Psychologists at The University of Manchester are investigating the idea that out-of-body experiences, commonly thought of as paranormal phenomena, may in fact have their roots in how people perceive and experience their own bodies. Around 10% of the population have an out-of-body experience (OBE) at some time, typically involving a sensation of floating and seeing the physical body from the outside. It isn't uncommon for people to have more than one OBE, and they may also occur as part of the wider near-death experience some report experiencing in life-threatening circumstances.Despite the high incidence of OBEs however, there is still a great deal scientists don't know about the phenomenon. The University of Manchester study, funded by the Portuguese Bial Foundation which supports the scientific study of the physical and spiritual nature of Man, will use an online questionnaire on body perceptions and experience to examine differences between those who have and have not experienced OBEs. The survey will also gather details on the different kinds of OBEs people have, to categorise these experiences more precisely.David Wilde, the researcher running the project, said, "There are several theories as to why people have OBEs. A common link between them is the idea that in certain circumstances the brain somehow loses touch with sensory information coming in from the body. This triggers a series of psychological mechanisms which can lead to someone having an OBE.

"In this study we aim to take the theory a stage further, by looking at the way people see and experience their bodies, and how - through perfectly ordinary psychological processes - these images and experiences may create the impression of seeing their bodies from the outside."The research team hopes to capture data from at least 500 members of the public from anywhere in the world. Both people who have had an OBE and those who have not are encouraged to take part.

View: Full Article | Source: University of Manchester

Yeah I heard about that news. It's really scary to hear that they were studying about that.

You know it can be true. Our souls go to another world or something like that. Because I remember I had that feeling that I got out of the body before.


I think it is really true. Because you know when someone is like jumping when they sleep? Yeah... I think their soul gets out of the body.

"...David Wilde, the researcher running the project, said, "There are several theories as to why people have OBEs. A common link between them is the idea that in certain circumstances the brain somehow loses touch with sensory information coming in from the body. This triggers a series of psychological mechanisms which can lead to someone having an OBE... "

Hmm, isn't this what happens when the biological organism dies, when it can no longer sustain the presence of the soul?

After a good nights rest and sleep, the body feels refreshed and is ready to face the coming events of the day. We go to work, we go to school or college or university, we follow a similar trend to the previous day. During daylight hours we are most active, and as the day moves forward toward dusk and night, our bodies become tired and weary and fatigued. As these physical symptoms take hold we begin to feel lethargic and drowsy, chemicals inhibitors within the brain are produced that dampen down synaptic activity, particularly when it is dark. These are the physical reasons why we sleep.

As we sleep, waste build-up is dealt with and washed out the system, and chemical excitors are produced in the brain that when they reach a certain level, they will activate the waking stage. Such is the basis of sleep. However, during sleep, we lose up to 90% of external attention, and sensory stimulus, which causes a re-polarisation of the conscious towards the only source of stimulation, and that is memory, the internal record of our whole life experience. During the correspondence phase of the conscious with memory we dream, but memory is not to be found in the brain's physical structure or processing systems, memory is assimilated upon the structure of the soul, in fact it IS the soul ( I am readying a post to detail a hypothesis dealing with this issue, and will post it in the near future).

Due to some non-understood mechanism, a certain percentage of people are able to detach from the physical body and have a 'out-of-body' experience (OOBE). I accept that the mechanism behind this is equal to that of the death experience. It is my opinion that the constant correspondence between the soul and the physical body is what helps to ground the soul interpenetratively within the very fabric of the physical body throughout the life experience, probably at the sub-quantum level. Once there is a full cessation of the correspondence between the soul and body, the soul's conscious must re-polarise, first upon its own memory, which helps to 'tune' the soul's conscious to a level of reality's vibration that its life experiences afford it, this is I feel the mechanism by which the soul is released.

During an 'oobe', the experient will sometimes notice that it is still attached to the body by a 'silver' cord. This cord is the only tenous link between life and physical death. Once this cord is severed from the body, death will ensue, and the soul will not be able to re-integrate with the body. The only way this cord can be severed as a link is through damage to the physical body, the soul itself cannot sever the link.

I will attend more to this subject in my forthcoming post.

Regards

Elysiumfire

i had an experience once similar to these OBE's the only difference was that i didnt see my body. I have once heard that in the middle ages OBEs or maybe it was sleep paralyse where someone may think they see a demon or angel or what ever is currently on their mind..

anyways my situation regards falling asleep one night laying in bed, and then everything getting dark, and feeling like my eyes were wide open but i couldnt see anything but shadows.. this was a scary experience, so of course my normal body triggers, fear, sweat, nervous tension, started to come over me, and then i felt a wave of heat, and the thought of someone/something pushing down on me. Scared me alot, enough to make me fight to get up and run to the living room.
i have never had a sitiuation like that before, and i have been wondering if that sound like something anyone knows about. I am healthy to my knowledge, and i was not under any kinda of seditives or anything foreign to my body that may have caused me to react or think i was having this happen to me... is there anything anyone could suggest about this situation?

thanks for your help

Hi Bankerkid24,

First and foremost, there is absolutely nothing wrong with you in your 'trinity', ie, physically, mentally, or spiritually. I suspect that the event you describe is a reaction to simply falling asleep. When we are tired, after a day's activity, chemical inhibitors dampen down both the cortex and motor circuits in the brain. It is probable that eiditic imagery caused the reaction of slight panic, accompanied with attendending physical symptoms, those you described.

