Madame Butterfly 0 Posted August 30, 2005 Out-of-body experiences 'probed' Some have OBEs when they have narrowly escaped death UK researchers are asking for your help to find out exactly what is behind out-of-body experiences (OBEs). By comparing the responses of those who have and have not had an OBE they aim to discover the overarching cause. One theory is that it is down to how people perceive their own body - those unhappy or less in touch with their body are more likely to have an OBE. Floating sensation About one in 10 people claim to have had an OBE at some time, typically involving a sensation of floating and seeing the physical body from outside. For some, the phenomenon occurred spontaneously, while for others it was linked to dangerous circumstances, a near-death experience, a dream-like state or use of alcohol or drugs. Despite this, relatively little is known about OBE. Dr David Wilde and his team plan to find out more by studying the experiences of a large number of people. He said there were several theories as to why people have OBEs. Common thread "There were early theories which looked at whether something actually physically left the body, like consciousness, but there's no real scientific evidence for that. They all start from a feeling of a loss of input from the body Researcher Dr David Wilde "Other theories over the years have looked at whether OBE is a psychological defence mechanism in response to a perceived threat to the body in some way. "Others have wondered whether it is a visual hallucination. "But what has connected all the theories is the fact that they all start from a feeling of a loss of input from the body - a loss of conductive information coming from the legs, the arms, the trunk and so on. "Our theory follows on from that." His team believes that people experience their body in different ways and that this could explain why some people experience OBEs while others do not. "We are finding that people with OBEs tend to experience their body differently to others. "They tend to have increased social anxiety, to be uncomfortable about their body being scrutinised by others and dissatisfied with their bodies, and they tend to get immersed and absorbed in things very easily." He said that by studying more people over the coming months he will be able to check whether his theory is correct. The anonymous survey, funded by the Bial Foundation, can be accessed at www.freeresponse.org/muobe2005/ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Angela 1 Posted August 31, 2005 Just did the questionaire, was interesting. I think they were also looking into how many had had experiences with mind altering chemicals at any time and also if anyone had any psychological disorders, it was intereting though. Its run by manchester University. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
APW 0 Posted August 31, 2005 It would be great if the scientific community approached OBE's with open-minds. Unfortunately,most research is conducted by people who have already decided in their own opinion,the causes of OBE's.And no matter what data they collect,they seldom change their minds. Maybe this study is different? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Theunicornhunter 2 Posted August 31, 2005 It would be great if the scientific community approached OBE's with open-minds.Unfortunately,most research is conducted by people who have already decided in their own opinion,the causes of OBE's.And no matter what data they collect,they seldom change their minds. Maybe this study is different? 349465[/snapback] I doubt it - I noticed the sentence where they said "no scientific evidence" - I read a study conducted by a heart surgeon once who looked into NDE's - he related experiences of people being able to describe events that only someone with an aerial view could of the operating room describe. Even thought there is no explanation such experiences are dismissed because it is not what people want to believe. They prefer to believe all these unconscious patients somehow sneaked mirrors into the operating room. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Madame Butterfly 0 Posted August 31, 2005 I've read things, where there are "signs" in the operating room, where if a patient were to leave their body, than they'd be able to see it. Is this the scientific evidence they're taking about? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Theunicornhunter 2 Posted August 31, 2005 In this article the doctor had interviewed patients that described in detail the medical procedures/equipment used to resuscitate them - not something a person lying prone (& unconscious) would be able to see. I've also heard about an experiment a doctor supposedly did once to measure bodies at the time of death to see if there was any change in weight. I found some info at Snopes (the urban legend website) and his methodology was basically sound - just limited in number of examples and there are some serious ethical questions about doing this type of research. Still, on the research done, there was a slight loss of weight at the time of death. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
APW 0 Posted September 3, 2005 I read about the same research. I've always wondered how a spirit can have "weight" to it.... Very interesting though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
