The Discoveries I've Made in 30 Years of Near-Death Research
"It is not an exaggeration to say that I have traveled millions of miles since 1978 giving talks about the near-death experience and seeking both adults and children who might have undergone such an episode."My journeys have taken me from the coal fields of West Virginia to packed auditoriums in Korea, Turkey, Holland, Canada, and Norway."My talk is about all those audiences: about the people I met along the way, what they are curious about, how they respond. I have good news to share, and cautionary advice for researchers and for all of us in how we regard the near-death experience today and what it implies. " As far as I am concerned, we have just begun to study what I feel is one of the most important conditions that exists in the field of medicine and in the exploration of consciousness. Already findings strike at the very heart of what defines a human being, the range of brain function, mind, faculties, and the nervous system. The aftereffects, both physiological and psychological, validate the near-death phenomenon. . . as a condition of fact that, like it or not, has profound spiritual implications that strongly suggest the presence of a soul, an afterlife, and Deity."
The Near-Death Phenomenon
WE LIVE FOREVER: THE REAL TRUTH ABOUT DEATH
This presentation by P. M. H. Atwater focuses on the greatest mysteries of all time - death, heaven and hell, the existence of the soul, and the power of prayer. Dr. Atwater shares how deeply the attack on Pearl Harbor affected her as a first grader in school, and how the specter of death has been a part of her life ever since. Using this and her research of near-death states as a springboard, she discusses in-depth the existence of the soul, soul groups, soul cycles, leaving the body after death, different energetic layers to the afterlife, borderlands and inbetween spaces, and spirit beings on the Other Side. She shares "What Death Is" and "What It Feels Like To Die" (summarized from comments of over 3,000 near-death experiencers during her research of the near-death phenomenon).
The Aftereffects of Near-Death and Other Transformative States
At Death's Door: The Journey Into Oneness
** What it was like when I died.
** What I noticed with nearly 4,000 other experiencers of near-death states, both with adults and child experiencers.
** Heaven and Hell, the "layer-cake" appearance of these domains.
** Border or shadow lands, and those souls who "hang around" after death.
** Greeters on The Other Side - the full range, positive/negative.
** Spirit Beings.
** Otherworldly Realities.
** At Death's Door.
** "As You Die" CD/DVD and how it can help at the deathbed.
** Visitors who come before death.
** The Soul, its weight, the opportunity to merge with it.
** Preparing: music, funeral service, decisions.
** Empathic Experiences - how to participate in them as an aid for the dying.
** Your Death.
** The Will of the Soul.
** The AH Breath - co-meditation.
** Moving into Oneness.
** The Breath of God Breathing.
Note: will need 2 or 3 easels to hang charts, black or white board and implements, carpeted room, pillows or mats (participants urged to bring their own), CD/DVD player and large monitor. Sponsor might consider selling bag lunches or having a salad buffet, not only as a convenience, but also as money-raising benefit for the group.
Deepening into Spirit
Soul to Soul - Morning Session is part lecture, part questions/comments. Covers material gained from Atwater's three near-death experiences, and from over 25 years of researching the near-death phenomenon with thousands of experiencers. Focus on what the soul appears to be, what it looks like, the learning cycles of the soul, soul interventions in one's life, heaven and hell, the work of George Meek in identifying various spirit planes, astral/spirit beings, awakenings to spirit, God.
Remembering - Afternoon Session utilizes prayer states, altered states, visioning, questions, comments, sharing, reconnecting with spirit. Participatory. Alternating between prayer states and other states of consciousness, as inner clarity and spiritual awareness deepens and expands. Memory is heightened with both visioning and visualizations, enabling individuals to feel, sense, touch-in, and remember The Breath of God Breathing. An encounter with death, the "shape-shifter" of our comings and goings as we mature in spirit.
THE LIFE CONTINUUM. AN EXPLORATION OF LIFE/DEATH. BIRTH/REBIRTH, RESURRECTION
Atwater shares some of the stories from her early years - like when as a youth her family took part in the birth and death of their animals, how a special elk "volunteered" to be the meat her own family needed, on what it was like to grow up in a police station as a police officer's daughter, and the bizarre behavior of one of her own children who was obsessed with death. As a young woman, she noticed that people who died suddenly in car crashes and airplane accidents seemed to "know" they were going to die before they did. After many interviews with the "victim's" survivors, she discovered that they had all exhibited the same Subconscious Behavior Pattern in advance of their deaths - a pattern suggestive of fore knowledge. Her years as a professional hypnotist specializing in past-life regressions will also be discussed, along with several unusual cases that forced her to abandon what she thought she knew about the progression of the soul. New research categories for life/death issues are introduced: NDA (nearing death awareness), NDE (near-death experience), ADC (after death communication), and PBE (pre-birth experience). Cases from her own files are explored, as well as the idea of Mission, Symbolic Death/Rebirth, Soul Groups, Soul Cycles, Transformations of Consciousness, and Resurrection.
