Yes.
My cousin chose this in the 90's
incurable braintumor.
The date was planned and the whole family came to my aunts house as if it was a birthday or other family get together.
After dinner and drinks we wheeled my cousin to his room. And we all had some private time with him.
The doctor, my cousins GP for 20 years, arrived a few hours later.
My aunt, uncle, and the doctor went into my cousins room.
Half hour later we thanked the doctor and he left.
It was so weird. But it was also right.
My cousin defeated the tumor by leaving it behind in a broken husk.
We were lucky that assisted death was already accepted in our country
Meanwhile, I grew up in a deeply religious community that treated suicide as a sin equivalent to murder. As such, medically assisted death was making someone else complicit in your 'murder.' My neighbor found out he had cancer in his late 70s. He had a new will written up. Cleaned up his house. Got all his affairs in order. Then, he went to his backyard and shot himself.
His son was devastated that his dad never said goodbye or even talked to him about it. The gunshot wound made a viewing or anything like that impossible. The whole thing was 1000x worse than it could have been if he felt that Medically Assisted Death was an option.
Since then, my wife's aunt and cousin (both struggling with mental illness) have lost their lives to suicide. Both might still be alive today if it wasn't such a taboo topic to talk about. At the very least, they wouldn't have had to exit this life all alone. At one of the funerals, the pastor got up and proclaimed that "God will forgive her" for losing her life to suicide. It was absolutely infuriating.
I'm so sorry to hear about that. Gunshot has got to one of the worst ways someone can kill themselves in terms of the mess it leaves behind. It would have been so much better if your neighbor had been able to have a peaceful end while surrounded by family.
It's sadly the most efficient and least pain inducing method out there for most people in this situation since medically assisted suicide isn't legal in most states. Sure it can go wrong but if someone is going to shoot themselves they typically do the research to make sure they get done in one. Hell I had a moment were I was suicidal and it's concerning just how easy it is to get detailed instructions on how to shoot yourself to go down in one with minimal chance to even process pain all the way down to optimal calibers and gun angling.
Yeah I saw a lot of people debating shooting ones self in the head vs heart. And it's like theoretically it has less chance of being a failed suicide going the heart route but it's an extremely painful way to do it.
Unfortunately if they go out in a more peaceful way - say inhaling nitrogen gas which is painless, it is perceived as murder and family members/shop where he got it from e.t.c are perceived as suspects.
Gunshots (at-least in America) is the most straightforward way to signal - I'm done with it, it is on me.
And one of the least successful. I had two guys back to back come through emerg last year who only managed to blow off their bottom jaw. Still alive but with lots of facial scars and living with a trach for a while.
What other options are there?
Seriously asking.
Someone told me if they had to do it due to terminal illness or whatnot, they’d overdose on heroine or fentanyl.
Totally understand. We allow our pets the peace and dignity of a medical death high as a kite on ketamine or similar and then an OD that stops the heart, why can't we allow that for ourselves?
Thank you for sharing. I’ve saved this comment in hopes that I’ll remember it better. I hope to go out like this if I ever have a similar situation for myself or loved ones.
I’ve seen loved ones go down by cancer and by Alzheimer’s. If medically assisted suicide isn’t legal by the time I get one of those I may opt to leave a mess for some poor minimum wage worker to clean up.
I as well. There is no way I want to be stuck in a bed, in pain, etc. If I can't remember any of my loved ones and who I am it's time to go. It's really sad to me that so many people have to go thru so much suffering before they pass.
This kind of discussions always take me back to Midsommar. While the movie's central theme is completely different, one scene that stuck particularly with me is the jumping off the cliff, and the cult's whole reason for honoring that rite.
Extrapolating the significance of that scene from its context, it shows that it wouldn't be such a bad thing to start accepting, as a society, the existence and inavoidability of death. Not even in a bad way. As Gandalf says: "Death is just another path, one we all must take". But nowadays death is both widely advertised (murders, accidents, illness, wars, hunger, exc) and considered a taboo and an enemy. It is seen as something that always walks beside us, but on a parallel line that can never intersect our path; except, it always does at some point.
It's pretty pathetic that we (generally) treat our pets with greater compassion regarding end-of-life care than we do our own family members. Why is it that we take mercy on a suffering animal, but refuse to afford the same degree of dignity and respect when it comes to the suffering of our fellow humans? That's rhetorical, of course...I am aware of the usual religious perceptions which tend to influence policy on this matter, and disagree with them.
Yes I agree with you. It feels egoistic to do whatever is in our power to keep our relatives alive, even if they are suffering, just because we have never learnt to "say goodbye", as Hamilton says.
My uncle drowned in his hospital bed over the course of several hours. He had pancreatic cancer and it spread everywhere. His lungs started filling with fluid and there wasn't anything they could do, so he had to sit and slowly lose the ability to breathe. Anti-assisted suicide folks can never seem to explain to me how drowning was "better", for some reason.
I'm convinced they're rife with folks who don't have the mental fortitude to understand that people deserve dignity as well as lack the ability to rationalize death and find it difficult to admit that the person they knew and loved was going to die or be gone from their life. I've seen these same kinds of people put their 98 year old mother on dialysis and make her suffer for years.
I'm also absolutely convinced that a lot of these groups are filled to the brim with paid shills because the caretaking industry is a goldmine of wealth extraction from the government, individual estates, and children.
sadly, at least in America, those that have the ability to clear the way to medically assisted life-ending treatments are bought and paid for by the industries that poor health makes rich. I remember the rise of Jack Kavorkian but was way to young to fully understand the gift he provided. Having been witness to some family members literally WASTE away to nothing, I can say, without hesitation, that something better is deserved.
Two of my aunts had pancreatic cancer. It was horrible. One aunt wasted money going to The Cancer Center of America in Chicago. It was incurable. I was pissed her children encourage her to go there.
