What do we see when dying? How a psychedelic trip can trigger at life’s end, and why we need to be better prepared for it
- DMT produced in the dying brain can create a hallucinatory near-death experience, studies say, a potentially transformative experience that for most is too late
- We don’t have to wait for our life’s end or take LSD to have those feelings, Stephen Asma says – we need only pay closer attention to our dreams and imaginings
My father died this year of cancer. In the end, he was brought home from the hospital to die with his family around him, and I’m grateful for that. He was resigned to his inevitable end, and we were able to say goodbye.
Under the careful ministrations of hospice nurses, my father experienced his final day on a morphine-fuelled trip that would have made psychedelic pioneer Timothy Leary jealous.
As far as I know, it was his first and last extended psychedelic experience. None of the healthcare providers ever mentioned to us (or to him) that he’d be visiting the origin of the universe, seeing God and reliving his emotional childhood. But that’s what seemed to be happening as we sat around his bed.
Some research suggests that DMT (N, N-Dimethyltryptamine) is produced inside the dying brain and sparks a hallucinatory near-death experience – including feelings of transcending your body, travelling through alternative realms, communicating with sentient entities and so on.
It’s unclear whether the morphine or the DMT is more responsible for the final magic carpet ride.