To Hell and Back: Howard Storm's Descent into Death

Summary

The script recounts a dramatic near-death experience of a university professor who, after suffering a perforated stomach in Paris, undergoes a profound spiritual awakening. He describes enhanced senses, meeting Jesus, and a life review that led to a new understanding of love's power to change the world. His post-experience zeal to share his revelation, however, alienates his family and challenges his relationships, yet he remains hopeful and committed to spreading love and finding peace.

Takeaways

• 🎓 The individual started as an assistant professor at Northern Kentucky University in 1972 and was promoted to full professor and tenured at the young age of 25.
• 🏡 The professor, along with his wife, had seven children and traveled extensively, including a memorable trip to Paris for an art tour.
• 🗓️ On June 1st, 1985, the professor experienced an acute pain in his abdomen, which was later diagnosed as a perforated duodenum, a life-threatening condition.
• 🚑 In Paris, the professor was rushed to the hospital where he was informed that without immediate surgery, he would die.
• 🈚️ Due to it being the weekend, there was no available surgeon, and he was left in severe pain for hours without medical attention.
• 😖 The professor described feeling terror and despair, believing he was dying, and experiencing a profound sense of loss and regret over his relationships.
• 🌟 After losing consciousness, the professor reported an out-of-body experience where he felt an enhanced sense of sight, hearing, and touch.
• 👥 He encountered a group of people who led him away from his body and into a dark, featureless space, where he was subjected to a harrowing ordeal.
• 🙏 In a moment of desperation, the professor called out to Jesus, and a bright light appeared, leading to a transformative spiritual experience.
• 🔄 The professor was shown a review of his life, including the impact of his father's abusive behavior and his own subsequent actions.
• 💡 Jesus imparted wisdom and understanding to the professor, emphasizing the importance of love and its potential to change the world.
• 🔙 Upon returning to his body, the professor underwent surgery and survived, with a new sense of purpose and mission to spread love and understanding.
• 💔 Despite his transformation, the professor faced rejection and alienation from his family and struggled to convey the significance of his experience.
• 🤝 The professor sought reconciliation with his father, understanding the root of his father's behavior and achieving forgiveness and friendship.
• 🌱 The script conveys a message of hope, change, and the power of love to transform lives and bring about a sense of peace and purpose.

Q & A

When did the narrator start working at Northern Kentucky University?

The narrator started working at Northern Kentucky University in 1972.

What position was the narrator offered at the age of 25?

The narrator was offered a promotion to full professor at the age of 25.

What significant event happened to the narrator on June 1st, 1985?

On June 1st, 1985, the narrator experienced the most acute pain of his life due to a perforation of the duodenum.

What was the immediate danger posed by the narrator's medical condition?

The immediate danger was that hydrochloric acid, enzymes, and bacteria were leaking into the narrator's abdominal cavity, causing him to digest himself from the inside.

How did the narrator describe his experience in the hospital before surgery?

The narrator described his experience as terrifying, with no doctor available initially, and he was in extreme pain for 10 hours before being taken to surgery.

What did the narrator perceive when he was unconscious?

When unconscious, the narrator perceived himself standing next to his bed, feeling better than ever, with enhanced senses, and seeing a group of people in the hallway.

What was the narrator's spiritual experience during his unconscious state?

The narrator had a spiritual experience where he met Jesus and was shown his life in chronological order, realizing the impact of his relationships and actions.

What message did the narrator receive from Jesus during his spiritual experience?

The message the narrator received was to love the person he was with, as this act of love would have a ripple effect and change the world.

How did the narrator's relationships change after his spiritual experience?

After his spiritual experience, the narrator tried to share his newfound understanding of love and purpose, but this led to alienation from his family and others who did not take his experience seriously.

What was the narrator's attitude towards his father after his experience?

The narrator was able to forgive his father and become his best friend, understanding that his father's actions were a result of his own troubled upbringing.

What is the narrator's belief about the power of grace and love?

The narrator believes in the power of grace and love to change lives for the better, bringing hope, peace, joy, and contentment, and leading people to find God and eternal life.

