One of the many strange experiences reported near the time of death is what has come to be known as ‘terminal lucidity’: an “unexpected surge of mental clarity shortly before death” that usually contravenes medical expectations. That is, things like individuals who were comatose or with severe dementia suddenly becoming aware and recognizing those gathered at their bedside in the minutes, hours or days before their passing.
During this time of lucidity, patients often also express an understanding and acceptance of (and sometimes even happiness and excitement about) their impending death, provide reassurance to their significant others that things will be okay, and also sometimes report the presence of, and communication with, nonvisible entities including deceased people or spiritual figures (the latter is often referred to as a ‘deathbed vision’).
Terminal lucidity is in fact so common that it has become known under a variety of names, from “lightening up” and “the rally” to the more academic “premortem surge”. But it is also one of the least studied areas, and until recently there had been very little research into the topic despite the phenomenon raising perplexing questions about the nature of and source of human consciousness. How is it possible for a person with a severely damaged brain to suddenly regain their wits and converse with those around them, just before they pass?
While academic interest in the subject has slowly been growing in the last couple of decades, one particular subset of terminal lucidity cases that has seen some research in the last few years is the experiences of dying children – and a new scientific paper published last week has provided what it says is the first systematic collection of contemporary cases of terminal lucidity (TL) in kids aged 16 and under:
The unanticipated occurrence of unusually enhanced mental clarity just before death has been reported across time and cultures and has come to be known by the term “terminal lucidity.” Cases that appear to be characteristic of terminal lucidity in children have been sporadically documented in historical and more recent literature, yet no studies have systematically examined the characteristics of terminal lucidity in children. Employing a 42-item online survey, this study collected case reports of terminal lucidity in 11 children aged 16 years and under. We recorded disease progression and treatment regime, behavioral and emotional changes prior to and during terminal lucidity, the proximity of terminal lucidity to death, and the terminal lucidity duration.
The cases were collected from seven individuals who had witnessed terminal lucidity in a child , six of whom had worked as a physician, nurse, hospice worker, or social worker, with the other being the older sibling of a deceased child who had experienced TL.
The study found that terminal lucidity within this group of children “tended to occur within the final hours to minutes before death of the child” and that it “typically manifested as notable changes in mental abilities, as well as marked behavioral and emotional changes.” Despite 10 of the 11 children having “severe mental impairment” (the other having “mild mental impairment”), shortly before death their conditioned changed dramatically:
For example, Case 7 “shifted from a semi-comatose state into alertness, was able to communicate to the nurses,” while prior to the lucid event, Case 8 “was not responding to healthcare providers or parents. During the event, she was communicating normally.” Case 3 was also described as “her behaviour was her normal self, but not in pain and very peaceful.” Other responses also indicated a sense of peace had descended on the child during TL. For example, the respondent who witnessed TL in Case 2 stated, “he was alert and talking. Seemed to know everyone as though he was perfectly well. Was also peaceful. Knew he was going to die and was not afraid at all,” while the respondent who witnessed TL in Case 6 stated that “after coming back out of the coma and having clarity, he also seemed to have a sense of peace and acceptance for what was going on.”
Even more remarkably, during this time of lucidity 10 of the 11 children were also said to have interacted with “unidentified others” who were not visible to anyone else. One of the children “was only talking to someone only he could see. He did not look at the others in the room,” while another “seemed to be communicating with people who were not present, having conversations and dialogue as if she was back to her normal state of health.” After previously being semi-comatose, one child “communicated to the nurses to tell his parents he would be ok, and that so-and-so was going to help him cross over”, while another “reported talking to [a] deceased grandma.” Two of the children described interacting with other children who were in hospital at the same time as them, but had since died
And, amazingly, two of the children even discussed interacting with deceased family members who they were not aware of:
Case 10 discussed joining a deceased sibling whom the parents had not mentioned to the child before: “He talked about joining his brother who was a still-birth, and he told his parents he was going to be fine,” while Case 1 described communicating with a deceased uncle who he had not known, as the uncle’s death predated the child’s birth: “had ‘met’ someone that made him laugh and happy. When he described this person to his mother, she said to me ‘he is describing my younger brother who died when I was younger.’”
The authors of the paper make clear that this time of lucidity and the visions of invisible ‘others’ were not connected to any medical treatment or drugs: “Terminal lucidity did not seem to be precluded by any changes in medical regime,” they note, “and seemed to happen in spite many children being in semi- or comatose states just prior to the lucidity episode.”
While acknowledging the small sample size, the researchers say that their study “is a necessary and important first step to building a more robust understanding of what terminal lucidity is”, and conclude that – just as has been recorded with adults – a “surge of mental clarity in terminally ill children does occur in spite of medical expectations that it should not.” And most importantly, that their findings could provide help in “enhancing end-of-life care in terminally ill children, as well as for developing understandings about the nature of consciousness at the end-of-life.”