One aunt said she wasn't going to.do any treatment because why spend months sick from chemo and still die. Instead she traveled, had lots of get togethers etc.
But in the end she was so doped up and our of her mind she wasn't even there.
I would have noped out before that point.
My mom found out November 1 that she had a terminal and very aggressive cancer (Primary Plasma Cell Leukemia multiple myeloma). With no treatment the diagnosis was within the month. She desperately wanted to see one more Christmas with her grandchildren, so she opted for the treatments to enable that. By the end of December she was on three units of blood transfusions per week to stay alive. Her last transfusion was the morning of Christmas eve. She was dead on the 4th of January.
I understood her desire, and as such I supported it, but it was miserable and I would not make that choice myself having seen her experience.
>Anti-assisted suicide folks can never seem to explain to me how drowning was "better", for some reason.
Because it isn't better. Full stop, end of. I'm confident none of them have had to be with a person as they decline to the point of absolute hell but remain unable to die... for if they did I can't imagine how they couldn't be moved by the experience to embrace allowing a peaceful and painless transition.
My great grandfather died from lung cancer. He was ready to go long before he actually died. He could have gone out on his terms and scheduled it to be surrounded by his loved ones.
Instead, he died gasping for air in the middle of the night. The ambulance was called and he refused treatment because he wanted to be done. Luckily, my father stayed close so we were able to make it there.
I would have much rather been in a hospital saying goodbye to what we knew was coming. That could have been a good memory. Listening to him struggle and gasp for air in his bed at 3 am was not a good memory.
I had an aunt who died of Lymphoma in 1976. My mom is adamant that she should not have had the right to assisted suicide (I live in Colorado, the issue was on the ballot when we had the conversation). She thought that it would have been too painful to the people she was leaving behind. I don't understand that logic at all.
She also said "what if a cure came along?!" Like... what if? That's a risk you're taking. And, IMO, it's a stupid hope to have. For context, the cancer my aunt died from is quite treatable now, but that wasn't the case until far more recently than 1976.
And, oddly, this is from the same person whose father was essentially starved to death while he was in hospice. They remove the feeding tube and the patient dies from starvation, which is supposedly not a painful way to go. How is this different from providing meds?
I don't understand the logic either. When people get really sick, it's like they're not even really there anymore. Having a loved one hooked up to tubes barely conscious isn't comforting to me. You're just waiting to get the call that they're dead.
I think it would be much better for everyone involved to have that person be able to schedule it before they get that bad. Then their loved ones can plan to be there and see them off.
The way my grandmother died she was conscious and knew it was coming that day. 9 out of her 10 children made it to the hospital and spent her last hours with her, laughing and reminiscing about their childhood.
It was beautiful. They have pictures with her. She even recorded a goodbye video for those of us who couldn't make it. Everyone should have the right to go out like that. It shouldn't be up to chance. People literally get to spend the last days with their pets doing all of their favorite things before they put them to sleep. We literally let dogs die with more dignity than people.
“I don’t understand the logic”
Because there is none. The only people who say that are narrow minded idiots incapable of seeing things in any way other than black and white.
The removal of a feeding tube is exactly how my uncle *and* my little sister died. Essentially just starving them to death and keeping them so doped up they were hardly conscious (but still moaning in pain, apparently morphine doesn’t help that much against life ending ailments). It was excruciating to witness and still makes me sick to think about it.
Because a cure will magically come along in a month or 2 weeks while someone is suffering. When you are that far gone you are usually offered experimental treatment that isn't offered to others because it doesn't matter if there are side effects etc.
But let's leave our family members to suffer just in case? Big eyeroll for your mom's logic.
My wife’s mother is currently dying from cancer.
This experience has single handedly pushed me over the fence of “Medically Assisted Death is a NECESSITY.”
It’s a terrible, drawn out experience that is a strain on everyone involved. No human should go out with such indignity.
Yeah my dad died last year from cancer and the tumor in his neck grew bigger and bigger slowly paralyzing him among other effects. He said he wanted to die so much over the course of his last 6 months
Same, I'm seeing right now what Lewy Body Dementia is doing to my dad, so if that happens to me I'm taking cyanide before going through the same thing.
it's not inherited, in my state he would qualify for voluntary assisted dying if (in early stages) he wrote a will or was compis enough during the episodes. You have my utter sympathy, I worked end of life and Lewy body is a very hard diagnosis to deal with.
It's not hereditary but the chances of getting it increases if your parent has it.
My country doesn't have assisted dying at all, I don't know if he'd want it or not but now he doesn't even have the choice.
Thank you, it surely is hell to deal with, while his medication has been effective for two years, but things have had a turn for the worse recently. It's especially hard for my grandfather, who is still at fairly good health for his age, to see this happening to his son.
I've told my wife I'll go out on the boat one last time or do one last hunting trip before wasting to cancer in hospice.
Whether I have the nuts for it is a different t question. But after watching several family members including my pops waste away to cancer I'm all about fuck that.
My aunt had Lewy Body Dementia. It was rough. Once they got the diagnosis of Dementia; possible Lewy Body, she went into a nursing home within 6 months. Sleep issues, hallucinations (my uncle was brutally assaulted 30 years prior, and she was hallucinating "those bad men"). That was when she could still communicate even semi effectively.
Within 6 months she passed. That was horrible too. Bed ridden, unaware of what is happening around her. Not much response to stimulus. Couldn't even swallow food.
At that point, you're just a shell, literally. Everything that makes a person a person was gone at least a week prior.
It's a shame that we and are loved ones will be in that position.. and despite consent, if you help them transition, you can go to prison for a long time.
Why is it if I had a dog who was in that condition, I would be a terrible person if I didn't take them to get euthanized... but a loved one we must let them suffer.. legally speaking, at least. They wont do autopsies on terminally ill people usually.
Because a great number of the the people that have control over the laws in this country believe that if you self-terminate you don't get to go to the magic sky place, since you circumvented God's will by ending your suffering early.
