Niamh Shackleton
A man who briefly 'died' following a car crash has recalled what he experienced before coming round again.
In 1997, Jeffrey Olsen was driving his wife and their sons, aged 14 months and seven at the time, when he lost control of the car and it ended up rolling over.
He said he'd blacked out while the vehicle was rolling, but by the time it stopped he was 'completely conscious'. The first thing Jeffrey became aware of was his seven-year-old son crying in pain, but notably his wife and youngest son were silent.
It's then that Jeffrey realized that they had tragically died. Meanwhile, he was also fighting for his life having sustained life-changing injuries in the crash.
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Speaking on a recent video shared to NDE Journey's YouTube channel, Jeffrey recalled the fateful day.
"I am losing consciousness," he remembered of the immediate aftermath of the crash. "I have a hysterical seven-year-old I can’t get to. I don’t know how badly hurt he is, based on his crying, I believe he is okay - he is hurt but he is going to be okay."
Jeffrey continued: "But my wife and youngest son were not okay and I was aware of that. I knew at the scene of the accident they had passed and that was the setting. I don’t share to be morbid, but that was the setting."
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Jeffrey himself recalls blacking out at one point, which is when he 'felt light come'.
"I felt light come and surround me," he shared. "It was like tangible light. It felt comforting, like it was holding me in this horrible, terrible situation, and it felt like I was rising above the accident scene."
"I was actually a little bit confused," Jeffrey went on. "Like, what's going on? Now I can breathe? There was no pain. I was very much alive. I suppose my spirit or soul left my body, but I was very much alive."
Jeffrey's late wife then appeared in the light with him where she was also 'very alive' and didn't show any signs of injuries that took her life.
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She then told him that he couldn't stay with her and that he 'had to go back'.
"We had this conversation as if I stayed with her, our seven-year-old son, our surviving son, would be orphaned," Jeffrey said of the discussion he had with his late wife, adding: "For whatever reason she couldn't come back, but I could."
Jeffrey ultimately 'chose' to come back and shortly after this he woke up to find himself in the hospital.
While he miraculously survived the devastating ordeal, Jeffrey was hospitalized for six months and survived 18 surgeries. One of his surgeries resulted in his left leg being amputated.
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If you have experienced a bereavement and would like to speak with someone in confidence, contact GrieveWell on (734) 975-0238, or email [email protected].