Charlotte Holmes, a 68-year-old woman from Alabama, shared a powerful and emotional story about what she saw and felt after being declared clinically dead for 11 minutes. Her experience happened during a routine visit to her heart doctor when her blood pressure suddenly shot up to a dangerously high level — 234 over 134. The doctors were extremely concerned and told her she needed to be hospitalized immediately or she might have a stroke or heart attack.
As medical staff rushed to help her, they hooked her up to an IV to try and lower her blood pressure. Her husband Danny stayed by her side through it all. But things quickly took a turn for the worse. The medical team called an emergency code and began working to save her life. At that point, Charlotte’s heart stopped.
According to Charlotte, during those 11 minutes when she was medically dead, her spirit left her body. She described watching the doctors and nurses trying to save her while floating above them. Then she said something amazing happened—she found herself in what she believed was heaven.
Charlotte said she could smell the most beautiful flowers and heard music that made everything feel peaceful. She explained that everything she saw—trees, grass—was moving in rhythm with the music, as if all of nature was singing to God. She said there was no fear at all, just complete joy and peace.
When she opened her eyes in that place, she knew exactly where she was. She believed she had entered heaven. Her husband later confirmed that she had spoken about flowers being in the room, but there were no flowers there, which made him believe she had truly seen something beyond this world.
Charlotte said she saw loved ones who had passed away — her parents, her sister, and other people from long ago. None of them looked old or sick. Everyone seemed young, healthy, and full of life. She said it was exactly as the Bible describes—where people recognize each other but are renewed in their best form.
She then saw a bright light behind her parents, too bright to look at, but she somehow knew it was God. Then something surprising happened—she realized she was also seeing her child. Decades ago, she had lost a baby when she was five and a half months pregnant. In this vision, she understood that time doesn’t exist in heaven the way it does on Earth. Even though 48 years had passed since she lost the baby, he was still a toddler in heaven.
But the peaceful vision changed. Charlotte said that after seeing the beauty of heaven, God allowed her to see hell. She described it as terrifying, with a horrible smell like rotting flesh and the sound of endless screaming. The difference between the two places was overwhelming. She was told, “This is where they shall reside,” as a warning. She took that message seriously and believes she was sent back to share it.
As she began to return to life, Charlotte said she felt pain again for the first time, along with deep sorrow. She stayed in the hospital for two weeks after the incident in September 2019 but made an incredible recovery. Since then, she’s been speaking publicly about her experience, hoping to give people hope and encouragement.
She believes she was given a mission to tell others about what she saw, especially about heaven and God’s love. Charlotte said she’s helped lead people to faith because of her story. She ended her interview by saying with confidence, “I can look you in the eye and tell you—heaven is real.”