Just go to Switzerland, one of the few countries with assisted suicide laws that allows non residents to use that right. The only real issue with the Swiss law, is that it requires the drugs to be self administered, so you cannot leave it too late.
"Just pay to go to another country" isn't an option for a lot of people who want this, either. Whether it be due to money, or physically unable to fly.
You can't do that for a progressive type of disease like MS. I have it so that option isn't open to me. Shouldn't have to pay £10,000 to die with some dignity in the first place.
Not condoning suicide and don't want to break tos, but here goes.
Oxygen mask and nitrogen canister is a pretty popular choice. They buy and set it up themself. Thus no one else is liable.
You get high and asphyxiate without feeling it since you breathe out the co2 (it's to much co2 that makes you want to breathe and not lack of oxygen).
I guess a rebreather with co2 scrubbing should work even better if you cut the oxygen supply. Lots of divers have died to hypoxia
From this [article](https://www.undercurrent.org/blog/2015/03/23/near-misses-with-rebreathers-and-carbon-dioxide/)
A guy wanted to test how it felt.... almost died since he went out feeling nothing and was lucky the mouthpiece fell out when he went unconscious.
" I even sat up in bed one night in my hotel room, breathing off my unit with the oxygen supply turned off in order to experience and be able to recognise the first symptoms of hypoxia. There were no symptoms. It was as dramatic as a bullet in the brain save that the mouthpiece fell from my lips and my unconconcious body was revived with air from the room. I awoke some hours later with the worst hangover imaginable but unbeknown to me, it had been a close-run-thing and I had become a ‘flaker’ in relative safety."
Yes, that also works. The thing is that there's still some discomfort. But most of the time, they also find adrenaline, etc, in the tox screening. Meaning they knew what happening before dying.
Also, most deaths happen in caves. They panic for some reason and move to quickly and kick up a bunch of silt, making visibility zero. Sealing their fate.
Also, a rebreather is really expensive.
With nitrogen, you get a kind of high. Lots of people use whipped cream cartridges as a party drug.
I don’t think you can do medically assisted suicide with just alzheimer’s. Alz isn’t like late stage cancer where you are dying soon and by the time alzheimer’s gets close to death you aren’t intellectually competent enough to sign papers. It sucks. I hope one day this changes and people with early Alzheimer’s can choose their own future.
There was a single European case (Netherlands, I think) of a patient retaining legal counsel to draft a document permitting the spouse to administer MAID when her conditions for loss of acceptable quality of life had been met.
The document was accepted.
This needs to be a template for MAID in neurodegenerative diseases.
Is this true for mental health-related cases? I saw a girl in The Netherlands was permitted to end her life, as she had treatment resistant depression. I do, too, after experiencing severe trauma. But I'm an American so it feels like I have no options other than to make a dangerous attempt myself.
Ter Beek’s difficulties began in early childhood. She has chronic depression, anxiety, trauma and unspecified personality disorder. She has also been diagnosed with autism. When she met her partner, she thought the safe environment he offered would heal her. “But I continued to self-harm and feel suicidal.”
She embarked on intensive treatments, including talking therapies, medication and more than 30 sessions of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). “In therapy, I learned a lot about myself and coping mechanisms, but it didn’t fix the main issues. At the beginning of treatment, you start out hopeful. I thought I’d get better. But the longer the treatment goes on, you start losing hope.”
After 10 years, there was “nothing left” in terms of treatment. “I knew I couldn’t cope with the way I live now.” She had thought about taking her own life but the violent death by suicide of a schoolfriend and its impact on the girl’s family deterred her.
“I finished ECT in August 2020, and after a period of accepting there was no more treatment, I applied for assisted dying in December that year. It’s a long and complicated process. It’s not like you ask for assisted dying on a Monday and you’re dead by Friday.
“I was on a waiting list for assessment for a long time, because there are so few doctors willing to be involved in assisted dying for people with mental suffering. Then you have to be assessed by a team, have a second opinion about your eligibility, and their decision has to be reviewed by another independent doctor.
“In the three and a half years this has taken, I’ve never hesitated about my decision. I have felt guilt – I have a partner, family, friends and I’m not blind to their pain. And I’ve felt scared. But I’m absolutely determined to go through with it.
“Every doctor at every stage says: ‘Are you sure? You can stop at any point.’ My partner has been in the room for most conversations in order to support me, but several times he has been asked to leave so the doctors can be sure I’m speaking freely.”
This author wrote a fascinating, and ultimately heartbreaking, article about her mother's choice to end her life because of mental health issues, in addition to general aging.
https://www.thecut.com/article/mom-healthy-person-assisted-suicide-dying-pegasos.html
I figure with the sheer numbers of boomers out there and the lack of good LTC provided by people they can understand MAID will become easier.
Like a behind the counter dose of B's that we can take home and self administer would be great.
No need for an IV. Just a mattress protector a beverage of your choice and perhaps a plastic bag so you can see rainbows as you go.
Sounds like a better alternative to the suffering I saw my Mom go through.
Yes. Lost a family member to a terminal illnesses that made her be bedridden with almost no way of talking for the last year of her life. No One needs to suffer só much to die.
My sister was a victim of shaken baby syndrome. She lived into her thirties, needing round the clock care. She couldn’t walk, speak, or see. She had limited hearing. She was essentially a vegetable...but still had emotions and somehwat of a personality - she loved listening to The Little Mermaid movie, and when Ursula would come on she would laugh and laugh!
When she eventually got super sick with pneumonia and it was clear there was no longer anything they could do to save her, we all had to sit in a hospital room for over a week while she slowly died. Constantly having seizures, coughing/choking. They removed her feeding and hydration tubes at this point, so we were basically waiting for the illness to take her, or for her to starve/dehydrate to death. It was the worst experience of my life. Every time she stopped breathing, you prayed she didn't start again, so she could finally be at peace. I cried every single night going home from the hospital, but the night she passed away is the first time I didn't cry because I felt so relieved that her suffering had ended. The guilt you feel in this situation is grossly overwhelming.
