"I FELT EVERY GOOD EMOTION WE CAN FEEL ON EARTH - TIMES 5,000!"
Author and screenwriter Sai Marie Johnson flatlined during a high-risk C-section complicated by placenta percreta.

While doctors fought to stop catastrophic hemorrhaging, Sai experienced a profound “void, tunnel and light." During her NDE (Near Death Experience) she met and saw her deceased grandmother and great-grandmother. They told her that she had to go back.

Above all else, she felt "Every good emotion we can feel on earth, times 5,000!" Goodness and Pure Love.

Following her NDE, she woke to a premature son in the NICU, a partial hysterectomy, and 25 transfusions—but also a new clarity that reshaped her confidence, career, and view of death.

In this conversation, she unpacks the medical rollercoaster, the otherworldly peace she felt, how she parents two sons with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and the hard-won faith that guides her now.

Chapters (Timestamps)
00:00 — Cold Open: “They pronounced me dead…”
00:40 — Welcome & Guest Intro: Meet author/screenwriter Cy Marie Johnson
01:19 — About Sai: Mother of four; two sons with Duchenne
03:23 — High-Risk Pregnancy: Early warnings and specialist care
04:40 — From Previa to Percreta: What went medically wrong
06:08 — Hospital Prep: Steroids, IVs, arterial balloons, central line
10:41 — Countdown to Two: Going under anesthesia
11:01 — The Experience: Darkness, distant ember, irresistible light
12:04 — The Guardians: Grandmother & great-grandmother say “not yet”
13:52 — Void or Tunnel? How it felt, and what drew her forward
15:11 — Who They Were: Portraits of Elizabeth and Bernice
19:31 — Back in the Body: “Where’s my baby?” — NICU update
22:15 — Recovery Begins: Hysterectomy, pain, and walking laps
24:51 — What Happened on the Table: Hemorrhage and 25 transfusions
26:13 — Life After NDE: Confidence, creativity, a second chance
28:49 — Writing Career: From romance to nonfiction craft
29:57 — Duchenne Awareness: Strength for her sons
30:44 — On Death: Why she isn’t afraid
32:14 — Closing & Call to Action

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