Memórias de uma vida passada? / Memories of a previous life?

Contexto: Há crianças que alegam ter memórias de uma vida passada. Se essas supostas memórias puderem ser verificadas, elas poderão ser bastante relevantes para a questão da relação mente-cérebro. Elas poderão indicar que a memória não está apenas armazenada no cérebro e que a mente pode existir sem um cérebro e ainda assim reter algumas de suas memórias. Essas possibilidades são contrárias ao que atualmente se sabe sobre memória e sua dependência do funcionamento cerebral. Objetivos: Testar se um pesquisador independente obteria achados comparáveis aos de Stevenson (Universidade da Virgínia) que publicou um grande números desses casos. Métodos: Entrevistar as crianças que faziam afirmações consistentes sobre uma vida passada e as pessoas que haviam testemunhado as crianças fazerem essas declarações. Três estudos psicológicos compararam crianças com e sem alegadas memórias de uma vida passada. Resultados : Em dois dos três casos apresentados, foi encontrada uma pessoa falecida cujas características eram compatíveis com as afirmações das crianças sobre uma vida anterior. Psicologicamente, essas crianças diferem das outras crianças, mostrando sinais de Transtorno de Estresse Pós-Traumático, provavelmente por causa das alegadas lembranças de como elas morreram em acidentes ou foram assassinadas. Conclusões: As características dos casos de “memória de vida passada” fazem com que estas sejam relevantes para a questão da relação mente-cérebro...

Background: Children are sometimes found who claim to have memories of a past life. If such alleged memories can be verified they may prove relevant for the question of the mind-brain relationship. They may indicate that memory is not only stored in the brain and that mind can exist without a brain and still retain some of its memories. These possibilities are contrary to what is presently known about memory and its dependence on brain functioning. Objectives: Were to test if an independent investigator comes up with comparable findings as Stevenson of University of Virginia who has published a great number of such cases. Methods: Consisted of interviewing children who make consistent statements about a previous life and persons who have witnessed them making such statements. Three psychological studies compared children with and without past-life memories. Results: In two of three presented cases a deceased person was found who fitted the child´s statements about the previous life. Psychologically these children differ from other children, showing signs of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, likely because by remembering how they died in accidents or were killed. Discussion: The features of “past-life memory” cases make them relevant for question of the mind-brain relationship...

Persistence of "past-life" memories in adults who, in their childhood, claimed memories of a past life.

This article tests the consistency and the continuation of alleged "past-life" memories from childhood into adulthood and the possible detrimental effects of such childhood memories on the development into adult life. Twenty-eight adults aged 28 to 56 years who had claimed to have memories of a past life when they were children were interviewed in Lebanon. Their memories had been recorded when they were children, at the mean age of 6 years. Of the 28 participants, 24 still reported some past-life memories, whereas 4 had forgotten everything. Twenty-one were sure that their memories were a continuation of their past-life memories in childhood, whereas three were unsure about it. For those who were sure of still having genuine past-life memories, the mean number of statements about the past life fell from 30, as children, to 4, as adults. Only half of the currently reported statements were reported when the participants were interviewed as children, raising the question of false and distorted memories. There were no indications that the past-life memories had a detrimental effect on the participants' development into adulthood. They were all leading normal active lives.

Terminal lucidity: a review and a case collection.

The unexpected return of mental clarity and memory shortly before death in patients suffering from severe psychiatric and neurologic disorders, which we have called "terminal lucidity", has been reported in the medical literature over the past 250 years, but has received little attention. We review a range of terminal lucidity cases in order to encourage investigation of the mechanisms involved and possible insights into both the neuroscience of memory and cognition at the end of life and treatment of terminal illness. These examples include case reports of patients suffering from brain abscesses, tumors, strokes, meningitis, dementia or Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia, and affective disorders. Several of these accounts suggest that during terminal lucidity, memory and cognitive abilities may function by neurologic processes different from those of the normal brain. We expect that significant contributions to better understanding the processes involved in memory and cognition processing might be gained through in-depth studies of terminal lucidity. Studying terminal lucidity might also facilitate the development of novel therapies. In addition, increased awareness of unusual end-of-life experiences could help physicians, caregivers, and bereaved family members be prepared for encountering such experiences, and help those individuals cope with them.

Effectiveness of distant healing for patients with chronic fatigue syndrome: a randomised controlled partially blinded trial (EUHEALS).

BACKGROUND: Distant healing, a form of spiritual healing, is widely used for many conditions but little is known about its effectiveness. METHODS: In order to evaluate distant healing in patients with a stable chronic condition, we randomised 409 patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) from 14 private practices for environmental medicine in Germany and Austria in a two by two factorial design to immediate versus deferred (waiting for 6 months) distant healing. Half the patients were blinded and half knew their treatment allocation. Patients were treated for 6 months and allocated to groups of 3 healers from a pool of 462 healers in 21 European countries with different healing traditions. Change in Mental Health Component Summary (MHCS) score (SF-36) was the primary outcome and Physical Health Component Summary score (PHCS) the secondary outcome. RESULTS: This trial population had very low quality of life and symptom scores at entry. There were no differences over 6 months in post-treatment MHCS scores between the treated and untreated groups. There was a non-significant outcome (p = 0.11) for healing with PHCS (1.11; 95% CI -0.255 to 2.473 at 6 months) and a significant effect (p = 0.027) for blinding; patients who were unblinded became worse during the trial (-1.544; 95% CI -2.913 to -0.176). We found no relevant interaction for blinding among treated patients in MHCS and PHCS. Expectation of treatment and duration of CFS added significantly to the model. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with CFS, distant healing appears to have no statistically significant effect on mental and physical health but the expectation of improvement did improve outcome.

Children who speak of past-life experiences: is there a psychological explanation?

Children who claim to remember fragments of a past life are found in some countries. Various explanations have been put forward as to why the alleged memories develop, ranging from reincarnation to 'therapeutic resource'. This study puts to the test the role of some psychological characteristics and the circumstances in which the children live, such as fantasy, suggestibility, social isolation, dissociation, and attention-seeking. Thirty children in Lebanon who had persistently spoken of past-life memories, and 30 comparison children, were administered relevant tests and questionnaires. The target group obtained higher scores for daydreaming, attention-seeking, and dissociation, but not for social isolation and suggestibility. The level of dissociation was much lower than in cases of multiple personality and not clinically relevant. There was some evidence of post-traumatic stress disorder-like symptoms. Eighty per cent of the children spoke of past-life memories of circumstances leading to a violent death (mostly accidents, also war-related deaths and murder). It is discussed if this imagery-when experienced repeatedly-may serve as a stressor.