Outlines

00:00

😨 Life-Altering Abdominal Pain and Near-Death Experience

The narrator recounts his journey from being an assistant professor at Northern Kentucky University in 1972 to a harrowing experience with acute abdominal pain on June 1st, 1985. He describes the pain as the most intense he'd ever felt, leading to a diagnosis of a perforated stomach. The urgent need for surgery was clear, but due to the weekend, no surgeon was available, leaving him in a state of terror. His desperate situation was compounded by the hospital's inability to find a doctor, leading to a 10-hour wait and a near-death experience where he felt he was digesting himself from the inside. The story ends with a sudden unconsciousness, hinting at a profound transformation or revelation.

05:02

🌌 Out-of-Body Experience and Sensory Enhancement

The script continues with the narrator describing an out-of-body experience following his unconsciousness. He finds himself standing next to his lifeless body, observing his surroundings with heightened senses. His vision, hearing, and other senses are remarkably enhanced, allowing him to perceive things he had never experienced before. He attempts to communicate with his wife, but to no avail. The narrative then shifts to an encounter with a group of people in a dimly lit hallway who insist on taking him away from his body. This leads to a disorienting journey through an endless, featureless space, culminating in a violent and terrifying assault that leaves him in despair, reflecting on the failures of his relationships and life.

10:04

🙏 Spiritual Encounter and Life Review

In the depths of despair, the narrator recalls a childhood memory of singing 'Jesus loves me,' which triggers a spiritual intervention. A bright star appears, and he experiences a telepathic communication with a divine presence. He is then shown a review of his life, highlighting his troubled relationships and the emotional wounds inflicted by his abusive father. The spiritual beings express disappointment in his life choices, leading him to feel a deep sense of regret. After answering his many questions and providing him with new insights, the divine presence instructs him to return to life with a mission to love those around him as a means to change the world. With this purpose, he is sent back to his body just as a doctor arrives to perform surgery.

15:05

🤗 Transformation Through Love and Reconciliation

The final paragraph details the narrator's transformation after his near-death experience. He finds a new sense of purpose and meaning in life, focusing on the power of love. Despite initial resistance from his wife and others, he becomes a zealous advocate for love as a force for change. This newfound passion, however, leads to the breakdown of his relationships, with his wife leaving him and his children rejecting him. Despite these challenges, he remains hopeful, believing in the power of grace and love to bring about positive change. He also seeks reconciliation with his father, understanding the root of his father's behavior and finding a way to forgive and form a new bond. The story concludes with a message of hope, love, and the potential for redemption and change.

Keywords

💡Acute pain

Acute pain refers to a sharp, intense sensation that is typically sudden in onset and severe in intensity. In the video, the narrator describes experiencing the most acute pain of his life in the center of his abdomen, which was a critical moment leading to his hospitalization and subsequent near-death experience. This pain was so severe that it changed the course of his life.

💡Perforated stomach

A perforated stomach is a medical emergency where a hole has formed in the stomach wall, allowing digestive acids and enzymes to leak into the abdominal cavity. The narrator's acute pain was due to this condition, which was life-threatening and required immediate surgery. This concept is central to the video as it sets the stage for his profound personal transformation.

💡Near-death experience (NDE)

A near-death experience is a profound personal experience associated with impending death, typically involving a sense of detachment from the physical body, feelings of levitation, total serenity, security, warmth, the experience of absolute dissolution, and the presence of a light. The narrator describes such an experience, which included enhanced senses, a life review, and a spiritual encounter that forever changed his perspective on life.

💡Enhanced senses

Enhanced senses refer to an increase in the intensity and acuity of the senses beyond normal human capabilities. The narrator reports experiencing this during his NDE, where he could see almost 360°, hear the buzzing of fluorescent lights, and feel nuances in the cold floor. This aspect of his experience is tied to the broader theme of spiritual awakening and heightened awareness.

💡Life review

A life review is a phenomenon often reported in NDEs where a person's entire life is said to be reviewed, often in a chronological order. In the video, the narrator describes seeing his life flash before his eyes, including both the positive and negative aspects of his relationships and personal growth. This life review is a pivotal moment that leads to his spiritual realization and change in life's direction.

💡Despair

Despair is a deep sense of loss, sadness, or hopelessness. During his NDE, the narrator experiences a pit of despair as he reflects on the troubled relationships in his life. This feeling of despair is a critical turning point, leading him to seek spiritual guidance and ultimately to a profound understanding of love and forgiveness.