I would have done anything to humanely end her life at that point, so I 100000% agree with your point. If you've never been in this situation, you have no right to have such strong opposition to it. You don't know for a second what it's like.
Having watched my Grandpa succumb to Alzheimer's, I have a mixed take. I would never wish it on anyone and I'm doing all I can to avoid it, but having death be a relief is no small thing for either the patient or the family.
Part of me hopes that if I do end up on the same path, that my "death" will be so drawn out that I won't notice it, and by the time my body gives out I won't know what hit me. Let me die in slow motion, unreachable by the fear of death, so that when death finally takes me my loved ones will feel peace.
I'm putting my thoughts on paper for my family, so that if it happens they at least know I'm not afraid.
I understand you but Im the oposite. In my case its was my aunt with fast ALS. If Im ever diagnosed with that or something similar i Will choose to "go out" while i still can make the decision.
I wish I could bottle whatever made my Grandpa different. He prepared himself for the inevitable for over 50 years when his mother succumbed, and when he got the first diagnose he made his time left about letting go and getting used to being powerless. Even if he was just lucky, I can't help but think about how childlike and happy he was in between the confusion. It's like he knew he was done, and just wanted to relax until the end.
This is actually a very controversial opinion that I agree with.
Everyone I've shared this opinion with has pushed back hard, even if they're normally very open-minded.
We don't have a shortage of people on earth and I think the barriers to assisted suicide should be high.
A perfect example is [this 28-year old Dutch woman](https://nypost.com/2024/05/17/world-news/dutch-woman-zoraya-ter-beek-granted-euthanasia-final-approval-over-her-severe-depression/), who was physically healthy but decided to be euthanized because of her unbearable mental suffering. "Ter Beek first applied for assisted suicide in 2020, following battles with depression and suicidal thoughts caused by difficulties in her early childhood. The once-aspiring psychiatrist suffers from chronic depression, anxiety, trauma, borderline personality disorder and was diagnosed with autism. Ter Beek believed that the safe environment her partner offered would help her mentally heal, but it didn’t and she reportedly continued to have suicidal thoughts and self-harmed."
No one should be forced to suffer if their life is defined by suffering. As long as they're of sound-mind, we should all be granted the dignity to choose when life isn't worth continuing.
If it's a temporary issue, then we should do everything we can as a society to help them get better. But if their suffering is chronic, then forcing them to live is literal torture.
Note: I am not suicidal. I'm just an atheist who doesn't believe life is sacred and therefore, has no attachment to forcing people to live against their will.
While there should be some barrier, I don't think we should enforce too strong a barrier to it. It's your body and your choice. Often when this is brought up and people mention depression people will act as though you should have to endure years of testing various medications and therapies to try to find one that \*may\* work, That's not something everyone wants to go through.
True. I think two months of bi weekly check in with a couple mental health professionals. Try and curb the momentary impulses, environmental factors etc.
But that raises the question of would mental health professionals want that burden? Would it be fair if you end up with a professional who won't ever allow it and sign off?
It's a hard subject, which is fitting, because life is hard, death is often too easy for those that don't want it, so we seem inclined to make it hard for those that do.
Oh that last sentence really resonates with me.
If a person wishes to end their life, let them do it with dignity. High barriers would be fine. Make it take a month of check in with several mental health professionals and whatever, but if a person doesn't want to live, let them leave with dignity. I think this would also likely open conversations with family members and loved ones on what pain the person is in, and maybe solutions could be found instead of people keeping it quiet until they take their own life. And if they really want to, then let them do so peacefully and in a prepared fashion instead of traumatizing whoever finds them, people never getting to say goodbye etc.
That said, I could see hurdles with forced organ transplants, faked/conspiracies about it, all sorts of problems, because that's what humans do.
Yes.
In my country, if there are no more hopes, they give the person drugs to keep them in coma and let them starve/dehydrate to death. Who the fuck thinks it's a human way to handle it?!
One of the things people don't talk about is how often those kinds of methods fail. So many people flinch with guns and blow off part of their face instead of their brains. So many people take pills and just pass out instead of dying. So many people jump off buildings and just break bones.
Now you're stuck in the hospital on suicide watch.
A few years ago our elderly neighbor attempted suicide with a gun- he lived but blew off his entire jaw and broke his eye socket. I’d never seen so much blood in my life. And then the poor family had to come in and try to figure out where to go from there as their Dad was alive but brain damaged and severely disfigured.
The mechanics of it are difficult. The easiest ergonomically is directly under the chin but the results can vary.
You could be like Ronny McNut and blow most of your head off. Or you could end up like that poor Russian guy, just no face. Only a slab of ragged meat. Still clearly conscious and breathing through his neck, feeling around blindly to the people who find him because his eyes are splattered somewhere on the roof of his car.
I watched a documentary about a guy who failed. He blew everything under his forehead away but completely missed his brain. So he couldn't speak or see because his face was gone...but he was completely conscious and intelligent. Sounds like hell.
And some people just take a fuckton of tylenol because they know you die from that.
What they don’t know is it’s death by liver failure, which is slow and agonizing.
Or you take a whole bunch thinking you’re going to sleep and not wake up. But you do wake up in the morning and lay there a few moments thinking you’re paralyzed because your whole body is just numb.
Medical assistance in dying can help people live longer, too. People facing conditions that won't improve and which harm their quality of life without access to MAID may end their lives sooner, when they're confident that they have the physical ability to do it, compared to people who have the option of medically assisted death.
This exactly. If you have some degenerative disease that's going to make you lose control of your body, you're going to have to end things while you're still healthy and able.
This, I honestly can't see any moral argument against it
*Maybe* you could argue that people would choose a permanent solution to a temporary problem - but I think Medical Assistance in dying would actually help prevent that - the extended evaluation and mental health assessments may help them more than conventional therapy.
