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Application of Impossible Things: A Near Death Experience in Iraq
This is an amazing true story of a female civilian employee of the Army southern Iraq. She was riding in a truck with other men when a roadside bomb destroyed the vehicle. She and the other three men in the vehicle were severely injured. She vividly recounts her Near Death Experience when she went out of the body. She retained the conscious memory of what happened and during the time in the hospital, more details returned. This is the amazing story of a survival in wartime conditions. This has happened to many others in Iraq, but how many remember the spirit side of the experience?
Sudman shares her story here for the first time to demonstrate that the paranormal is normal and to assist others who have had similar experiences.
Sudman shares her story here for the first time to demonstrate that the paranormal is normal and to assist others who have had similar experiences.
- GenresSpiritualityNonfiction
128 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
12 people are currently reading
226 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
January 12, 2017
Wow, this book is different than any other NDE book I've ever read. The way Sudman explains what happened during her out of body experience is compelling. It's almost hard to read the way she explains it, almost like levels. I may re-read this again just because I know there were parts I didn't truly understand...
June 14, 2016
I have read hundreds of books on this topic over the last 25 years (I mean literally - send me a note if you want recommendations). I tend to gravitate to the ones with compelling physical scientific evidence to back them up.
One thread that tends to run through most books about NDEs is the difficulty that even the most well-spoken writers have in communicating such a profound experience.
Natalie Sudman is one of the more gifted writers addressing this subject in a long time. Don't be misled by the skinniness of the book (119 pages). It took me several weeks of careful reading (including re-reading sentences, paragraphs and whole chapters three and four times to fully understand what she was describing). This book will take 110% of your attention to fully absorb and appreciate it.
But holy cow, what a message. I implore you to keep an open mind, and not to view this as necessarily having atheistic, polytheistic, paranormal or even occult overtones. Carefully considered, this experience (along with most serious NDE - or even reincarnation - stories) can apply to virtually any man made religion on earth. Of which there are many!
Sudman is a woman with an amazing, beautiful (and if you're of a certain Judeo-Christian background, shocking and troubling) story to tell. I suspect many other NDE experiencers will relate to her gift for writing, bursting out with "That's what I was trying to say!" It makes me wonder whether NDE experiencers who wrote books about their story would have written something similar to this if they only had the talent Sudman displays?
One thread that tends to run through most books about NDEs is the difficulty that even the most well-spoken writers have in communicating such a profound experience.
Natalie Sudman is one of the more gifted writers addressing this subject in a long time. Don't be misled by the skinniness of the book (119 pages). It took me several weeks of careful reading (including re-reading sentences, paragraphs and whole chapters three and four times to fully understand what she was describing). This book will take 110% of your attention to fully absorb and appreciate it.
But holy cow, what a message. I implore you to keep an open mind, and not to view this as necessarily having atheistic, polytheistic, paranormal or even occult overtones. Carefully considered, this experience (along with most serious NDE - or even reincarnation - stories) can apply to virtually any man made religion on earth. Of which there are many!
Sudman is a woman with an amazing, beautiful (and if you're of a certain Judeo-Christian background, shocking and troubling) story to tell. I suspect many other NDE experiencers will relate to her gift for writing, bursting out with "That's what I was trying to say!" It makes me wonder whether NDE experiencers who wrote books about their story would have written something similar to this if they only had the talent Sudman displays?
May 18, 2013
Some readers have said that all Near Death memoirs are pretty much alike. The writer has a near death experience, the writer writes about how they grew up and how their NDE blew their lives apart. And how they put their lives back together again, post NDE.
Natalie Sudman approaches her wartime NDE from a whole new perspective. She writes nothing about her family or her early life, and very little about her life since her NDE. Instead, in the first chapter she gives us a brief report about the NDE itself. She tells us, "All I heard was a 'pop' -- the sound of a champagne cork from one hundred meters --the Microsoft sound of opening a new window--a finger snap from across the office."
In the second chapter she takes two paragraphs from her original military-like report, and she writes about each detail of being in that precise instant. She analyzes and expands on each event recorded in her original report, which gives the entire NDE itself an immediacy that I have never found in any other memoir in the NDE genre. Each moment, even the tiniest event, is given a clear and concise analysis.
