A lifelong atheist has claimed she met God in a near-death experience, describing him as "bigger than the cosmos." Riley Courtright says she died twice in the span of 18 months after being diagnosed with vascular Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS), a rare genetic disorder that affects the body's connective tissues and leaves those affected at risk of internal bleeding.
Two deaths and an otherworldly journey
Riley claims her "first death" happened at home after doctors told her there were no treatment options for her condition. She says the second time she "died" she was preparing for what she thought would be her final days with her husband.
On the Round Trip podcast, Riley said: "Dying is a funny thing because it all sort of happens at once." However, during her second near-death experience, she said she was sent on an otherworldly journey. She explained: "When I died, I instantly shot up to God."
Encounter with the divine
Riley said she was transported to heaven and described the encounter in detail. "And there was no mistaking that's where I was. He is bigger than the cosmos. I got to wrap my arms around his neck. I got to sit in his lap. I got to play by his ankles. I got to go with him to work."
She added: "It felt like I got to watch him expand the universe. I got to watch him build the next Earth that we're all going to be on." Riley said God explained the universe to her when she arrived in heaven, despite her being a lifelong atheist. She claimed: "You get every bit of information that's ever existed in the universe all at once."
Claimed healing and new faith
Riley also claimed the "first breath" she took after she came back from the other side was the cleanest she had ever taken. "There was nothing wrong with my heart anymore," she claimed. "My lungs were great. My kidneys, my liver. I was hungry."
She claimed after her near-death experience she was "healed" from her vascular Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. Riley said doctors told her: "We can't explain this, but you look like a healthy 34-year-old. Like, your organs look good. We can't see the past trauma anymore from heart attacks, from strokes, or signs of internal bleeding. Like you're great." During the podcast, she declined to comment on any further treatment she received for her condition and added she had been healed for the past seven months.
On her faith, Riley stated: "I was an atheist, and I got to see God. So I also don't want people to be scared of this, like biblical telling or this Baptist telling of, you know, 'fear God' because God doesn't want to be feared. He wants to be loved, right?...His love is so unconditional."