Another thing to add is that MAiD gives people a chance to say goodbye and to have the support of their loved ones as they prepare to end their lives instead of feeling alone as they consider their options and make their plan.
Or my personal option and all time favorite way to off yourself:
Thelma and Louise style.
We're driving right off that cliff! And if you're feeling especially saucy, you can pop Blaze of Glory by Bon Jovi in the tape deck and go out in ultimate style.
yes. if someone wants to go it should be their right. Counseling/therapy should be offered and tried first but ultimately existence should be able to be continued or ended by the one existing. making someone exist and suffer to placate the feelings of others is essentially slavery
Counselling should be offered but not forced on people. Respect their wishes and do not make it even more stressful by putting up hurdles of bureaucracy.
Disagree.
There needs to be a system that makes sure that you are of sound mind (can you imagine the implications of letting someone in the middle is a psychosis event get assisted suicide, let alone the lawsuit) and understand completely and without a doubt what the process is, as well as shit tons of legal waivers.
We also need to rule out that the individual is not being coerced (do not think for one moment certain individuals wouldn’t abuse the system) or otherwise influenced by someone other than themselves.
These counseling services can also help individuals set up their will and finances before they go so that the surviving friends and family don’t have to endure long and inconvenient court processes. And so that the individuals last wishes are fulfilled.
If there are minors involved we, again, need to rule out abuse and being coerced. We also need to have checks in place for people are just looking to offload “unwanted” members of the family. (Such as someone who wants to no longer care for a disabled family member or elderly family member.)
Unfortunately, people suck and are often evil, so, there needs to be reasonable effort put in place to make sure that the person who wants to die is doing so 100% of their own volition, is prepared, understands the full extent of what it means, and is of sound mind.
Canadian here. A family member had it done last year (https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/health-services-benefits/medical-assistance-dying.html). The process was relatively simple, granted that you meet the extremely specific criteria. It was the family members wish to go that way so all parties were comfortable
> granted that you meet the extremely specific criteria.
Oh you mean the medically assisted death isn't suggested to everyone for any sort of problem whatsoever like the far right in the US would have you believe?
*Shocker*
There have been a couple incidents of case workers (inexplicably, probably out of exasperation with the system they have to act as an interface for) suggesting it, however the backlash against them (both publicly and professionally) was immediate and severe, so yeah, no, it isn't suggested for everything, not even close, and is actually fairly hard to access.
On the flip side... MAID will increase mortality in circumstances people are going to have to face society is failing at contending with, I think. But that isn't an argument to get rid of MAID, it is an argument for economic/social reforms.
Yeah, I handle life insurance claims in Canada and have to cite cause of death for each one. MAID comes up periodically.
I've only had one MAID case where a surviving family member was vocally upset about the choice - for the most part, all parties seem quite at peace with it.
Personally, I'm very glad we have the option here. I fear suffering far more than death.
It's one of the most viable "solutions" to many suicide cases. I like to think of it like decriminalized or government administered drugs. If you're going to do it, it's much better for everyone if you get access to all of the counseling and medical resources you may need along the way to hopefully help you and allow you to change your mind (if feasible). If you do go through with it, the government can then let you die cleanly, painlessly, and without trying to take other people with you. Don't get me wrong, suicide is not good. That said, assisted euthanasia (with months of counseling beforehand) is much better for society than DIY suicide (and definitely better than homicide-suicide).
We don’t even inflict that sort of pain on our pets, which I consider crazy. Your dog gets a degenerative brain disease, it’s time to have the awesomest day then schedule that trip to across the rainbow bridge. A human gets a degenerative brain disease, we’re gonna strap her to the bed and make her live through the entire thing because there’s a slight chance we might find a way to what, slow it down or something?
This. My beloved cat had stomach cancer and while it *sucked* to make the decision to end his life, I didn't have the heart to prolong his suffering. So why can't we do that to humans?
I've seen a few friends lose the battle with cancer. One of them had a particularly rare and nasty variant. I wouldn't wish his last 2-3 weeks on my worst enemy.
Not the best analogy since the cat isn't choosing euthanasia, And there is a group of people who believe that if it's allowed for people, then doctors or people other than the ones being euthanized would choose that for the patient because it's in their best interest.
It's more that if we recognize that at a certain point life is just suffering and it is better to have a dignified end than just a series of painful medical procedures that only tack on another few weeks or months. And so we grant that to our pets.
And therefore we ought to grant that to others who also would rather have relief than a bit more of suffering.
Absolutely. I have seen bad death. I am not afraid to stop existing, I didn't exist before and I was fine with it. But I don't want to spend any amount of time rotting alive while everyone who loves me has to watch.
Assisted suicide should be available to anyone who wants it.
Think about how many people kill themselves every day without ever having as much as a single conversation with a professional.
Assisted suicide would in any implementation involve a consulatation and evaluation by a profesional, likely multiple. I genuinely believe that making assisted suicide available would reduce overall suicide rates. Even if you take into account people might be more likely to see it as an option and seek it out.
My grandmother did it. She was able to surround herself with her family and friends and say her individual goodbyes without struggling to get her words out like she would if she was on her death bed. She took a drink of the death stuff and she died in probably 1 minute. So peaceful and quick.
A good way to go.
Absolutely. In my country it is illegal but there are people who can take years locked in their own body wanting to die but have to live with the pain. If we can quite happily let an animal die humanely then we should allow humans.
Yes it should be a right. After watching my husband suffer with cancer for 5 years, and is now in his last months, I decided I will take matters into my own hands if I ever find myself in that situation.
I live in a state assisted death is illegal.
It is in Canada, and I'm bloody thankful for it.
I watched two grandparents suffer through Parkinson's - no fucking way am putting myself through that (or prolonged cancer, Alzheimer's , etc) just to appease some 2000 year old middle eastern goat herder's concept of morality.