Sudman analyzes the contrast between her memories that carry the weight of reality and those that are more ephemeral. "Those unchangeable portions carry a deep familiarity, like a mark of authenticity... It's akin to the difference I feel when looking at a photograph of Michaelangelo's David versus seeing it in person..."
Only at the end of the book do we get the blood, the shock, the injuries, the waiting for help, and finally being heloed to the nearest center for medical treatment.
Sudman's story has the grim drama of wartime catastrophe and the inspiration of touching heaven, along with a riveting expansion on the moment-to-moment significance of her NDE. Her writing grabbed me and held me all through the reading of this book.
Natalie Sudman approaches her wartime NDE from a whole new perspective. She writes nothing about her family or her early life, and very little about her life since her NDE. Instead, in the first chapter she gives us a brief report about the NDE itself. She tells us, "All I heard was a 'pop' -- the sound of a champagne cork from one hundred meters --the Microsoft sound of opening a new window--a finger snap from across the office."
In the second chapter she takes two paragraphs from her original military-like report, and she writes about each detail of being in that precise instant. She analyzes and expands on each event recorded in her original report, which gives the entire NDE itself an immediacy that I have never found in any other memoir in the NDE genre. Each moment, even the tiniest event, is given a clear and concise analysis.
Sudman analyzes the contrast between her memories that carry the weight of reality and those that are more ephemeral. "Those unchangeable portions carry a deep familiarity, like a mark of authenticity... It's akin to the difference I feel when looking at a photograph of Michaelangelo's David versus seeing it in person..."
Only at the end of the book do we get the blood, the shock, the injuries, the waiting for help, and finally being heloed to the nearest center for medical treatment.
Sudman's story has the grim drama of wartime catastrophe and the inspiration of touching heaven, along with a riveting expansion on the moment-to-moment significance of her NDE. Her writing grabbed me and held me all through the reading of this book.
January 25, 2012
"Come one, come all! Be amazed and shocked as you peek behind the curtain into the realm of the unexplained!!!" From sideshow barkers to check out aisle tabloids the pitch so often outshines the experience that it's hard not to become cynical. Not so with Natalie Sudman. Her first hand account of being Out of Body during her dance with death explodes off the page. In the blink of an eye she travels dimensions that shred time and space. Yet she writes with such uncommon wit, sophisticated insight, and stunning attention to detail that it will turn your view of reality inside out. This truly is a front row seat in the theater of "impossible things." Do NOT miss it!
-- Paul Rademacher
Author of A Spiritual Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe: Travel Tips for the Spiritually Perplexed.
-- Paul Rademacher
Author of A Spiritual Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe: Travel Tips for the Spiritually Perplexed.
December 12, 2013
After hearing Natalie tell her story in several online interviews, I had to hear more and so I bought her book. This little book is actually packed with profound insight into other realms that we just aren't aware of. Each of the NDE books that I have read tell more and more of the small pieces to the enormous puzzle. I find them fascinating, and also mostly difficult to imagine, but thoroughly exciting and wonderful~ I love the messages and ideas that are brought forth. This book is something to read slowly and savor, as she takes us on a journey of impossible things! I happen to love the way she thinks! Watch her on afterlifetv.com on YouTube. This will give you an idea as to whether or not you are ready for this book. It's quirky and humorous and intelligent. Love it!
October 26, 2017
The first time I read this, I found it very difficult to digest because of Sudman's advanced vocabulary and way of explaining things. I'm no slouch with words and am an avid reader, but found it hard to follow. The second time I read it, I did get more out of it, but that was when I realized the author had sustained a frontal lobe head injury from the incident described in the book. The nurse in me thought, "well, hey, wait a minute." It raised doubts as to veracity. In the end, as with any of these books, I think the reader should take what is meaningful to them and leave the rest. I'm glad I read the book (twice) as it did confirm many of my own beliefs and was a comfort to me.
