Table 1.

Elements of near-death experiences

COGNITIVE ELEMENTS
Altered sense of time Accelerated thought processes Life review Sudden understanding
AFFECTIVE ELEMENTS
Feeling of peace Surrounded with light Feeling joy Feeling cosmic unity/oneness
PARANORMAL ELEMENTS
Out of physical body Senses more vivid than usual Extra sensory perception (ESP) Visions of the future
TRANSCENDENTAL ELEMENTS
Another world Encountered beings Mystical being Point of no return
Adapted from Zingrone NL, Alvarado CS. Pleasurable Western adult near-death experiences: features, circumstances, and incidence. In Holden JM, Greyson B, James D, eds. The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger Publishers; 2009:20.