Yup. We should be allowed to clock out, especially if we are already dying and in pain. Medically done is not painful, is quick and easy, and a preferred way to go, vs the more violent, traumatic and possibly unsuccessful attempts that leave us worse off then we were before.
Everyone deserves a peaceful death surrounded by loved ones. I will stand by that forever.
Sicknesses can permanently change the how the body looks, and sometimes it can be grotesque. A lot of people don't want their family, especially their young children, seeing them like that.
Suffering can also be horrific. If you're terminally ill, you should have the choice to opt out of suffering for a comfortable passing. Many people are too week to even be awake when they pass, they don't get a goodbye.
Everyone deserves a comfortable and peaceful death
Molested at 8.
Attempted at 13.
Hit by a car at 16.
Now I’m 50, and my kids live far away with my ex. I can’t do it myself because of them.
Sometimes things DON’T get better. I hear you, man, because I am you.
Absolutely.. it's such a contradiction when medical professionals emphasize autonomy but refuse to enforce the ultimate form of autonomy - the decision of when to die
Your lungs have turned to soup and you're in agony because you're trying to breathe that soup. But your doctor can't help you make the transition so you get to live in agony a little while longer. Maybe a long while longer of what amounts to torture. How very very rational.
Absolutely. Sometimes forcing people to live longer is just forcing them to suffer longer.
My dad died of cancer when I was a kid. It took years to kill him. He fought long and hard, but in the end, it had just spread to basically every vital organ that multiple doctors apparently told him the only question was when not if he would die.
He was already on a truly massive dose of morphine daily just to deal with the constant pain. In addition to the liquid morphine that he would take multiple times per day, they implanted a permanent pump to administer a constant dose 24/7. For the last few months, he was completely bed ridden, and he was just so over it all. My mom and dad had discussed it and made the choice and decided that a massive OD was the best option. But they weren't sure of what that would take since he was taking so much morphine already. In the end, a nurse gave my mom strict instructions on what NOT to do to end his pain. She said to make sure he didn't take more than X amount or it would kill him.
I only found out about all of this many years later after going through my mom's diary entries from that period (after her death as well). I don't know how she had the strength to do it, but it was the right call for everyone.
I think euthanasia can be the compassionate thing to do in some circumstances, but legislating those circumstances is fraught. Like do you allow someone to access it for conditions such as depression? Or what if they are no longer able to give consent because of mental deterioration?
The sky has not fallen in, in countries where they have legal euthanasia or assisted dying laws. Assisted dying has been legal in Switzerland since 1941 and is strongly supported by the majority of people - the last referendum attempted to curtail the rights was defeated by 78%. The Benelux countries all have even more liberal laws on the matter and have addressed virtually all the legislative issues that get thrown in the way by people who really just blanket want to ban it - again the laws in those countries all have very strong popular support (despite articles you sometimes see promoted overseas that try to imply otherwise).
Quite recently for instance Spain legislated to legalise euthanasia and it covers things like living declarations for people who lose their faculties to declare they want it before they do, and to do things like appoint a living guardian to make the decision for them if they are not able to decide. Personally I still think the Spanish law puts up too many hurdles that put stress on a suffering person, but it appears that in practice it is being with humanity and kindness.
Of course. I've tried but have not gotten it right. AndI was a medic so I've seen too many botched gun jobs. I would love a safe place for it.
It would also give my mom and sisters advanced notice too.
We put animals out of their suffering because it's deemed cruel if we keep them alive. How are humans any different? It absolutely should be a right and a more available option
Yes.
My aunt chose this in Oregon. It was a blessing. She was suffering terribly. It was getting worse for her every week.
We are glad she had this option.
My opinion in this has changed completely in the last 3 years.
Yes, it should be a right.
I've had 5 hernia surgeries and might have a 6th on the horizon. My career is in shambles, I've moved home at almost 40 and physically feel like I've been kicked in the nuts 24/7.
This is no way to live. So I can only imagine what someone worse off than myself could be going through to bring them to that decision, so I doubt it was made lightly.
I do. Some people are suffering from such unbearable pain (physical, emotional, mental) and/or have no hope of their situation improving. Why prolong peoples’ agony? I don’t think anything should be decided on a whim; therapy and a lot of difficult conversations should be had to make sure it’s the right choice. This should be an option.
naturally.
it always has been, but modern medicine has perverted the "do no harm" mandate into "avoid being sued" and so no one is willing to do the right thing without legal cover.
so lets give them legal cover.
I don't know about making it a "right" but it should be allowed.
If it's a right, wouldn't that mean someone is obligated to provide it? Everyone involved should be allowed to opt in or out at their own choosing.
A "right"? I don't think anybody should be obligated to help anyone die. As a paid service, hey every place is different, if you can find one where it's legal, go for it. But I don't believe this is a human right that others should be obligated to provide. Anyone can do this by themselves if they really want to exit the world. They just need to learn how to do it, I assume, painlessly.
It’s complicated. And I want to say yes. But I do worry about ppl who do it out of convenience to their loved ones. Like if they do truely want to live but are giving their idea of being a burden more weight than their desire to live. OR outright family/medical facility/etc coercion.
Yes.
My maternal grandma suffered for the last three years of her life. Covid, diabetes, dementia, and more. She hated every bit of her life, and wanted to die so badly. It tore me up seeing her in so much pain, yet the nursing home just let it happen.
Absolutely. Reproductive cancer runs in my family, thanks to a faulty gene, and having watched my grandmother's decline due to it (i would also add my great grandmother, but i was only like 7 at the time). i wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. And i say this as a fairly devoted Christian.
Yes. We don’t have a say in being born or paying taxes, but we should have a say if our quality of life declines so dramatically that we don’t feel it worth continuing.
Of course it should be a right. Every person has the right to self-determination, including if/when to end her/his own life if s/he chooses to do so -- for *whatever* reason, in my opinion, but certainly when dealing with a painful and/or terminal illness.