💡Forgiveness

Forgiveness is the process of letting go of resentment or anger against someone, often after being hurt or wronged. The narrator's experience with his father is an example of forgiveness, as he is able to let go of past grievances and establish a positive relationship with him. This concept is integral to the video's message of personal growth and reconciliation.

💡Love

Love, in the context of the video, is presented as a transformative force capable of changing individuals and the world. The narrator is instructed to love the person he is with as a means to change the world. This concept is central to the video's theme, emphasizing the power of love to heal and connect people.

💡Zealot

A zealot is a person who is fanatical and uncompromising about a cause or belief. After his NDE, the narrator becomes a zealous advocate for the message of love and the spiritual insights he gained, which unfortunately leads to alienation from his family and friends. This term illustrates the challenges of communicating profound spiritual experiences to others.

💡Alienation

Alienation refers to the state of being isolated or estranged from others, often due to differences in beliefs or values. The narrator's newfound spiritual beliefs lead to alienation from his family, as they do not understand or accept his experiences. This keyword highlights the potential social consequences of profound personal transformations.

💡Grace

Grace, in a spiritual context, is the unmerited divine assistance given to humans for their regeneration or sanctification. The narrator mentions that grace has passed along, indicating a belief in the power of divine intervention to bring about positive change in people's lives. This concept is part of the video's overarching message of hope and redemption.

Highlights

Started as an assistant professor at Northern Kentucky University in 1972.

Received a promotion to full professor and tenure at the age of 25.

Visited Denmark, Sweden, and Paris on a 3-week trip.

Experienced the most acute pain of his life on June 1st, 1985.

Diagnosed with a perforation of the duodenum, causing internal digestion.

Rushed to the hospital in Paris with life-threatening condition.

Spent 10 hours in hospital without receiving immediate medical attention.

Described the feeling of terror and the awareness of impending death.

Had an out-of-body experience with enhanced senses.

Encountered a group of people who led him away from his physical body.

Experienced a spiritual journey through a featureless void.

Was shown a review of his life and the impact of his actions.

Interacted with a spiritual presence who provided him with insights.

Learned about the importance of love and its potential to change the world.

Returned to his body with a newfound purpose and understanding of life.

Faced rejection and disbelief from family and friends after sharing his experience.

Made efforts to reconcile and improve relationships, including with his father.

Believes in the power of grace and its ability to transform lives for the better.

Transcripts

I started at Northern Kentucky

University in

1972 I was hired as an assistant

professor and I was a offered a

promotion to full professor at the age

of 25 and I was also given

tenure my um third

year seven students myself and my wife

Ed Amsterdam and then went up to Denmark

spent a few days there went to Sweden

for a day and last week it was a 3-week

trip and our last week was a week in uh

Paris it was an art tour it was um

pretty much all

[Music]

museums on that Saturday morning June

1st 1985 I had the most acute pain I'd

ever experienced in my life in the

center of my abdomen right

there

it was terrifying because it never it it

just came from nowhere and I never

experienced such acute pain I mean this

is like the kind of pain that blows the

top of your head

off a doctor came very quickly got me up

off the floor with a great deal of

difficulty because I couldn't move he

knew exactly what was wrong and told me

that I had a perforation of the datum

which means I had a hole go through my

small stomach what was happening was the

hydrochloric acid and the enzymes and

the bacteria and everything are now

migrating leaking into my abdominal

cavity to put it in crude terms I was

I'm digesting myself on the

inside without exaggeration what it felt

like was fire my wife riding alongside

him in the vacuum lands we traveled 70

80 M an hour through the streets of

Paris to the big city

hospital they confirmed BAS basically if

I didn't have the surgery in an hour I

would

die so they sent me to the surgical

hospital and because it was the weekend

there was no doctor available no surgeon

available at the hospital they sent me

to so I was put in the

room I begged I screamed I

yelled and my wife begged and yelled and

screamed D someone please come in here

sorry we need a doctor to prescribe

something be a doctor help some here

someone

[Music]

