Complementary therapies in medicine
June 1, 2013
Surbhi Khanna, Jeffrey M Greeson
250 citations
Yoga and mindfulness show promise as complementary therapies for addiction, supported by a growing number of clinical trials and laboratory studies on smoking, alcohol dependence, and illicit substance use. These practices, rooted in ancient Buddhist philosophy and traditional yoga, may target psychological, neural, physiological, and behavioral processes involved in addiction and relapse. However, few studies have examined yoga specifically, and more research is needed to determine which interventions work best for different addictions and patient types. A conceptual model is proposed to guide future studies on outcomes and mechanisms.
Journal of Religion and Health
April 30, 2013
Surbhi Khanna, Bruce Greyson
52 citations
People who have had near-death experiences report greater spiritual well-being than those who came close to death without such an experience. Among 224 individuals who had come close to death, depth of spiritual well-being was positively correlated with depth of the near-death experience. Spiritual well-being was measured using the Spiritual Well-Being Scale.
Spirituality in Clinical Practice
March 1, 2014
Bruce Greyson, Surbhi Khanna
40 citations
People who have a near-death experience during a brush with death report greater spiritual growth afterward than those who come close to death without such an experience. Among 230 self-selected participants, spiritual growth was stronger the deeper the near-death experience. Spiritual decline was similar in both groups and unrelated to the depth of the experience. Near-death experiences are therefore linked to increased posttraumatic spiritual growth but do not affect posttraumatic spiritual decline. The findings suggest that spiritual transformation matters for well-being and that therapies should include ways to foster spiritual growth.
The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease
September 5, 2015
Surbhi Khanna, Bruce Greyson
37 citations
Near-death experiences are associated with greater posttraumatic growth—positive psychological change after a trauma—than close brushes with death without such an experience. Among 251 survivors, scores on the Near-Death Experience Scale significantly correlated with scores on the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory. Interpreting near-death experiences as spiritual events supports prior research that spiritual factors contribute to posttraumatic growth and aligns with the model that challenges to one's assumptive worldview stimulate such growth.
Psychology of Religion and Spirituality
August 18, 2014
Surbhi Khanna, Bruce Greyson
31 citations
People who have had near-death experiences (NDEs) report more frequent daily spiritual experiences afterward than those who came close to death without having an NDE. Among 229 individuals who had a close brush with death, those who described an NDE (204 people) scored higher on a measure of daily spiritual experiences after the event, while prior spiritual experience levels did not differ between the two groups. The depth of the NDE was positively linked to the frequency of later spiritual experiences. These findings align with other reported aftereffects of NDEs.
The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease
August 20, 2018
Surbhi Khanna, Lauren E. Moore, Bruce Greyson
11 citations
A 54-year-old man with bacterial meningitis experienced a complete recovery without neurological deficits despite a fluctuating Glasgow Coma Scale score between 6 and 11 during an 8-day hospitalization. He recalled an elaborate near-death experience that occurred while he was comatose. The case underscores the value of studying near-death experiences during compromised brain function to better understand consciousness.