Out-of-body experience (OBE) is not such a rare phenomenon: it occurs in 10% of the population. This figure is cited by scientists Jade Shaw, Sam Gandy, and a regular researcher on the topic of lucid dreams (LD) from Lithuania, Tadas Stumbrys, in their new article. Early scientific work usually associated OBE with pathology, and neuroscientists explained this phenomenon by failures in the human brain.
However, the authors note that it is necessary to study not only the causes of the OBE, but also its consequences. They recruited eight healthy participants who had experienced spontaneous OBE at least once and conducted interviews. The main topics of the conversation were: increasing motivation, reducing the fear of death, the appearance of inner peace, a new perspective on life, the growth of self-awareness, a sense of individuality, reassessment of relationships, and spiritual beliefs (confirmation of old or the emergence of new ones).
The researchers asked the participants to focus on the most memorable out-of-body experience they had had. Interestingly, those who experienced OBE repeatedly, recalled their first experience, because it changed them the most. However, all participants viewed the OBE as important, transformative, and deeply enriching, suggesting that it could bring psychological benefits. According to the scientists, a decrease in the fear of death plays a key role in bringing about this positive effect (which links OBE with another phase state—near-death experience).
The authors see this as having medicinal potential, since the fear of death is associated with depressive and anxiety disorders. Western culture does not cope well with this phenomenon: doctors deal with the physical health of dying people, however, more often than not, no one cares about their spiritual needs. In specific volunteers, their exiting the body occurred spontaneously, but OBE can also be induced through hypnosis, intention setting, and other practices.
How much do these findings reflect your out-of-body experience, if you had one?
The article was published in April 2023 in the journal Psychology of Consciousness: Theory, Research, and Practice.
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