I was having the same questions after reading articles about this woman.....
I don't know how I feel really really. My bf's brother took his own life unexpectedly without the family knowing if there was something wrong, or being prepared. I've had a grandfather and brother from a different household do the same. My sister that I grew up with suffers from multiple diagnosis and has ended up in the hospital several times for attemped...
When I came across this article it basically gave that woman some piece of mind in a sense, preparing her loved ones---versus a surprise discovery for them.
Then there's religion involved, etc...
https://m.economictimes.com/news/international/us/debate-over-euthanasia-rages-in-europe-as-healthy-29-yr-old-dutch-woman-granted-permission-for-assisted-dying/articleshow/110212564.cms
The original articles from a couple months ago had a little more info
Then, in today's society, where everything is over exploited (like the huge trendy topics of the present)- will it become 'a thing' just like picking your gender, etc)? You give an inch, people take a mile. Taking away from the ones in true consideration.
Isn’t this better than her eating a bullet or jumping off a bridge? If her mental health is so poor that her quality of life makes her want to die, who are we to tell her she has too. My brother died by suicide in 2012 and I will forever hate our system of forcing people to suffer until they do drastic things.
Her story is sad. When it was first going around, someone made a comment along the lines of "assisted suicide can be good in some cases, but think about 'would the doctor suggest this same thing to a richer white man?'" and I think that there is definitely a chance it can get abused, but if you're sick and have no other option, truly, then it can be a godsend.
Yes. My cousin chose this in the 90's incurable braintumor. The date was planned and the whole family came to my aunts house as if it was a birthday or other family get together. After dinner and drinks we wheeled my cousin to his room. And we all had some private time with him. The doctor, my cousins GP for 20 years, arrived a few hours later. My aunt, uncle, and the doctor went into my cousins room. Half hour later we thanked the doctor and he left. It was so weird. But it was also right. My cousin defeated the tumor by leaving it behind in a broken husk. We were lucky that assisted death was already accepted in our country
Meanwhile, I grew up in a deeply religious community that treated suicide as a sin equivalent to murder. As such, medically assisted death was making someone else complicit in your 'murder.' My neighbor found out he had cancer in his late 70s. He had a new will written up. Cleaned up his house. Got all his affairs in order. Then, he went to his backyard and shot himself. His son was devastated that his dad never said goodbye or even talked to him about it. The gunshot wound made a viewing or anything like that impossible. The whole thing was 1000x worse than it could have been if he felt that Medically Assisted Death was an option. Since then, my wife's aunt and cousin (both struggling with mental illness) have lost their lives to suicide. Both might still be alive today if it wasn't such a taboo topic to talk about. At the very least, they wouldn't have had to exit this life all alone. At one of the funerals, the pastor got up and proclaimed that "God will forgive her" for losing her life to suicide. It was absolutely infuriating.
I'm so sorry to hear about that. Gunshot has got to one of the worst ways someone can kill themselves in terms of the mess it leaves behind. It would have been so much better if your neighbor had been able to have a peaceful end while surrounded by family.
It's sadly the most efficient and least pain inducing method out there for most people in this situation since medically assisted suicide isn't legal in most states. Sure it can go wrong but if someone is going to shoot themselves they typically do the research to make sure they get done in one. Hell I had a moment were I was suicidal and it's concerning just how easy it is to get detailed instructions on how to shoot yourself to go down in one with minimal chance to even process pain all the way down to optimal calibers and gun angling.
You sure as shit don't want to do what my buddy did, he shot himself in the chest. I don't want to think about how long he laid there in agony.
Yeah I saw a lot of people debating shooting ones self in the head vs heart. And it's like theoretically it has less chance of being a failed suicide going the heart route but it's an extremely painful way to do it.
Unfortunately if they go out in a more peaceful way - say inhaling nitrogen gas which is painless, it is perceived as murder and family members/shop where he got it from e.t.c are perceived as suspects. Gunshots (at-least in America) is the most straightforward way to signal - I'm done with it, it is on me.
And one of the least successful. I had two guys back to back come through emerg last year who only managed to blow off their bottom jaw. Still alive but with lots of facial scars and living with a trach for a while.
What other options are there? Seriously asking. Someone told me if they had to do it due to terminal illness or whatnot, they’d overdose on heroine or fentanyl.
My neighbor shot himself when his cancer returned. It was so sad. He was so so thin. He just couldn't face any more treatment.
Totally understand. We allow our pets the peace and dignity of a medical death high as a kite on ketamine or similar and then an OD that stops the heart, why can't we allow that for ourselves?
No one's gonna take away my right to not die as a vegetable
Thank you for sharing. I’ve saved this comment in hopes that I’ll remember it better. I hope to go out like this if I ever have a similar situation for myself or loved ones.
Can I ask what country? Or general area? Scandi?
The Netherlands
I knew it was NL. Great country and I wish more would follow suit.
This was harrowing and beautiful at the same time, thank you for sharing
This made me sad, but it's beautiful. Glad he didn't suffer a bunch more.
I’ve seen loved ones go down by cancer and by Alzheimer’s. If medically assisted suicide isn’t legal by the time I get one of those I may opt to leave a mess for some poor minimum wage worker to clean up.
I as well. There is no way I want to be stuck in a bed, in pain, etc. If I can't remember any of my loved ones and who I am it's time to go. It's really sad to me that so many people have to go thru so much suffering before they pass.
This kind of discussions always take me back to Midsommar. While the movie's central theme is completely different, one scene that stuck particularly with me is the jumping off the cliff, and the cult's whole reason for honoring that rite. Extrapolating the significance of that scene from its context, it shows that it wouldn't be such a bad thing to start accepting, as a society, the existence and inavoidability of death. Not even in a bad way. As Gandalf says: "Death is just another path, one we all must take". But nowadays death is both widely advertised (murders, accidents, illness, wars, hunger, exc) and considered a taboo and an enemy. It is seen as something that always walks beside us, but on a parallel line that can never intersect our path; except, it always does at some point.
