About nde week
Near-Death Experience Week is a new IANDS initiative created to bring greater awareness, understanding, and open conversation to one of humanity’s most profound experiences: what happens when a person comes close to death and returns with memories, insights, or a transformed sense of life’s meaning.
About the event
What can we learn from near-death experiences when we bring together academic research and firsthand personal testimony?
Our main NDE Week special event explores NDEs from two complementary perspectives: the careful study of extraordinary human experiences and the lived reality of someone whose NDE transformed her life.
The event will feature Anita Moorjani, near-death experiencer and New York Times bestselling author of Dying to Be Me. In 2006, after a four-year battle with cancer, Anita fell into a coma and had a profound NDE that changed her understanding of life, healing, fear, love, and the nature of the self.
She will be joined by Marieta Pehlivanova, Ph.D., Research Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences at the University of Virginia School of Medicine’s Division of Perceptual Studies. Marieta’s main research focus is on near-death experiences, a topic on which she has worked closely with Dr. Bruce Greyson. Marieta is a long-time admirer of IANDS and has drawn inspiration from Anita Moorjani’s story and the profound life lessons it brings.
The discussion will be facilitated by Dani Foffa, host of IANDS’ Afterlife Revealed podcast.
Together, this conversation will offer attendees a meaningful look at what near-death experiences may reveal through both research and personal transformation. Whether you are an experiencer, researcher, healthcare professional, spiritual seeker, or someone simply curious about the afterlife, this event invites you into a grounded and illuminating exploration of one of life’s deepest questions.
About anita moorjani
Anita Moorjani is a near-death experiencer, internationally known speaker, and New York Times bestselling author of Dying to Be Me. In 2006, after a four-year battle with cancer, Anita fell into a coma and was given hours to 
live. During that time, she experienced a profound NDE that transformed her understanding of love, healing, fear, and the purpose of life. After regaining consciousness, her condition improved rapidly, and she went on to share her story with audiences around the world. Her work invites people to release fear, embrace self-love, and live with greater awareness of their true nature.
About Marieta Pehlivanova
near-death experiences, children who report past-life memories, and other end-of-life experiences. She is interested in various aspects of these phenomena, including their underlying causes and mechanisms, their phenomenology, their impacts, as well as how to change social and professional cultures toward recognizing both their occurrence and their effects. Dr. Pehlivanova holds a Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology with a Cognitive Neuroscience focus from the University of Pennsylvania, as well as a B.S. in Statistics from American University. Her work has been featured in media outlets such as The New York Times, Washingtonian Magazine, and The Washington Post.
This event will be recorded and available to view on our Videos page 3-5 business days after the live event!