..........Need comfortable space for attendees. Each person must bring a lap board, plain white paper for drawing (full sized sheets), and a small box of crayons. (4 to 6 hours)
The Near-Death Experience: Beyond the Myth
1. RECONSIDERING THE PHENOMENON: (Lecture, Overheads) Fact and fantasy setting the record straight. A new model, Saigon- features of genuine experiences. Four types sample cases. Pleasant and unpleasant episodes surprising examples. The typical pattern of physiological and psychological aftereffects, and how people generally respond. The near-death-like experience/transformations.
2. TELLING THE STORY: People in the audience are invited to tell their own story, or relay a story they know about another. Relatives and friends of experiencers are also urged to share what happened to them and what they witnessed as they dealt with the individual.
3. WHAT HAPPENS WITH CHILDREN: (Lecture, Overheads) Looking at childrens episodes through their eyes. The youngest hellish case yet found; childrens drawings, past/future siblings. Greeters and the three distinctive types of light. Aftereffects more impactual with kids: creative intuitives, genius, learning reversals, alcoholism, suicide, distancing from family/school. Historical figures implication.
4. A CHALLENGE TO THE AUDIENCE: (Q&A, Dialogue, Debate, Sharings) Open microphone to ask questions, talk about the downside. If time, will broach such topics as: depressions and confusion afterwards, the Need Factor and what that implies, the horror in China, the difference between psychotic breakdowns and spiritual breakthroughs, etc.
5. EMPATHIC EXPERIENCES/SHARINGS: (Guided Visualization, Stories) Using the pattern of near-death scenarios as a guided visualization to confront ones own issues about death, and as an empathic way to assist in the dying process. Step-by-step directions and suggestions. Stories from the edge.
Participants are invited to share photos, drawings, poetry, art work, that depict aspects of their experience.
PARTICIPANTS Minimum 30, Maximum none
ROOM LAYOUT Chairs in Semi-circle, Carpet, Table Upfront, Black or White Board
AUDIO/VISUALS Overhead Projector, Screen, Lapel Microphone
BRAIN SHIFT
USING THE NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE AS A MODEL TO
EXPLORE THE TRANSFORMATION OF CONSCIOUSNESS
Part I -
I will give an overview of my research of the near-death experience, a research project begun in 1978, and covering interviews with over 3,000 near-death survivors (700 of them in-depth). As part of this overview, the four major types of episodes people have will be covered along with a brief psychological profile of who tends to have which type. Near-death-like experiences and anomalies will also be mentioned. The pattern of psychological and physiological aftereffects will be explored, and how these aftereffects differ from psychosis. Children's experiences and the clustering of ages when this seems the most apt to occur will be discussed, along with what this implies. The four phases of integration will be discussed, as well as the four levels of near-death and otherworldly imagery and what that might mean.
Part II -
I will detail one of the common aftereffects, and that is the ability to pre-live segments of one's future and remember having done so. This "future memory phenomenon" will be explored from several different points of view, and the universal pattern of occurrence given. Some striking parallels with research done of childhood brain development between the ages of three to five and how that might relate to what happens to those who report future memory episodes, will be discussed. Implication given.
Part III -
I will present the BRAIN SHIFT MODEL, a series of charts plus text that summarizes my research not only of near-death states but of spiritual transformations (a work I began in sixties). This summary shows how a transformation of consciousness, no matter how caused, is but a brain shift - a specific pattern of responses which, when triggered, result in a cascade effect on the individual that matches the aftereffects of both near-death and spiritual transformations. Even though most such episodes lead to only partial shifts, that alone can result in dramatic changes in a person's life. How this compares with the broad sweep of transformational experiences, whether turbulent or tranquil in cause, will be covered, as well as the implication that brain shifts may indeed be the engine of evolution.
*The goal of this workshop is to help participants recognize and better understand brain shifts, and to aid them in realizing that anyone who begins their "journey inward" to a more spiritual lifestyle automatically triggers such a shift. Knowing the major characteristics of a brain shift can be immensely helpful in coming to terms with what is normal and typical to the experience. As more and more people undergo transformations of consciousness, information about the brain shift model will become increasingly important. Workshop Facilitator: P.M.H.Atwater, L.H.D., Ph.D. (Hon.)