here there I was for 10

hours about once an hour the nurse would

come in and ask how I was doing and I

would tell her in French and English

that I was dying and

uh shrug their shoulders and walk

away I wasn't in fear I was in Terror

because um I was 38 years old very

successful in my career at the

University you know wife and two kids

nice house two cars the thing that kept

going through my mind is this can't be

happening this can't be happening this

can't be

happening people ask me how do you know

you were dying it's like the stupidest

question in the world I know when you're

dying You Know

It with every breath I felt like I had

one more breath to go

with nurse came into the room at 8:30

that night and said they were sorry but

they were unable to locate a doctor and

they would try to find one the next day

which was

Sunday well when she said that I was

like okay it's over it's done you know I

can't do this anymore you know I'm I'm

exhausted and I looked at her and it was

um horrible to see her crying like that

and uh I closed my eyes and stopped

trying to breathe then I went

unconscious I was an atheist and I knew

that when you die it's just over it's

like the big nothing you know void the

end I awoke from unconsciousness

standing there next to the bed feeling

better than I'd ever felt before in my

life

my vision was greatly increased instead

of seeing 160° I could see almost

360° my depth of field was total when I

looked at something close I everything

far was in Focus being an artist and

being a visual person that was the first

thing I was like wow I've never been

able to see like this then I realized

that I could hear smell taste touch

everything could feel all the little

nuances in the cold lolan

floor I could hear the buzzing of the

fluorescent lights in the ceiling really

loudly all of my senses were greatly

greatly

enhanced in the bed that I had been in

was this big slab of meat and when I

looked at the face it Pour an amazing

resemblance to

me and I could not understand how that

could resemble me but I was perfectly

well standing there perfectly alive

looking at this hunk of

meat the other thing that bothered me

was that my wife would not respond to

me well at first I started talking in a

nice voice and I started yelling at her

like you

know what the hell's going on here look

at me talk to me you know I'm all better

you know what's that thing in the bed

how did it get

there I was very upset very

distressed and then I heard people out

in the hallway outside the well lit room

in the darkish gray hazy

hallway there was a group of people

standing out inside the light of the

room in the hallway I said I'm sick I

need a

doctor um and they said we

know um we know all about you it's time

for you to come with us so I thought

that they were um Hospital Personnel to

take me to a

doctor when I left the room and went

into the

hall I can't explain how I KN I knew I

couldn't go back into the room the door

didn't close but I knew that it was

impossible we to go back into the light

of the room so I hesitated and the

people became very hurry up let's go

let's go we can't wait anymore you know

we've been here a long time waiting for

you hurry up so I I gave in and and went

with them and they immediately

surrounded me and moved me forward into

that

greess

as we moved along I could not perceive

walls

ceiling any feature at all and we walked

and walked and walked and after a while

it's like okay this hospital is not that

big you know I mean we've walked miles

now and it's like where's the stairs

where's the you know where's the up and

down where's the walls and there was

nothing we just walked and walked

so I was asking the people around me

like this isn't the hospital this isn't

right you know the where are we stuff

like that and their response was shut up

be quiet keep moving move move

move they say you're going to find out

you'll find

out you're going to get

there there's a lot of people around us

possibly hundreds I don't know they were

being very vulgar very threatening very

scary I'm in abject Darkness have

absolutely no idea which Way Forward

backward I mean all as I knew is I

wanted to get away from

him they said no you've got further to

go and they started to push and shove

me and I FL back and began by punching

shoving kicking

in and then they started um biting

scratching and tearing me apart

literally dis eming me gouging my eyes

and it was with accompanied with a great

deal of laughter and

joy I thought

about my whole life and everything

seemed like what was the point and I

realized that my relationship with my

mother and father were dis

F my relationship with my sisters wasn't

good my relationship with my wife was

very

troubled I was not proud or pleased with

my relationship with my two

children I sank into a pit of despair

and hopelessness that I can't begin to

describe my my mind offered up a memory

of myself as a little boy going to a

Sunday school singing Jesus loves me

when I was a little boy um and I was

afraid like having nightmares at night

or whatever I would pray to him and he

would Chas the Lions and Tigers the

bears

away and as a child it was like mostly

in the image of like a superhero Jesus

was like a superhero and so that's it

that was all I knew

so I called out to him in complete

desperation a tiny little star appeared

in the

sky and very rapidly it got brighter and

brighter and

brighter and he spoke to me for the

first time and his voice but it was

telepathic but it wasn't a thought of

mine it was his voice in my head then he

said I've got some people that I want

you to meet they've recorded your life

and they want to to show you your life

so they proceeded to show me my life in

chronological

[Music]

