Five Finger Death Punch's Ivan Moody recently opened up about his near-death experience in an Instagram video, which you can watch below. The singer, who celebrated his third year of sobriety in March 2021, previously said he nearly died after an alcohol-related seizure. He woke up surrounded by EMTs, his daughter holding him.

The experience was portrayed in the music video for the song "The Tragic Truth." The band  released  the visual to celebrate Moody's birthday (Jan. 7), two months away from his fourth anniversary of sobriety. In the description, the band wrote the song is, "a visual journal of our story ... The battle with addiction... the pain... the chaos ... life and even death. A celebration of a victory, Ivan’s rebirth into a new life. It is also a message for those who are battling addiction right now: you are more than your addiction, and you are never alone. Seek help, fight back, it’s never too late... Ivan came back from the dead, literally. He was so far gone, if he can do it - you can do it. Let this be a testament to that."

In the Instagram video, Moody answered fan-submitted questions about "The Tragic Truth" music video. He began by saying that his death was real. "I tried to quit drinking by myself, on my own, for four days, and the fourth day my body shut down," Moody explains (as transcribed by Blabbermouth). "I went into seizure and I died. I was handing my daughter a glass of water one second, and we'll get into the next."

He then began talking about what he saw during the experience.  "Now, for you to hear this, for one you have to ask yourself, do you believe in life after death?" he continues. "It was nothing like anything that you think or that I thought for that matter or could have imagined. There was no light...

"I told Zoltan [Bathory] it was like becoming a part of the universal hum — complete peace. It wasn't cold; it wasn't hot. There was no burden of any sort. And for a brief second, I was free. And all these memories, which is, I'm assuming, why people say your life goes flashing before your eyes, started flashing before my eyes. And I saw things from my infancy all the way up to that moment. And I remember thinking, 'This is too good. And I'm not ready for this. I have more to do.'"

In the music video —as well as in real life, according to Moody— the singer's first words after being revived were "Don't tell the fans."

"The only thing that mattered was that you and my bandmates still had faith in me, because music is all I have; it's my whole connection to everything," Moody says.

Five Finger Death Punch, "The Tragic Truth" Music Video

If you or someone you know if struggling with drug or alcohol dependence, help is available through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. To speak to someone, dial 1-800-622-HELP (1-800-622-4357) or text 1-800-487-4889.

 

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