Alive Again

On the day after Christmas, Dwayne Meadows was packing for a beach day in Thailand when a distant “white line” on the sea became a wall of water. Swept through his bungalow and into a churning maze of debris, he fought to breathe, said goodbye to his six-year-old son in his mind, and surfaced into chaos—cars, propane tanks, entire bungalows surging past. Grabbing the lower half of a mannequin for flotation, he navigated toward shore, then helped lead other survivors to higher ground and improvised first aid for the injured until medical professionals arrived. In the months that followed, Dwayne grappled with the scale of loss and turned toward service—returning to Thailand, aiding recovery efforts, and applying his marine-biology skills to disaster mapping and reef restoration. This is a story about presence under pressure, the power of small kindnesses, and honoring the lives lost by the life you live after. Content note: This episode includes descriptions of a catastrophic natural disaster (2004 Indian Ocean tsunami), near-drowning, serious injury, mass casualties, and trauma/PTSD. Listener discretion advised. Story Producer: Brent Dey If you have a transformative near-death experience to share, we’d love to hear your story! Please email us at [email protected] We’d love to hear your story! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Aileen Loy grew up inside a storm—descended from indentured laborers, raised in a rigid, often violent household, and taught to keep the family together at any cost. At 13, she watched a Halloween car crash fling her four-month-older nephew through a windshield; the year before, a beloved brother had died by suicide. For years she became the caretaker and the peacemaker—“a people pleaser” who never prioritized her own pain—until the reckoning came: an ICU stay after a suicidal spiral and the hard decision to break from the patterns that were breaking her. In this raw conversation, Aileen traces the inheritance of shame and self-loathing, the pressure to assimilate, and the moment she realized, “I am a severely damaged person,” then chose to heal—through truth-telling, boundaries, and art. It’s a story about refusing the “family curse,” and finding dignity beyond survival. Content note: This episode includes discussion of family violence, a fatal accident involving a child, suicide and suicidal ideation, depression, and intergenerational trauma. Listener discretion advised. If you or someone you love is struggling, you’re not alone. In the U.S., dial or text 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Story Producer: Nicholas Tecosky If you have a transformative near-death experience to share, we’d love to hear your story! Please email us at [email protected] We’d love to hear your story! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“We've taken huge steps backwards in the last few years with warfare and with violence and with disregarding the rights of human beings. It's time to reverse that and start acknowledging this much deeper lesson that's coming to the fore about the nature of our existence, how we're really all in this together, and to hurt another is to hurt oneself.” - Dr. Eben Alexander A Harvard-trained neurosurgeon once grounded in strict materialism, Dr. Eben Alexander was convinced the brain produced consciousness—until a week-long coma and near-death experience shattered that certainty. In this conversation, we explore his journey from “the mind is nothing but brain” to a wider view in which consciousness is fundamental, separation is an ego-made illusion, and love is the organizing force of reality. Drawing from Dan Bush’s introduction, we frame the episode as an invitation: to question assumptions, to consider the mounting evidence from NDEs and consciousness science, and to ask what it means to awaken, heal, and come fully alive again. Along the way, Dr. Alexander recounts the medical facts of his illness, the “more-real-than-real” landscapes he encountered, and why practices like meditation and centering prayer can help us access the same unifying field—no brush with death required. We'll talk about the mind's role in shaping reality, the illusion of separation, how profound experiences—whether through trauma, loss, or near-death—can transform us, and also about the powerful transformation that can happen when we step beyond fear and into a larger view of existence. Our show is all about where human experience brushes up against mystery, and how those intersections transform us– so it’s a true privilege to have Dr. Alexander with us today to share his journey and insights. More About Dr. Eben Alexander: Dr. Eben Alexander is a renowned academic neurosurgeon who spent over 25 years teaching and practicing at some of the most prestigious medical institutions in the world, including Harvard Medical School. For most of his career, he held a conventional, materialist view of the mind and brain—until his own near-death experience and remarkable recovery challenged everything he once believed about the nature of reality. His journey from the world of materialist science to a deeper understanding of consciousness has become a beacon for anyone seeking to understand what it truly means to awaken, to heal, and to come fully alive again. His bestselling book, Proof of Heaven: A Neurosurgeon’s Journey into the Afterlife, became a global phenomenon, offering millions of readers a deeply personal and scientifically informed glimpse into the possibilities beyond death. He has since authored several more works, including The Map of Heaven and Living in a Mindful Universe, bridging neuroscience, spirituality, and philosophy in a way few others can. To learn about Dr. Alexander and his work: https://ebenalexander.com/ For more about the Bigelow Institute for Consciousness Studies and to read the winning essays: https://www.bigelowinstitute.org/index.php/bics-afterlife-proof/bics-essay-contest-winners-2/ If you have a transformative near-death experience to share, we’d love to hear your story! Please email us at [email protected] We’d love to hear your story! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Content note: This episode includes strong language, discussion of opioid/heroin and crack use, overdose, stroke, withdrawal, arrest/incarceration, and suicidal hopelessness. Listener discretion advised. At 27, Scott Jenkins woke up thrashing in a bathtub—his left arm dead, his vision blown out—after days of speedballs and Agatha Christie marathons. Doctors later confirmed he’d had a stroke, but even that didn’t stop the obsession: “I want to get high, I want to get high… It’s all you can think about.” What began with pain pills after routine procedures spiraled into years of heroin and crack, arrests, and a jail-cell detox that finally forced a choice: surrender or disappear. In this raw, unvarnished account, Scott traces the path from the early opioid boom to the economics of switching to heroin, the surreal comedy of being “stuffed to the brim with sausage biscuits” during an arrest, and the moment he decided to let other people help. He rebuilds—six months in rehab, twelve-step work, service, and, eventually, a thriving plumbing company staffed by people in recovery. It’s a story about obsession, consequence, and the quiet miracle of a craving that never came back. If you or someone you love is struggling, you’re not alone. In the U.S., dial or text 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Story Producer: Nicholas Tecosky If you have a transformative near-death experience to share, we’d love to hear your story! Please email us at [email protected] We’d love to hear your story! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At 17, Nicholas Tecosky, one of our Alive Again story producers, slipped on a rock face above Gem Lake and nearly fell thirty feet to his death—then spent hours lost on the wrong side of the mountain. The brush with mortality was followed by years of anxiety, alcohol, and a brutal run at creative success that left him sleepless, gray, and suicidal. Years later, a harrowing night on psychedelics cracked something open; the morning after, he chose help—therapy, medication, sobriety—and slowly rebuilt a life anchored in love, fatherhood, and a gentler definition of strength. This is a story about escaping the gravity of an abusive past, redefining worth, and discovering that being a good person matters more than being a successful one. This episode includes discussion of suicidal ideation, substance use (alcohol and psychedelics), childhood trauma, and a near-fatal accident. Listener discretion advised. If you’re struggling, you’re not alone. In the U.S., dial or text 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. For resources outside the U.S., please check local crisis services. Story Producer: Nicholas Tecosky If you have a transformative near-death experience to share, we’d love to hear your story! Please email us at [email protected] We’d love to hear your story! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.