Vivid memories from hell: A systematic analysis of distressing near-death experiences accounts

Background: Near-death experiences (NDEs) are associated to positive affects, however, a small proportion is depicted as distressing. Only a few studies have addressed these frightening events, and yet they could trigger long-lasting emotional trauma. Objectives: We aimed at 1) looking into the proportion of distressing NDEs in a sample of NDE narratives; 2) running a categorization of distressing narratives based on Greyson and Bush’s classification: “inverse”, “void” or “hellish” NDEs; and 3) comparing the content of distressing NDEs with “classical” NDEs (which include typical features and are not considered as negative). Methods: NDE experiencers were invited to write down their experience and complete the Memory Characteristics Questionnaire (to assess its phenomenological characteristics) as well as the Greyson NDE scale (to characterize the content of the NDE). Distressing narratives were identified and a text analysis was conducted to classify each narrative into one of the negative subcategories. Content and intensity of distressing and classical NDEs memories were then compared using Mann Whitney U tests based on answers to questionnaires. Results: First, we found that distressing NDEs represent 18% of our sample. Second, the text analysis confirmed Greyson and Bush’s classification and highlighted that our subsample includes 14 inverse (56%), 8 hellish (32%) and 3 void (12%) accounts. Finally, memories of distressing NDEs are considered as detailed as memories of classical NDEs. Apart from positive affects, distressing NDEs contain as much typical features as classical NDEs. Still poorly studied, distressing NDEs deserve careful consideration to ensure their integration into NDE experiencers’ identity.