Doctors Gave Him a 1% Chance: An Artist's Near-Death Experience and the Message He Brought Back

Buckle up sweet listeners, this one is extra special. Sarah and Jane sat down with Davis Haines, an artist, musician, and near-death experiencer who is an exceptionally sparkly human. Tear stained and soggy from the conversation, by the end both of us are convinced he is emitting actual light beams. Davis grew up in a wonderful but chaotic, art-obsessed family in Alabama, an identical twin who found himself through theater, poetry, and a barbershop quartet. Davis he woke up at 5am in High School to rehearse with (the devotion!). He fell in love young, coined his own spiritual identity as a "love-ist" because why not just make up the word you need, and lived that glorious, broke, funk-band-and-feather-boas artist life in Chicago in his early twenties. Then, on July 11, 2011, a bike ride took a dark turn. Davis went under the back tires of a truck, and was given a 1% chance of survival. During emergency surgery, he died. And what he found on the other side was not tunnels or visions, it was love, love and love capital L. The rest of the episode is a joyful wander through what Davis calls integration, the long and winding thirteen-year-average process of putting himself back together. There is a vision quest, a skydive, some ayahuasca, a whole lot of learning to just be, a stray backyard cat named nothing in particular, and a soul mantra ("thank you, I love you") that will bring you all the feels. Key Takeaways Integration takes time, sometimes as long as a decade or more, and there is zero shame in the slow, messy unfolding. Let it be a whole journey, not a weekend project. Rest is not the opposite of a spiritual life. It might BE the spiritual life. Chill guilt is real and worth releasing. The universe has a flair for the dramatic. When something feels too perfectly symbolic to be a coincidence, it might be worth paying attention to. Chasing the big cosmic feeling through extreme experiences often leads right back to something delightfully small, like a baby waving hello or a cat on the compost bin. Healing generational wounds does not require a big dramatic showdown. Sometimes it just looks like raising a kid who has never once doubted her own magnificence. You do not need a tunnel of light or a dramatic vision to have a real, life-rearranging near-death experience. Sometimes love shows up as pure feeling, no special effects required. Direct Quotes "God is a feeling... this was one of those things where I was like, oh, oh, oh, God is everything, like everything." "It was like sinking into a warm tub after a long cold day in the snow, times a thousand." "I say that Art saved my life." "Thank you, I love you. Thank you, I love you. That has actually become my prayer, my mantra." "Actually, this is it... I can't believe that I am happily living in my hometown doing this." Links and Resources Bruce Greyson, After — referenced regarding memory and near-death experiences under heavy medication The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron — the book that shaped Davis's creative and spiritual practice Victor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning — read during his solo vision quest Ram Dass — referenced re: his stroke and the phrase "being stroked" Davis’s Instagram @davismacleod  Davis’s Website davishaines.com Come hang out with us here too: Medium Curious Substack Medium Curious Website: MediumCurious Jane’s Website: Jane Morgan Medium  Sarah’s Website: Sarah Rathke Podcast Instagram: @MediumCuriousPod YouTube: @mediumcurious