February 10, 2013
I had to read this book slowly and carefully, because Natalie is translating knowledge beyond words into language, so it took me a while to wrap my head around it. But I found that the images she evoked resonated clearly for me, and give me a different perspective on my life. I'm looking forward to whatever books Natalie might write in the future!
September 7, 2014
Just finished this thin but full of profound wisdom. I have read books on NDE but this one hepled me deepen my understanding significantly. Thank you, Natalie for writing book. Her interview on afterlifetv on youtube is wonderful, too.
December 4, 2017
In one of the most technical and descriptive accounts of a near death experience, Application of Impossible Things: A Near Death Experience In Iraq vividly details what happened when Sudman left her body and entered the world of spirit.
Here is an excerpt from my conversation with Natalie:
BJB: It was within that short period, a matter of seconds, between the explosion and when you became conscious again that your soul left your body?
NS: Yes, but even though it was only seconds it felt like it was very long. The aspect of time was very different. As I describe in the book, a lot of things happened that could not have fit into a few seconds.
BJB: I find it interesting that we’re constantly told to have faith, but when spiritual or mystical experiences occur they are often met with doubt.
NS: It’s very much what we’re taught and what we’re told. If science doesn’t say something is true people say, “Oh, it can’t be.” Science describe things and can prove something, but it can’t disprove something. In the end are you going to trust your own experience, or will you trust what the culture says you can trust?
https://therabbitisin.com/the-applica...
Here is an excerpt from my conversation with Natalie:
BJB: It was within that short period, a matter of seconds, between the explosion and when you became conscious again that your soul left your body?
NS: Yes, but even though it was only seconds it felt like it was very long. The aspect of time was very different. As I describe in the book, a lot of things happened that could not have fit into a few seconds.
BJB: I find it interesting that we’re constantly told to have faith, but when spiritual or mystical experiences occur they are often met with doubt.
NS: It’s very much what we’re taught and what we’re told. If science doesn’t say something is true people say, “Oh, it can’t be.” Science describe things and can prove something, but it can’t disprove something. In the end are you going to trust your own experience, or will you trust what the culture says you can trust?
https://therabbitisin.com/the-applica...
June 14, 2023
I basically breezed through this book as Natalie Sudman tells the most fascinating Near Death Experience I ever came across. What Natalie describes is very much different from the usual "tunnel of light, meeting with family, friends, angels, lightbeings, then being send back" type of experience. NDEs can be highly individual. To me Natalie's story also examplifies that we truly reached new dimensions of possibility and understandings. Supernatural experiences manifest in our lifes within the range of our very personal perception. We experience exactly what we need to evolve. If we believe we deserve to go to hell when we die this experience is what an NDE will provide us with. If we can handle much more, if we can handle the truth or at least a snippet of it, that's what we'll experience.
I also loved the deeply moving insight that we truly choose what we encounter in life. This book brought back to me a very essential memory: that we are here because life on earth is an adventure to be lived and enjoyed in all its fullness. My life experience has significantly changed since I read it. It has become much lighter, much more playful. I needed this reminder of my own power. I remember how I have been craving more adverntures for most of my life. Now that I look back I understand that it always was meant to be an adventure. That it IS an adventure. Everything I experience is. And now that I am open to more possibilities, more miraculous things start to happen in my life and I embrace them to the fullest. This world, the life that is possible here is such a miracle. Nowhere else in the universe can you experience a life like this on earth. It needs to be enjoyed, all possibilties need to be explored. We're all explorers here. And yes, if we know magic is possible, magic will happen. I see this in my life right now.
Stories like Natalie's open the door for people who have experienced similar things. And our time needs them like air to breathe as they remind us of our true human potential.
I also loved the deeply moving insight that we truly choose what we encounter in life. This book brought back to me a very essential memory: that we are here because life on earth is an adventure to be lived and enjoyed in all its fullness. My life experience has significantly changed since I read it. It has become much lighter, much more playful. I needed this reminder of my own power. I remember how I have been craving more adverntures for most of my life. Now that I look back I understand that it always was meant to be an adventure. That it IS an adventure. Everything I experience is. And now that I am open to more possibilities, more miraculous things start to happen in my life and I embrace them to the fullest. This world, the life that is possible here is such a miracle. Nowhere else in the universe can you experience a life like this on earth. It needs to be enjoyed, all possibilties need to be explored. We're all explorers here. And yes, if we know magic is possible, magic will happen. I see this in my life right now.
