Experience description:   

The first time, I was 17 and my boyfriend had broken up with me.   I sat in my bed and started to cry.  I suddenly felt as if I was on my right looking at myself.   The weird thing was that I had no feeling towards myself or anything in general.   It lasted a few minutes. 

Then, at 23, I was in an abusive marriage.  I was planning a work related party and suddenly felt the same thing.   I was talking with groups of people, and felt that I was watching myself from the right.   It felt like I was channeling through my own body and that I had no connection at all.   It lasted for three days.   I went to a doctor, who prescribed Xanax for me telling me it was a panic attack.   After doing research on panic attacks, I realize that the only thing I had in common with that is the stress.   Nothing else.  

The third time, I was faced with an unwanted pregnancy.   I was unsure of what to do.  I was sitting and meditating and then all the sudden I was on the right side of my body again and watching myself.   Again, I had no emotional ties and felt more objective about it all then ever in my life.   I know I am not crazy.   I am not really religious.  But this is something I have dealt with for a long time, and what used to scare me, has recently become more acceptable.   Now when it happens, I just embrace it and let is pass when it needs to.

Any associated medications or substances with the potential to affect the experience?     No

Was the kind of experience difficult to express in words? Yes

How do you explain that you are on the right side of your body attached by a black tornado rope watching yourself interact with your environment?  People would not understand, so why even try...

At the time of this experience, was there an associated life threatening event?          No

What was your level of consciousness and alertness during the experience?           Usually alertness is low, being emotionally distraught, although it has also been high planning the party.  during the experience, the part of me that is floating has no emotion, really.

            Was the experience dream like in any way?   YES!   It was like I was in a dream.   My vision is distorted.   It looks like I am in a long tunnel and everything is far away.   It feels like I have no periferial vision and my body and the world as I know it is at the end of a long black string that is like a tornado rope or something.

Did you experience a separation of your consciousness from your body?     No

I was always aware of the presence of my body, although not physically.   I am aware it is there I must go back to it, but I really have little physical feeling in it.   Once, the tunnel seemed particularly long.

What emotions did you feel during the experience?            I used to be afraid, now I think it is sort of cool.  Usually, emotional stress can make this happen.

Did you hear any unusual sounds or noises?           no, it seems like everyone is speaking in an echo tunnel.   I have a hard time hearing them and have to ask them to repeat themselves often.  It seems like everything is far away, sounds, smells, etc.

LOCATION DESCRIPTION:  Did you recognize any familiar locations or any locations from familiar religious teachings or encounter any locations inhabited by incredible or amazing creatures?            Uncertain

I do not believe in hell or heaven.   I believe that nobody can possibly know the outcome of death until it happens.  Therefore, I sort of denounce religion that tries to tell me how to live in order to gain spirituality.  Religion has no particular influence on my OBE's whatsoever

Did you experiment while out of the body or in another, altered state? No

no, not yet, but last time it happened, I embraced it instead of being afraid.  I believe I am starting to get this thing down and would like to try to experiment with it if it happens again.

Did you observe or hear anything regarding people or events during your experience that could be verified later?          No

No.  People are unaware.  They can't understand and since I am a respected person, I favor my credibility among my peers more then trying to tell them about something they will never believe.

Did you notice how your 5 senses were working, and if so, how were they different?          Yes

They were barely working at all.  My vision, hearing, smell, taste, and touch are almost non-existent.  It literally feels like even though I am myself, I am outside of my body and only connected with a long  tornado rope type thing.   The rope is consisted of distorted pictures of the world around me.  The whole thing is a weird deal.  I am sure it is something psychological, but what?

Did you have any sense of altered space or time?   Uncertain

Yeah, sort of.  Even though I am aware of what time it is, if I close my eyes I am in a place that has no time or sense of space.  It just feels like the world as I know it and consciousness as I know it rapidly getting smaller and smaller.   It is difficult to explain.

Did you have a sense of knowing, special knowledge, universal order and/or purpose?    No

Did you reach a boundary or limiting physical structure?             Uncertain

The only boundary was that I was still attached to my body.  I was not ready to venture farther.  I get a feeling that I was just testing the waters or something.   It is like the part of me that goes out is something I have little control over.  Call it my soul, if you will, but it is totally separate from my mind in my physical body.

Did you become aware of future events?       No

Were you involved in or aware of a decision regarding your return to the body?       Yes

Yes, I can make myself go back into my body if I start to feel uncomfortable.   This is just a discovered skill from the last time this happened, just a few months ago. Usually, though, I have no choice, and my fear makes me come back immediately.

Did you have any psychic, paranormal or other special gifts following the experience that you did not have prior to the experience?         Uncertain

I just started to develop these gifts the last few years, but have always had a high intuition since I was a child.   So, I do not know if they are related to one another.  I seem to be able to translate messeges from relitives and friends to people, most of them are ones I do not know.   Sometimes I give the messege, other times I don't depending on how receptive I can see the individual is.

Did you have any changes of attitudes or beliefs following the experience?   No

No, I thought that I was just crazy the first couple times it happened.   The psychic ability is what made me change from atheisim and look at these experiences for what they truely are.

How has the experience affected your relationships? Daily life? Religious practices? Career choices?       No.  The people who have this happen to them when they are on death door, I feel for them.  It can change their life.   For me, it happens more often and without the element of death, so the need for me to change my life is really not required or needed.

Has your life changed specifically as a result of your experience?         No

Have you shared this experience with others?         No

No.  Most do not understand.

What emotions did you experience following your experience?  A lessening of emotional stress and usually a need to sleep.  A little bit of fear I suppose, but that seems to be more under control then in the past.

What was the best and worst part of your experience?      The fear is the worst.  The best is knowing that I may have the hang of it now and a desire to harness it if I can.

Is there anything else you would like to add concerning the experience?        This has also happened during an orgasm once.  I swear.   I did not tell the person, but it did happen.   I wonder where that guy is these days...   LOL!

Following the experience, have you had any other events in your life, medications or substances which reproduced any part of the experience?         No

Did the questions asked and information you provided accurately and comprehensively describe your experience?               Yes

The questions are great.  I hope I explained my crazy little brain and OBE experience good enough to decipher.  You questions do tend to be geared twoards the Near Death Experience, however.  There are others out there like me, I am assuming, who have this without the element of death being involved.

Please offer any suggestions you may have to improve this questionnaire.    None to offer.