order what I saw to summarize it

was happy youth pretty much then going

to adolescence everything going

sour particularly with my relationship

with my father and because of my

father's cruelty to me

I was cruel

back my father was physically and

emotionally abusive every day to my

mother my sisters and to

me I mean it never

stopped the only way that I could deal

with it was to try and not feel

anything and all he wanted uh for me was

to be a little duplicate of him you know

just be subservient to him you know

being being disobedient um would had

immediate physical consequences of being

kicked or punched or

hit and I saw myself striving to become

um emotionless and

feelingless which was a way for me to

protect myself from being

hurt as I became more

manipulative and successful the more the

angels and Jesus expressed their

disappointment and sadness with me and

my

life and it really hurt to disappoint

them cuz I here I have these Newfound

friends my big

rescuer you know best friend I ever

had and I'm and with at my life and I'm

a big huge

disappointment

and he should put me back I don't belong

[Music]

here you know you've made a mistake I

don't belong here and he said we don't

make mistakes you do belong

here finally when we got through

it Jesus said do you have any questions

I said I got a million questions he said

what do you want to know so I asked him

everything that I could think of to know

and if we went through that it would

take us several

years and he gave me a whole new

understanding of

everything I said great now that I

understand I want to go to heaven he

said

mm I'm not ready for heaven

yet finally I said what do you want me

to do um I want you to love the person

that you're with I said okay yeah but

then what do you want me to do after I

do that and he said no that's what I

want you to do and I said you what

Good's that going to do and he said it's

going to change the

world I said that's going to change the

world I don't think so no I said you

don't understand the world is like a

terrible cruel place even if I love

someone they're just going to go get

beat up somewhere else and they're not

going to and he said no if you love

someone they'll take that love out into

the world and maybe they'll love

somebody and it'll grow and grow and

grow I said it's not going to work and

he said it's God's plan it's going to

work well when he pulls out the God's

plan work you know I mean it's like what

can you

say and so finally I

conceded and I said okay I'll go back

and with that bang I'm in the body I'm

in the

bed the nurse who'd been in the room

comes in and says a doctor has arrived

at the hospital and we're going to

prepare you for

surgery when I awoke I knew that what

had happened to me was the most

important thing in my

life because now my life had real

meaning and

purpose I was very very weak I'd been

surgery for

hours I'd spent most of the morning

trying to think of how I was going to

tell my wife what had

happened I said to her it's all

love she said I love you and I said I

know you love me but it's all

love she said what are you talking

about and I said it's an ocean of

love and you have to just go in into

that ocean of love and be a part of

it and she

said

try to get some

rest here I am I'm I'm give I'm giving

her the

abbreviated wisdom of

God and she's basically telling me you

know you're making no sense it's crazy

[Music]

talk from that day forward I tried to

tell people about God he

hell what i' experienced and

nobody nobody took me seriously at all I

was a zealot I was a complete Zealot and

uh it was

um not good for my relationship with

because the more that they um did not

respect what I was trying to tell them

and the more they told me I was nuts and

crazy and stuff like that the more um it

totally alienated them from the Bible

from God from me I mean it was

completely

counterproductive it was a

disaster my wife left

me she poisoned the kids against

me they've rejected me they don't want

anything to do with me think I'm a crazy

man

it's all going to work

out I know that God works stuff out it

just doesn't happen on our time frame I

mean I'd like it now and it's not

happening right now but it could happen

tomorrow it might

take a long time I don't

[Music]

know when I came back one of the things

I knew I wanted to make friends with my

dad Not only was I able to forgive my

father because I understood that he was

just messed up because of his messed up

childhood all my father really wanted to

do was to be loved but he didn't know

how to do that in appropriate ways so he

tried to be loved in inappropriate ways

he thought obedience and

discipline and my mother and my sisters

were really angry with me because they

all told me several times you and Dad

hated each other and now you're his best

friend

why say cuz he's my

dad Grace has passed along and passed

along and passed along and it's powerful

it's powerful because people change

their lives for the good they find Hope

peace love joy contentment you

know and they also find God and eternal

life