Artist and author Nicole Muse joins host, Eric Bennett, to share the near death experience (NDE) she had during an emergency procedure following the loss of a pregnancy in 2015.

Nicole recounts leaving her body as a surge of peace carried her into a luminous, “watery” blue-white light and then into a vast white hall where two enormous, blue beings sat upon marble thrones. With feather-like hair, indigo eyes, humanoid torsos, and mer-like tails, they conveyed—wordlessly yet unmistakably—“welcome back,” triggering a profound sense of home and dissolving grief, guilt, and fear.

She describes the jarring sensation of being “sucked” back into her body, followed by several minutes of speaking an unfamiliar, tonal language her physician husband witnessed.

The near death experience reoriented Nicole’s life toward nature, creativity, and what she calls heightened intuition. Years later, through fasting, meditation in the Greek sea, and research, she linked her vision to ancient traditions of oceanic guardians and an “eternal ocean of memory,” themes now central to her paintings and books.

We explore how her NDE reframed earthly life as dense but purposeful—a brief window to choose love over fear, remember who we are, and live from the heart—plus the difficulties of returning, the healing power of water, and the courage it takes to create what we see on the other side.

VIDEO VERSION: https://youtu.be/QYoiJvEmvc8

Chapters

• 00:00 Welcome; guest intro from Greece; Nicole’s artwork & nature as muse
• 02:55 The NDE context: pregnancy loss, anesthesia, vitals spike
• 04:45 Entering the blue-white “watery” light; profound peace and remembering
• 06:45 The vast white room; marble thrones; two immense blue beings
• 09:40 “Welcome back” and the ancient tribe feeling
• 11:10 Life-reel imagery; sudden return to body (“sucked back”)
• 12:40 Speaking an ancient/tonal language post-op; husband witnesses
• 15:10 Earth life as dense/illusory vs. the clarity “there”
• 17:20 Research & fasting; linking vision to ocean-guardians traditions
• 20:30 The Abzu as an “ocean of memory”; two births concept
• 23:10 Painting the beings; creative process & fear of imperfection
• 25:20 What the love felt like; nature as a doorway (oceans, water)
• 28:10 After-effects & books (Terra Infinita, Oceans of Memories)
• 30:30 Choosing sovereignty: living from heart vs. fear
• 33:10 Final reflections and how to contact Nicole; show close

Nicole: https://www.nicolemeeuws.com/

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Author and screenwriter Sai Marie Johnson flatlined during a high-risk C-section complicated by placenta percreta.

While doctors fought to stop catastrophic hemorrhaging, Sai experienced a profound “void, tunnel and light." During her NDE (Near Death Experience) she met and saw her deceased grandmother and great-grandmother. They told her that she had to go back.

Above all else, she felt "Every good emotion we can feel on earth, times 5,000!" Goodness and Pure Love.

Following her NDE, she woke to a premature son in the NICU, a partial hysterectomy, and 25 transfusions—but also a new clarity that reshaped her confidence, career, and view of death.

In this conversation, she unpacks the medical rollercoaster, the otherworldly peace she felt, how she parents two sons with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and the hard-won faith that guides her now.

VIDEO VERSION: https://youtu.be/nGlyLx3LDVw

Chapters (Timestamps)

• 00:00 — Cold Open: “They pronounced me dead…”
• 00:40 — Welcome & Guest Intro: Meet author/screenwriter Cy Marie Johnson
• 01:19 — About Cy: Mother of four; two sons with Duchenne
• 03:23 — High-Risk Pregnancy: Early warnings and specialist care
• 04:40 — From Previa to Percreta: What went medically wrong
• 06:08 — Hospital Prep: Steroids, IVs, arterial balloons, central line
• 10:41 — Countdown to Two: Going under anesthesia
• 11:01 — The Experience: Darkness, distant ember, irresistible light
• 12:04 — The Guardians: Grandmother & great-grandmother say “not yet”
• 13:52 — Void or Tunnel? How it felt, and what drew her forward
• 15:11 — Who They Were: Portraits of Elizabeth and Bernice
• 19:31 — Back in the Body: “Where’s my baby?” — NICU update
• 22:15 — Recovery Begins: Hysterectomy, pain, and walking laps
• 24:51 — What Happened on the Table: Hemorrhage and 25 transfusions
• 26:13 — Life After NDE: Confidence, creativity, a second chance
• 28:49 — Writing Career: From romance to nonfiction craft
• 29:57 — Duchenne Awareness: Strength for her sons
• 30:44 — On Death: Why she isn’t afraid
• 32:14 — Closing & Call to Action

RoundTripDeath.com

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Dead 15 Minutes! At nine years old, Mario was declared dead at home after violent spasms and unbearable chest pain. His first NDE followed.

He describes separating from his body and entering a realm of tunnels and roads made of fluorescent, multicolored light, where he felt only absolute love, safety, and belonging.

Family had begun preparing for his funeral, but he revived within minutes, telling his father he’d wanted to stay “there.”

The years that followed were marked by poverty, bullying, and vivid encounters he interpreted as demonic—experiences that deepened his prayer life and sense of spiritual warfare.

Decades later, in 2016, after months of harassment and a poisoning that put him in the hospital, he says he died again. A nurse exclaimed she saw his “aura” leaving as monitors detached. During this second NDE, Mario reports first arriving in a heaven-like space and searching desperately for his late father; when he couldn’t find him, the scene shifted to a dark, sulfurous realm with hostile entities. This is know as a "distressing NDE" (near death experience).

How did this NDE end? A “gigantic hand,” which he believes was Jesus, touched his forehead and returned him to his body.

Though some relatives and others doubt his story, Mario insists the lesson is clear: become a kinder person, pray often, hold fame and achievements lightly, and know—at least to him—that heaven is real.

Video Version: https://youtu.be/EBQVdBVS3Xs

RoundTripDeath.com

Donate to this podcast: https://www.roundtripdeath.com/support/