Hello my name is Valerie... I am from the Chicago-land area. I had a near death exp when I was 16 yrs old and a sophmore in high school. I was at school, when it actually took place.
I was sitting in study hall and the seats went up like bleachers (you know where the teacher would have been down below in front of all the students), and I had been feeling really tired that day. I had a lot of traumatic things that had been taking place at that time, in my life. And, I cried out for God's help on a regular basis, as I really did not want to live. Well, I was sitting there; I had a book in my hand, and a pencil (in case I wanted to write something down). I kept falling out of the chair (I thought I was just falling asleep naturally), but this young man who was sitting next to me kept asking me if I was OK. He said, "You keep falling back in your chair and your body keeps going limp. You dropped your pencil...that's how I noticed." I said, "Yeah, I think I'm OK -- just really tired." It did seem strange to me as well, how I kept falling out of my chair so quickly, when I felt wide awake one second earlier. I kept doing that quite a few times, and started jolting awake in my body. People we're looking at me like, "What the heck is going on. Is she OK?" But then, I would come back to what they we're doing...assuming I was fine.
Next thing I knew, I felt really super awake and the room seemed to be "off." The teacher was getting farther and farther away from me. I questioned how this was possible, as I was sitting in the same exact spot. I eventually started seeing her go down even farther...and farther. I looked down and in shock: I saw my body laying there in the chair limp, and my pencil had fallen to the floor, again (just how the young man had described). I was in shock; it felt really different to see my body from a "looking on" perspective. I eventually saw this blackness...like a doorway, if you will, to somewhere else from behind me. But, I couldn't see where it led to or beyond it...
I then heard an older male's voice within my mind. It was like he was speaking to me within my mind, and I was in my mind, as well and could hear; and he could hear me perfectly fine. He told me that I had a choice: I could leave my body and go beyond the blackness to a different place that wouldn't be a bad place; or I could stay in this life and do more work. He told me that either way, it was my decision -- that there was no wrong or right answer. But if I left, I couldn't go back into that body ever again. This life would be over. I think he was trying to tell me that they saw my suffering...had heard my cries and were there to help me, if I wanted. But I had the feeling this was a rare, "one time in a long time offer" - you know? I did not feel scared; and I knew either way, it was up to me.