What Doctors in Dahlia, Redmond Have Seen That Science Can't Explain

The most dog-eared copies of Physicians' Untold Stories tend to belong to people who bought it for one reason and kept it for another. In Dahlia, Redmond, Washington, readers who picked up Dr. Kolbaba's bestseller out of curiosity about medical mysteries found themselves unexpectedly comforted about their own mortality. Readers who bought it while grieving found themselves inspired about medicine's human dimension. This versatility is reflected in the book's 4.5-star Amazon rating and its 1,000-plus reviews, which span demographics and motivations. Kirkus Reviews praised the collection's sincerity, and that sincerity is what allows it to serve so many different needs—because truth, simply told, is universally relevant.

Dr. Scott Kolbaba

About the Author

Dr. Scott J. Kolbaba, MD is an internist at Northwestern Medicine in Wheaton, Illinois. He interviewed more than 200 physicians about their most extraordinary experiences.

Book cover

Physicians' Untold Stories

by Scott J. Kolbaba, MD4.5 stars (1018 reviews)

Miraculous experiences doctors are hesitant to share with their patients, or ANYONE!

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Dr. Kolbaba interviewed 200 courageous physicians who came forward with 26 of the most miraculous experiences of their careers.

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Medical Fact

Dr. Daniel Hale Williams performed one of the first successful open-heart surgeries in 1893 in Chicago.

Physician Burnout & Wellness Near Dahlia, Redmond

Physicians practicing in Dahlia, Redmond, Washington work at the intersection of modern medicine and experiences that resist explanation. In conversations that rarely leave the break room or the on-call suite, doctors in and around Dahlia, Redmond have reported encounters with phenomena that their training never prepared them for — from patients who describe verifiable details about events that occurred while they were clinically dead, to deathbed visions shared simultaneously by multiple family members, to recoveries that defy every prognostic model available.

The medical community in Dahlia, Redmond includes physicians across every stage of their careers — residents navigating the exhaustion of training, mid-career practitioners balancing clinical demands with family life, and veteran physicians carrying decades of experiences that challenge the boundaries of conventional medicine. Burnout touches all of them differently, but a common thread runs through: the desire to remember why they chose medicine in the first place, and the rare but profound moments that remind them.

Physician Burnout by Specialty

Percentage reporting at least one symptom (Medscape, 2024)

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Medical Fact

The first successful corneal transplant was performed in 1905 by Dr. Eduard Zirm in the Czech Republic.

Ghost Stories and the Supernatural Near Dahlia, Redmond, Washington

The Pacific Northwest's used bookstore culture near Dahlia, Redmond, Washington—Powell's Books, Elliott Bay, and dozens of independent shops—has produced its own ghost tradition. Hospital workers who browse these stores after shifts report finding books that seem chosen for them—medical texts open to relevant chapters, novels whose plots mirror their patients' stories, poetry collections whose verses address their specific exhaustion. Whether this is coincidence, algorithm, or ghost, the books appear when they're needed.

The Pacific Northwest's craft beer culture near Dahlia, Redmond, Washington has a supernatural counterpart: the ghost of the brewmaster who worked in buildings that are now medical offices. These repurposed brewery buildings retain the scent of hops and malt, which intensifies during unexplained events. Medical staff who work in former breweries joke about their beer ghosts, but the jokes stop when the temperature drops and the copper kettles that no longer exist begin to clang.

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Medical Fact

Your body's largest artery, the aorta, is about the diameter of a garden hose.

Near-Death Experiences Reported by Physicians Near Dahlia, Redmond

Pacific Northwest NDE researchers near Dahlia, Redmond, Washington benefit from the region's culture of interdisciplinary collaboration. Consciousness researchers at UW work alongside forest ecologists, marine biologists, and indigenous scholars whose perspectives on the nature of awareness expand the conversation far beyond neuroscience. The Pacific Northwest's NDE research is, like the region itself, a confluence of many streams flowing toward a common ocean.

The Pacific Northwest's hospice movement near Dahlia, Redmond, Washington—among the most progressive in the nation—has produced end-of-life care programs that treat pre-death visions and deathbed experiences as normal components of the dying process. When a hospice patient describes seeing deceased relatives or approaching a boundary, the hospice team doesn't medicate the vision away—they document it, support the patient's experience of it, and recognize it as part of the dying person's journey.

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Did You Know?

Near-death experiences were first systematically studied by a physician — Dr. Raymond Moody, who coined the term in 1975.

Physician Wellness, Grief & Finding Meaning Near Dahlia, Redmond

Pacific Northwest physicians near Dahlia, Redmond, Washington who practice in the region by choice—who chose rain over sunshine, forests over beaches, gray over blue—bring a specific quality to their healing work. They chose this place for its beauty, its intellectual culture, its values. That choice infuses their medicine with a commitment to the community that career-motivated physicians in more prestigious locations may lack. Healing works best when the healer has chosen to be exactly where they are.

Pacific Northwest music scenes near Dahlia, Redmond, Washington—from Seattle's grunge legacy to Portland's indie folk—provide therapeutic outlets that formal mental health services cannot replicate. Open mic nights, community choirs, and drum circles create spaces where people process grief, celebrate recovery, and connect with strangers through shared vulnerability. The Pacific Northwest heals through music, whether the music is polished or raw.

Physician Burnout by Specialty

Percentage reporting at least one symptom (Medscape, 2024)

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Did You Know?

