Of Native American and Scots-Irish parents, Betty J. (Stewart) Eadie was born in rural Nebraska and spent her early childhood on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota. She was the seventh of ten children.
In November of 1973, at the age of 31, Betty J. Eadie died following routine surgery. After undergoing what has been called the most profound and detailed near-death experience ever recorded, she returned with a life-changing message. Enlightened by her experience, Betty turned to the study of psychology and the human response to death. As part of that study, she volunteered her time with dying patients and their families, learning the various perspectives of others who, like her, had experienced death. She also participated in a near-death study with a local university. Compelled to learn more about the "total connection" of spirit, mind and body, Betty entered one of the largest schools of hypnosis. She graduated at the top of her class, and opened a clinic to continue her examination of the subconscious mind and its connection, if any, to the near-death experience.
For 19 years, Betty shared the knowledge and message of her NDE with family and friends, and eventually began speaking publicly about it. In 1992 she was prompted and encouraged to share her extraordinary experience with the rest of the world. The result was the remarkable book, Embraced By The Light. After Embraced was published, Betty gave up her hypnotherapy practice and traveled extensively throughout the United States, Canada and Great Britain, speaking on death and what awaits us beyond this life.