Sometimes, during sleep, a number of people can awaken suddenlly, confused and in panic, wondering what awoke them. This is 'night terror', often put down to bad dreams, but I would suspect that it is also a natural in-built warning mechanism to awaken the sleeper from a particular posture that might be impeding blood flow, for instance. The body does this by introducing (perhaps) a quick shot of adrenaline into the heart, which is why they wake up with a pounding heartbeat..

Once, while I was falling asleep, but still quite aware, I felt as though I swooped backwards through the bed, which brought me out of my reverie and sitting bolt-upright in bed in the dark. Slowly, I realised that it was down to my muscles relaxing. So, you have nothing to worry about. Sleep well, sleep soundly.

regards

Elysiumfire

My favorite topic

Elysiumfire--You seem well informed in regards to this topic.
I had an NDE like OOBE 5 years ago and during my experience scared the crap out of my neighbours walking past the building when I was floating just above the treeline in front of my apt. (true)
Your post is very similar to my felings that the truth bout NDE/OOBE mystery lies within the brain function, and would appreciate seeing your article once it is finished.

Blessings

Edit:
You can view the dialog of my experience at:
http://www.oberf.org/david_t's_sobe.htm

thanks for your reply, it does make more sense scientifically that the brain, which we only use and understand a portion of, would have hidden mechanisms to prevent certain situations. i really thank you for your time and help with my curiosity.

i always appreciate your comments and postings.
also interested in where you come from, what you do, did you go to school...

sounds like an inspirational person im getting the chance to comment with

Hi Turtle:
Thanks for your comments. You know, I keep trying to write the article that I intend to post, but there is a lot of detail to consider, and as such that 'detail' needs qualifying, but in doing that the post grows inordinately. I am trying to write it in a way that it is short enough to post, lucid and coherent, and to a degree, non-re-interpretable.
I will be happy to answer specific questions if you have any, but I can't promise that my reply will be anything other than a personal observation.

Hi BannerKid24,
Thankyou for your comments. I'm not sure that I could truly fulfill your expectation of being 'inspirational', but I would be happy to converse with you from time to time. There are many good posters on this forum; and although, I might not agree with some of them, nor they with me, it is still essential that you gain as wide an experience as possible, so do read their posts as well (as I am sure you will).

Regards

Elysiumfire

thanks again and i will look forward to chattin again.

Hi there,

It's cool that this subject is being explained, as I have also been talking about this.

As some people here may already know, I have had many dreams that include flying. I've been having them for years.

When I fly, it's not like Superman but like a "breast stroke" motion. I'm pulling myself up into the air and while it's a great experience, it's also an effort. I've never had a "flying" dream that has taken place indoors (rising from my body while asleep and looked down on myself), they're ALWAYS out in the open and usually in a place that is familiar to me (a town where I grew up and so-on). I tend to get higher than the power cables but my head touches something and I can't go any further - kinda like walking up a ladder until your head touches the ceiling. In others, and again it's always when I reach a little higher than the power cables, I find myself in fog. This is the weird thing, I can hear a "mumbling" OR "whooshing" sound. The air smells dusty and it's hot & humid.

There have also been a number of times during these dreams when I have felt something/someone gripping onto my leg and I am pulled back down ...

In a related topic, some people have put this down to OBE's, others say it's lucid (mainly because I remember these dreams while I'm sleeping and I'll change things to fit my situation, eg. if someone is chasing me).

I know I'm not weird, lol, but it's something that keeps me curious.

Dreams about flying being paranormal? please...

(not directed at you Tornado)

I used to have dreams about flying when I was about 10-12. I used to fly, but then sometimes forget, then I wouldn't be able to take off again and sometimes flying was hard.

It doesn't take a genius to work out that this is probably due to my past worries and insecurities.

I fly, but then I forget. Sounds like a self esteem issue.
I forget how to fly, I got shy and was not confident.

You don't have to read too deeply into these kinds of dreams to work them out.

Yeah, I totally see where you're coming from in that respect. I know that I've been insecure about certain issues in my life - usually around the time where I'm having these dreams.

I'm not completely into the idea about OBE's. It's mainly from the things you read, stuff people tell you and the so-called scientific research that goes into it that makes me question this, ya know? I'm no expert in that stuff ... OBVIOUSLY, lol. I love to hear other people's opinions on it, inc. yours, Mr Ed!

Tornado, i know exactly what you mean, i've since a child, have had the same kinda dreams too.. where i need to actually move myself up, like diving towards the ground after i get speed, then feeling like something was pushing myself up... and its always in a local setting, only difference is that i dont have a limit i have gone very high. and all of my dreams are always very very vivid and detailed.
and your right in my dreams since i was a child i always knew it was a dream, and felt like it was something that i had to do to save someone, to find out something.


once i read that if you dream about that it means you can astral project.. but whose to say if thats true.

i read that in a native american book.

I didn't know that ^^. I've read about astral projection before but I didn't once think that they are somehow connected. I haven't tried it so I have no idea whether it's possible. *shrugs*

who knows

It sounds like something worth trying ... hmm, but then I think I'd feel a bit of an idiot.

Emlysfire---


Discovery happens because people dare to write down thoughts, that are then picked up by another and that sends them in another direction.
If you attempt to write in such a way that makes it non-re-interpretable, you will fail and never write that post, because all thoughts are interpretable, because that is what leads to discovery.

im still confused because i never had an obe before my nde. it doesnt make sense to me.

InMyNature

I can say OBE's are very REAL! It happen to me and if U want answers I have them,But only because Jesus came to rescue me. Said ... doc6358