Reading books about hope and resilience has been shown to reduce symptoms of depression in randomized controlled trials.

Watch Dr. Kolbaba Share These Stories

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Did You Know?

Physician wellness programs have grown by 300% in the past decade as hospitals recognize the impact of burnout.

Medical Heritage in Washington

Washington State's medical history is defined by the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle, which has been ranked the number one primary care medical school in the nation by U.S. News & World Report for over 25 consecutive years. The WWAMI (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, Idaho) program, launched in 1971, trains physicians for the five-state region and is a model for regional medical education. Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center (formerly Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center), established in 1975 in Seattle, pioneered bone marrow transplantation under Dr. E. Donnall Thomas, who received the 1990 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work.

Seattle Children's Hospital, founded in 1907, has become a top-ranked pediatric center specializing in childhood cancer and genetic disorders. Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle adopted the Toyota Production System for healthcare (Virginia Mason Production System) in 2002, becoming an internationally recognized model for quality improvement and patient safety. Harborview Medical Center, the only Level I trauma center for the WWAMI region, serves as the primary trauma and burn center for the Pacific Northwest. The state also played a role in the early COVID-19 pandemic response; the Life Care Center in Kirkland was the first identified major outbreak site in the United States in February 2020, with 37 deaths among residents and staff.

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About the Book

The physicians in the book represent the full spectrum of medical specialties — from surgery to psychiatry to pediatrics.

Supernatural Folklore and Ghost Traditions in Washington

Washington State's supernatural folklore is dominated by Sasquatch, or Bigfoot, which has deep roots in the Pacific Northwest. The Coast Salish peoples of Puget Sound have longstanding traditions about the Ts'emekwes, a large, hairy wild man of the forests. Modern Bigfoot reports in Washington intensified after the famous Patterson-Gimlin film was shot just across the border in Northern California in 1967, and the state consistently leads the nation in reported sightings. The Ape Caves on the southern slope of Mount St. Helens—actually a 2-mile lava tube—take their name from a local scout troop called the "Apes" but the association with Bigfoot has made them a popular destination for cryptozoologists.

The Northern State Hospital in Sedro-Woolley, which operated from 1912 to 1973, is considered one of the most haunted locations in the Pacific Northwest. Over 1,500 patients died at the facility and were buried in a cemetery on the grounds. Visitors report hearing screams, seeing apparitions in the windows of remaining buildings, and encountering an overwhelming sense of despair on the former hospital grounds. The Meeker Mansion in Puyallup, built in 1890 by Ezra Meeker—a pioneer who crossed the Oregon Trail in 1852—is reportedly haunted by Meeker's wife Eliza Jane, who died in the home.

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About the Book

Dr. Kolbaba reports that several physicians contacted him after the book was published to share their own previously untold stories.

Haunted Hospitals and Medical Landmarks in Washington

Madigan Army Medical Center (Tacoma): Located at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Madigan Army Medical Center has served military personnel since 1944. The original hospital buildings, some dating to World War II, are associated with reports of soldiers in period uniforms seen in the corridors at night. Staff have described hearing boots marching in empty hallways and finding equipment inexplicably moved in the older sections of the facility.

Northern State Hospital (Sedro-Woolley): Northern State Hospital operated from 1912 to 1973, treating psychiatric patients in the Skagit Valley. Over 1,500 patients died at the facility, many buried in a cemetery that was largely forgotten until it was rediscovered. The remaining buildings and grounds are associated with extensive paranormal reports including shadow figures, disembodied voices, and the apparitions of patients in hospital gowns wandering the grounds. The cemetery is said to be especially active, with visitors reporting cold spots and the feeling of being touched.

Types of Phenomena in the Book

Distribution across 26 physician accounts

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Research Finding

Physicians who eat meals with colleagues at least 3 times per week report significantly lower burnout and higher job satisfaction.

How This Book Can Help You

Washington State, where the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center has pushed the boundaries of bone marrow transplantation and where physicians face the constant reality of death in one of the nation's premier trauma centers at Harborview, offers a clinical environment where the phenomena Dr. Kolbaba describes in Physicians' Untold Stories are encountered at the highest levels of medical practice. The state's progressive stance on death—from the first human composting law to its Death with Dignity statute—reflects a culture willing to examine the dying process honestly, the same intellectual honesty that drives Dr. Kolbaba, trained at Mayo Clinic and practicing at Northwestern Medicine, to document clinical experiences that his peers might otherwise dismiss.

The Pacific Northwest's tradition of supporting independent voices near Dahlia, Redmond, Washington—independent bookstores, independent media, independent music—makes this book's existence possible. A book by a physician about experiences the medical establishment prefers to ignore is an independent voice by definition. The Pacific Northwest is where independent voices find their audience.

Physicians' Untold Stories book cover — by Dr. Scott J. Kolbaba, MD
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Research Finding

A 5-minute gratitude exercise before starting a clinical shift improves physician mood and patient satisfaction scores.

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Discover the Stories Medicine Never Says Out Loud

Physicians' Untold Stories by Scott J. Kolbaba, MD4.5 stars from 1018 readers.

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Physicians' Untold Stories by Dr. Scott Kolbaba

Amazon Bestseller

The Stories Medicine Never Told You

Over 200 physicians interviewed. 26 true stories of ghost encounters, near-death experiences, and miraculous recoveries that will change the way you think about life, death, and what lies beyond.

By Dr. Scott J. Kolbaba, MD — 4.5★ from 1,018 ratings on Goodreads