did not see trees or lakes, but he did hear
"heavenly" music. He also saw about 20 spirits whom he did not know
and who did not communicate with him. These spirits were not people
close to him (i.e., they were not deceased friends or relatives), but they
did make him feel welcomed and loved. He also saw a border around
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