Memory
June 12, 2019
Héléna Cassol, Charlotte Martial, Jitka Annen et al.
60 citations
Near-death experiences (NDEs) are typically positive, but about 14% of 123 NDE accounts were distressing. These distressing NDEs included inverse, hellish, or void types, with inverse and hellish each appearing 8 times and void once. A higher proportion of suicide survivors reported distressing NDEs compared to classical ones. Memories of distressing NDEs were as phenomenologically detailed as those of classical NDEs. The findings suggest distressing NDEs require careful attention to help experiencers integrate them into their identity.
Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews
January 1, 2026
Charlène Aubinet, Olivia Gosseries, Steve Majerus
Language and consciousness interact in complex ways, with high-level semantic and sentence integration requiring conscious processing, while lower-level phonetic, phonological, and lexico-semantic processes can function without consciousness. Evidence from neuroimaging, cognitive, and neuropsychological studies shows parallel recovery trajectories between aspects of language and states of consciousness, and language processing may influence consciousness content or precede the reemergence of consciousness. Associations between language processing and higher-order conscious thought exist, but observed links may reflect broader integration disruptions rather than language-specific mechanisms. Theoretical implications and methodological challenges, especially regarding causal direction, are discussed.