Stories like Natalie's open the door for people who have experienced similar things. And our time needs them like air to breathe as they remind us of our true human potential.
April 1, 2022
This is an NDE/OBE (Near Death Experience / Out Of Body Experience, unlike any other I have come across, and I watch, listen to, and read a lot of them.
Natalie Sudman, takes the reader into a step by step journey through her profound experience, shortly after her vehicle was blown up by an IED in Iraq, which is no small feet when you take into account, the many many ways “time” “space” and events seem to unfold in that non-physical realm.
A notable difference in Natalie’s experience, is her instant knowing and familiarity with the various environments and processes she entered into, before choosing to returning to her physical body and life.
On a more personal note. Natalie’s experience was, for me, a validation of many inner beliefs I’ve come to embrace.
Natalie Sudman, takes the reader into a step by step journey through her profound experience, shortly after her vehicle was blown up by an IED in Iraq, which is no small feet when you take into account, the many many ways “time” “space” and events seem to unfold in that non-physical realm.
A notable difference in Natalie’s experience, is her instant knowing and familiarity with the various environments and processes she entered into, before choosing to returning to her physical body and life.
On a more personal note. Natalie’s experience was, for me, a validation of many inner beliefs I’ve come to embrace.
April 23, 2019
It was a dense read that needs to be read multiple times. I’d consider reading it again to understand more, but I found the tone of the book to be a bit annoying. It’s the “I’m not like other NDE books, I’m the cool NDE book” version.
Also, the military jargon she kept referring to was just unnecessary. Putting an * next to the word “helo” and then adding an entry in a glossary in the back takes way more effort than just writing out the word helicopter. I don’t know if it was an attempt to establish credibility, but it felt obnoxious and exploitive.
I wish I had gotten what others got from this book, as it reviewed so well. Just wasn’t for me I guess.
Also, the military jargon she kept referring to was just unnecessary. Putting an * next to the word “helo” and then adding an entry in a glossary in the back takes way more effort than just writing out the word helicopter. I don’t know if it was an attempt to establish credibility, but it felt obnoxious and exploitive.
I wish I had gotten what others got from this book, as it reviewed so well. Just wasn’t for me I guess.
September 24, 2021
How to confuse a message....
Setting the story aside for a moment, this is a poorly written book. The message is simple- we create our own reality. This is the same message that Paul Selig, Dr. Joe Dispenza, and Esther Hicks profess. Sudman chooses to express this message using ten dollar words rather than two. This makes the book hard to read and confuses her purpose.
As to the story, who is to say if it is true or just her imagination. No one knows what is on the other side, so this is as good an explanation as any.
Setting the story aside for a moment, this is a poorly written book. The message is simple- we create our own reality. This is the same message that Paul Selig, Dr. Joe Dispenza, and Esther Hicks profess. Sudman chooses to express this message using ten dollar words rather than two. This makes the book hard to read and confuses her purpose.
As to the story, who is to say if it is true or just her imagination. No one knows what is on the other side, so this is as good an explanation as any.
September 12, 2019
I think my brain just exploded....
November 2, 2022
Imagine going to the other side and back and still being conservative
September 18, 2023
What a story! What an explanation of her experience!
Read
December 27, 2023Recommended to me, but I am not quite sure it is for me. So, I am withholding a starred review.
November 14, 2024
This is a thought-provoking book about the afterlife experience. I felt that she wasn't telling us everything she experienced. I recommend reading this book to anyone who has an interest in NDEs.
May 9, 2016
I found it hard to understand like other NDE books that i read before, didn't want to give up yet didn't want to spend too much time digging deep, so i jumped through the chapters in one hour trying to find the gist, but failed. I will go on youtube to look for interview of her :)
November 20, 2015
I want to read this book again, it's very densely packed.
September 6, 2022
Amazing information I have not read in other places. Thank you Natalie.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews