When Medicine Ends, Faith Begins: An Astonishing Survival Story

It happened about seven years ago.

Mary Neal, an orthopedic surgeon, was participating in an extreme sports competition, kayaking through rapid waters, when she suddenly lost her balance, fell into the river, and began to drown.

Her remarkable story made waves in American media, in part due to the near-death experience she experienced underwater. "I got a small glimpse of death, and it was the greatest gift of my life," Dr. Neal said in an interview with FOX NEWS.

Dr. Neal detailed the emotional experience in her book titled "To Heaven and Back".

"The kayak flipped over me and I couldn't pull myself up and out of there," the doctor recalls. "After many attempts, I realized that I couldn't get out by myself, and because I was very far from the shore, I didn't think anyone could pull me out. At this point, I gave up on my life".

I didn't mind dying, but I didn't want to die in a panic

In those terrifying moments, Dr. Mary found solace in Hashem, communicating with Him through her thoughts under the water.

And then, everything suddenly changed. "I felt calm and peaceful, no longer afraid of death. It felt wonderful. I felt as though someone was physically holding me, giving me a sense of security I had never felt before. It was the assurance that whatever happened, everything would be fine. My husband and four children would be fine, regardless of whether I lived or died. That's how I felt".

Underwater, without air, in a state of conscious separation from the world, Dr. Neal understood that she was dying, yet at the same time, there was a process of clinging to life. "Part of me accepted that I was going to die, but another part was afraid to let go and drown. Although I am a person who loves water, I have always been afraid of losing my life to drowning. I didn't mind dying, but I didn't want to die in a panic because that wasn't how I lived my life. I'm not a person who panics and gets distressed... Even though I felt I had no air and I was dying, I asked not to die in panic. Just not that".

At that moment, Dr. Neal felt a kind of force pushing her out of the water. "In a blurred consciousness, I saw a kind of people. They weren't exactly people, more like souls, but they gathered around me with looks of love and joy. The amazing thing was that these were people I recognized from various periods, and they knew me. We were very happy to see each other. I know it sounds strange, but I felt they were literally taking me by their hands and helping me get out of the hole I was stuck in. I followed them joyfully, no longer afraid of anything, but when I looked back - I saw my body in the water".

"When Medicine Ends, Faith Begins"

As she noticed her body, her consciousness was filled with gratitude. "I thanked my body for serving me well, and I suddenly understood that I had died".

"As a doctor, do you have a scientific-medical explanation for all this?", Dr. Neal was asked by the interviewer.

The answer was as clear to her as day: "When medicine ends, Hashem begins, that's the real answer. Because it wasn't a dream or an illusion. It wasn't the result of a dying brain, it was more real than anything else we experience here on Earth".

When asked about her perspective on death today, she replied that she is no longer afraid to die. "I don't want to rush the process, but I look forward to returning to the place I came from - when the time is right. I have no fear of what awaits me there," she concluded.

At this point, Dr. Neal was asked to explain why a whole chapter in her book is dedicated to addressing the question, 'Why do bad things happen to good people?'. "I can only tell you that there's no such thing as a 'bad thing'," the doctor says confidently. "As one short example, you call what happened to me a 'horrific accident', but I look at it from a huge place of gratitude and joy. Maybe we don't understand how things that we call 'bad' turn into beautiful things, but I think when you truly believe that beauty exists - we can always look back on things we've been through and find beauty in them".

Translated from English: Shira Cohen