End-of-life dreams and visions: a longitudinal study of hospice patients' experiences

End-of-life dreams and visions (ELDVs) have been well documented throughout history and across cultures. The impact of pre-death experiences on dying individuals and their loved ones can be profoundly meaningful.

Our aim was to quantify the frequency of dreams/visions experienced by patients nearing the end of life, examine the content and subjective significance of the dreams/visions, and explore the relationship of these factors to time/proximity to death.

This mixed-methods study surveyed patients in a hospice inpatient unit using a semi-structured interview. Sixty-six patients admitted to a hospice inpatient unit between January 2011 and July 2012 provided informed consent and participated in the study. The semi-structured interviews contained closed and open-ended questions regarding the content, frequency, and comfort/distress of dreams/visions.

Fifty-nine participants comprised the final sample. Most participants reported experiencing at least one dream/vision. Almost half of the dreams/visions occurred while asleep, and nearly all patients indicated that they felt real. The most common dreams/visions included deceased friends/relatives and living friends/relatives. Dreams/visions featuring the deceased (friends, relatives, and animals/pets) were significantly more comforting than those of the living, living and deceased combined, and other people and experiences. As participants approached death, comforting dreams/visions of the deceased became more prevalent.

ELDVs are commonly experienced phenomena during the dying process, characterized by a consistent sense of realism and marked emotional significance. These dreams/visions may be a profound source of potential meaning and comfort for the dying, and therefore warrant clinical attention and further research.