Children Who Report Memories of Past Lives
Some young children, usually between the ages of 2 and 5, speak about memories of a previous life they claim to have lived. At the same time they often show behaviors, such as phobias or preferences, that are unusual within the context of their particular family and cannot be explained by any current life events.
Jim Tucker with Ryan Hammons and his mother
In many cases, the child’s statements correspond accurately to the life and death of a deceased individual. Some children have birthmarks or birth defects congruent with wounds or marks on the deceased person, using postmortem reports to confirm. Older children may retain these apparent memories, but they generally seem to fade around the age of seven.
The subjects of these cases have been found all over the world, including Europe and North America. For the past 20 years, Dr. Jim Tucker has focused mainly on cases found in the United States. Some cases offer more compelling evidence than others for past-life memories. Two thought-provoking cases:
- James Leininger – memories of being a WWII pilot and getting shot down
- Ryan Hammons – memories of being a Hollywood extra and talent agent
Statements a Child Might Make
The following list is designed to give an idea of what a parent or caregiver might hear from a child reporting memories of a previous life. This list is not meant to be exhaustive as these statements can be quite varied.
Dr. Jim Tucker interviewing a young child
List of Statement Examples
- “You’re not my mommy/daddy.”
- “I have another mommy/daddy.”
- “When I was big, I … (used to have blue eyes, have a car, worked downtown, etc.).”
- “That happened before I was in mommy’s tummy.”
- “I have a wife/husband/children.”
- “I used to … (drive a truck/live in another town, etc.)”
- “I died … (in a car accident/after I fell, etc.)”
- “Remember when I … (lived in that other house, was your daddy, etc.)”
In Western culture, these type of statements often get dismissed as fantasy even though they might contain something other than pure imagination. It is probably best not to repeatedly question the child, nor try to prevent them from speaking about these topics. For more info, please refer to Dr. Tucker’s Advice to Parents.
Contact us if you are a parent or caretaker of a child who is currently speaking about memories of a previous life. You can submit observations of your child’s statements and behaviors to Diane Morini on our research team. Rest assured anything you share is held in strict confidence, only viewed by our researchers, and not shared without your permission.
Decades of Research - Thousands of Cases
Dr. Stevenson researching in Myanmar – 1975
In last 50 years of research, DOPS has collected over 2500 cases of the reincarnation type, most of which have been found outside of the United States. For the vast majority of these cases, the field notes have been coded on >200 variables and put into our database. This research has taken countless hours and hundreds of people to accomplish, and there is still so much to learn on the topic.
The database allows our researchers, as well as others, to apply various analyses to look for patterns within the files. These patterns lead to insights, such as: ~30% of the cases contain a birthmark and/or birth defect. Numerous books and articles about these cases have been published by DOPS researchers over the decades, including a two-volume tome containing over 20,000 pages by Dr. Ian Stevenson.
PODCASTS
The Mindbodygreen Podcast with Jason Wachob: The Science of Past Life Memories | Jim Tucker, M.D., director of the UVA Division of Perceptual Studies.
Mark Gober (An End to Upside Down Thinking) interviewed Jim Tucker on the podcast “Where is My Mind”. The topic of Reincarnation and the interview with Dr. Tucker starts at 33 minutes into the podcast. In this interview, Dr. Tucker focuses on some of the more remarkable cases that have been studied at DOPS. He discusses the case of James Leininger, Ryan Hammons, and cases of birthmarks linked to the memories of previous lives. Listen to: Episode 7- Mediumship and Reincarnation
Listen to: Hi-Phi Nation,
Season 2, Episode 6: The Self and Survival. This episode is about unusual childhood memories which bring up questions regarding the nature of the “self” and what aspects might survive post mortem. The interviewers delve into the philosophy and science of personal identity, quantum physics, and belief in the afterlife. Guests include Dr. Jim Tucker, Barbro Karlen, and philosophers Alyssa Ney and Yuval Avnur.
RADIO
Dr. Jim Tucker was interviewed on Karen Conti’s radio show, WGN Radio-Chicago, September of 2019. Dr. Tucker discussed the DOPS research into children who report memories of a previous life. He related numerous facts about some strong cases in this interview. Host, Karen Conti asked Dr. Tucker interesting, well-researched compelling questions. We invite you to listen to this excellent 21 minute interview with Dr. Jim Tucker regarding the DOPS research into cases of children who have memories of a previous life.
Listen to Dr. Jim Tucker on NPR Weekend Edition, January 5th, 2014. Dr. Tucker was interviewed by Rachel Martin in the segment: “Searching for the Science Behind Reincarnation”.
Dr. Jim Tucker appeared on the syndicated NPR Wisconsin Public Radio program “To the Best of Our Knowledge”, November of 2005, to discuss his research in the area of reincarnation. Listen to Dr. Tucker discuss his first book Life Before Life.
MAGAZINE ARTICLES
“Ian Stevenson’s Case for the Afterlife: Are We ‘Skeptics’ Really Just Cynics?” by Jesse Bering, 2013
VICE: The Hard Science of Reincarnation. All over the world, scholars studying reincarnation are making findings even skeptics have difficulty explaining-by Rebecca Nathanson, 2021
This is an article by Jake Flanagin about the researchers at UVA DOPS who are lending credibility to the study parapsychological phenomena. The Atlantic, Jan/Feb, 2014.
An article appeared in the UVA Alumni Magazine, Winter 2013, which focused on the research of Children Who Claim to Remember Previous Lives being conducted by Dr. Jim B. Tucker.
Click on the link to read the article by Sean Lyons “The Science of Reincarnation: UVA psychiatrist Jim Tucker investigates children’s claims of past lives”.
Jim Tucker: Life Before Life-Extraordinary Cases of Children Who Remember Past Live
Jim Tucker: Children’s Memories of Previous Lives, European School of Theosophy Presentation, 2019
The Past Life Memories of Children with Dr. Jim B. Tucker
John Cleese Interviews Jim Tucker re: Research into Children’s Past Life Memories
Jim B. Tucker: Children Who Remember Previous Lives-The Case of James Leininger
Friendly Fire: Life Before Life with Dr. Jim B. Tucker
Children’s Past Lives (Reincarnation Documentary)
Reincarnation Research by Ian Stevenson: Children’s Past Life Memories
Jim Tucker Presents: Evidence of Reincarnation in Childhood (2014 Synchronicity Symposium)