I was lucky to recently attend a talk by Dr. Eben Alexander. He is the author of the book Proof of Heaven based on a near-death experience (NDE) he had while in a coma for 7 days. I have used his experience in my presentation on Finding Opportunity in Adversity and he confirmed that he sees his coma and the resulting shift in his consciousness as a true gift.
It was not an easy shift though because he was a trained neurosurgeon who believed that when the brain did not work, people had no awareness. During his NDE he heard and saw amazing things and felt unconditional love yet his brain, that was being constantly monitored, registered no activity in the area responsible for sensory perception.
He has now come to believe that science has it wrong, consciousness does exist outside of the brain and that the brain actually limits our awareness in many ways.
Here are some of the other powerful messages that he shared:
- All challenges are stepping stones to help us learn, grow and evolve our consciousness (or awareness)
- If you take a big enough picture, hardships always serve us
- We plan them in order to give ourselves learning opportunities
- Some of the answers we are searching for come to us before we ask the question
- Be aware of guidance, insights, co-incidences as even if they don't make sense in the moment, someday they may
- Know that you have nothing to fear
- All healing (emotional, mental & physical) benefits from a basis in spiritual awareness and healing
Next time I will talk about an amazing sound meditation that we experienced during the session.
Be well and stay open to the stepping stones disguised as struggles on your chosen path!
Jackie