The evolving self : finding meaning in near-death experiences using interpretative phenomenological analysis.

Objectives: A variety of anomalous experiences have been reported in the research literature as enhancing, rather than indicating poor mental health. The out-of-body experience (OBE), where the person’s self and body are phenomenologically separate, is a relatively common anomalous experience. The aim of this study was to investigate the experience of an OBE and its resultant after-effects. Design: An idiographic, phenomenological, qualitative approach was adopted. Methods: Three participants took part in recorded face-to-face, semi-structured interviews. Data were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Results: IPA found experients perceived their OBEs as occurring at times of personal significance. They were inextricably linked with participants’ lives beyond their point of occurrence and played an adaptive role in response to difficult life events. The process of integration was helped or hindered by the varying reactions from others to the disclosure of the OBE. Conclusions: The idiographic nature of this study was instrumental in highlighting the subtle personal and social factors that influenced how the OBE was managed and integrated

Correlação entre os níveis séricos de DDT e os títulos de anticorpos antidiftéricos em meninas

Foram determinados níveis séricos de DDT e títulos de anticorpos antidiftéricos em 28 meninas vacinadas, com a finalidade de estabelecer uma possível correlação. Para a determinação dos níveis de DDT empregou-se o método da cromatografia gasosa. Para a titulação de anticorpos empregou-se o método da inibição da hemaglutinação passiva. A análise estatística dos resultados, feita por métodos não paramétricos, mostrou existir correlação positiva entre presença de op'DDT, quantidade de pp'DDT e títulos de anticorpos. A possível influência do DDT no sistema AMP-cíclico das células imunocomponentes é discutida no trabalho, tentando explicar a correlação positiva encontrada

Near-death experiences: actual considerations.

peer reviewedThe notion that death represents a passing to an afterlife, where we are reunited with loved ones and live eternally in a utopian paradise, is common in the anecdotal reports of people who have encountered a “near-death experience” (NDE). These experiences are usually portrayed as being extremely pleasant including features such as a feeling of peacefulness, the vision of a dark tunnel leading to a brilliant light, the sensation of leaving the body, or the experience of a life review. NDEs are increasingly being reported as a clearly identifiable physiological and psychological reality of clinical and scientific significance. The definition and causes of the phenomenon as well as the identification of NDE experiencers are still matters of debate. The phenomenon has been thoroughly portrayed by the media, but the science of NDEs is rather recent and still lacking of rigorous experimental data and reproducible controlled experiments. It seems that the most appropriate theories to explain the phenomenon tend to integrate both psychological and neurobiological mechanisms. The paradoxical dissociation between the richness and intensity of the memory, probably occurring during a moment of brain dysfunction, offers a unique opportunity to better understand the neural correlates of consciousness. In this chapter, we will attempt to describe NDEs and the methods to identify them. We will also briefly discuss the NDE experiencers’ characteristics. We will then address the main current explicative models and the science of NDEs