What If You Died? – Near-Death Experiences
This is the conclusion of our two-part series on near-death experiences. Listen to part one here.
Spencer and Ryan continue their conversation about near-death experiences, delving into some possible scientific explanations. They discuss Dr. Michael Wirth-Davis’ story from last episode, Ryan tells us about the god helmet, and Spencer gets off on a weird Terence McKenna/DMT tangent.
Hot Topics: God Helmet, DMT, Terence McKenna, Oops All Braindead, I Felt A Presence, Michael Persinger, Somebody Pulled My Leg Up The Wall, and much more.
Dr. Michael Wirth-Davis
Last episode, we heard from Dr. Micheal Wirth-Davis. Due to an extremely high fever, his heart stopped when he was 7 years old. He was then floated out of his hospital room by an entity that took him on a tour of the planet. He was eventually returned to his body and survived. Later in life, he was able to recall and identify specific locations he was shown during his NDE. Today, we’re discussing and reacting to his story.
The God Helmet
Invented by Stanley Koren, the God Helmet is capable of reproducing “religious experiences”. The modified snowmobile helmet uses solenoids to stimulate the brain’s temporal lobes. For the wearer, this can lead to feelings of a presence in the room, as well as mystical experiences and altered states.
Terence McKenna, Death, and DMT
Terence McKenna, lifelong DMT advocate, had some interesting ideas about what happens at the moment of death. He hypothesized that the brain may release DMT when it is close to death, and that this may be partially responsible for near-death experiences. While it may not explain all aspects of NDEs, it would certainly help with the hallucination bit.
Terence McKenna on death and DMT
Michael Persinger – This is Your Brain On God
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