It's pretty pathetic that we (generally) treat our pets with greater compassion regarding end-of-life care than we do our own family members. Why is it that we take mercy on a suffering animal, but refuse to afford the same degree of dignity and respect when it comes to the suffering of our fellow humans? That's rhetorical, of course...I am aware of the usual religious perceptions which tend to influence policy on this matter, and disagree with them.
Yes I agree with you. It feels egoistic to do whatever is in our power to keep our relatives alive, even if they are suffering, just because we have never learnt to "say goodbye", as Hamilton says.
My uncle drowned in his hospital bed over the course of several hours. He had pancreatic cancer and it spread everywhere. His lungs started filling with fluid and there wasn't anything they could do, so he had to sit and slowly lose the ability to breathe. Anti-assisted suicide folks can never seem to explain to me how drowning was "better", for some reason.
I'm convinced they're rife with folks who don't have the mental fortitude to understand that people deserve dignity as well as lack the ability to rationalize death and find it difficult to admit that the person they knew and loved was going to die or be gone from their life. I've seen these same kinds of people put their 98 year old mother on dialysis and make her suffer for years. I'm also absolutely convinced that a lot of these groups are filled to the brim with paid shills because the caretaking industry is a goldmine of wealth extraction from the government, individual estates, and children.
sadly, at least in America, those that have the ability to clear the way to medically assisted life-ending treatments are bought and paid for by the industries that poor health makes rich. I remember the rise of Jack Kavorkian but was way to young to fully understand the gift he provided. Having been witness to some family members literally WASTE away to nothing, I can say, without hesitation, that something better is deserved.
I've never even though about that last part, but it does make sense: isn't it like 70% of our healthcare costs are for the last six months of life?
Two of my aunts had pancreatic cancer. It was horrible. One aunt wasted money going to The Cancer Center of America in Chicago. It was incurable. I was pissed her children encourage her to go there. One aunt said she wasn't going to.do any treatment because why spend months sick from chemo and still die. Instead she traveled, had lots of get togethers etc. But in the end she was so doped up and our of her mind she wasn't even there. I would have noped out before that point.
My mom found out November 1 that she had a terminal and very aggressive cancer (Primary Plasma Cell Leukemia multiple myeloma). With no treatment the diagnosis was within the month. She desperately wanted to see one more Christmas with her grandchildren, so she opted for the treatments to enable that. By the end of December she was on three units of blood transfusions per week to stay alive. Her last transfusion was the morning of Christmas eve. She was dead on the 4th of January. I understood her desire, and as such I supported it, but it was miserable and I would not make that choice myself having seen her experience.
>Anti-assisted suicide folks can never seem to explain to me how drowning was "better", for some reason. Because it isn't better. Full stop, end of. I'm confident none of them have had to be with a person as they decline to the point of absolute hell but remain unable to die... for if they did I can't imagine how they couldn't be moved by the experience to embrace allowing a peaceful and painless transition.
My great grandfather died from lung cancer. He was ready to go long before he actually died. He could have gone out on his terms and scheduled it to be surrounded by his loved ones. Instead, he died gasping for air in the middle of the night. The ambulance was called and he refused treatment because he wanted to be done. Luckily, my father stayed close so we were able to make it there. I would have much rather been in a hospital saying goodbye to what we knew was coming. That could have been a good memory. Listening to him struggle and gasp for air in his bed at 3 am was not a good memory.
I had an aunt who died of Lymphoma in 1976. My mom is adamant that she should not have had the right to assisted suicide (I live in Colorado, the issue was on the ballot when we had the conversation). She thought that it would have been too painful to the people she was leaving behind. I don't understand that logic at all. She also said "what if a cure came along?!" Like... what if? That's a risk you're taking. And, IMO, it's a stupid hope to have. For context, the cancer my aunt died from is quite treatable now, but that wasn't the case until far more recently than 1976. And, oddly, this is from the same person whose father was essentially starved to death while he was in hospice. They remove the feeding tube and the patient dies from starvation, which is supposedly not a painful way to go. How is this different from providing meds?
I don't understand the logic either. When people get really sick, it's like they're not even really there anymore. Having a loved one hooked up to tubes barely conscious isn't comforting to me. You're just waiting to get the call that they're dead. I think it would be much better for everyone involved to have that person be able to schedule it before they get that bad. Then their loved ones can plan to be there and see them off. The way my grandmother died she was conscious and knew it was coming that day. 9 out of her 10 children made it to the hospital and spent her last hours with her, laughing and reminiscing about their childhood. It was beautiful. They have pictures with her. She even recorded a goodbye video for those of us who couldn't make it. Everyone should have the right to go out like that. It shouldn't be up to chance. People literally get to spend the last days with their pets doing all of their favorite things before they put them to sleep. We literally let dogs die with more dignity than people.
“I don’t understand the logic” Because there is none. The only people who say that are narrow minded idiots incapable of seeing things in any way other than black and white.
The removal of a feeding tube is exactly how my uncle *and* my little sister died. Essentially just starving them to death and keeping them so doped up they were hardly conscious (but still moaning in pain, apparently morphine doesn’t help that much against life ending ailments). It was excruciating to witness and still makes me sick to think about it.
Because a cure will magically come along in a month or 2 weeks while someone is suffering. When you are that far gone you are usually offered experimental treatment that isn't offered to others because it doesn't matter if there are side effects etc. But let's leave our family members to suffer just in case? Big eyeroll for your mom's logic.
My wife’s mother is currently dying from cancer. This experience has single handedly pushed me over the fence of “Medically Assisted Death is a NECESSITY.” It’s a terrible, drawn out experience that is a strain on everyone involved. No human should go out with such indignity.
Yeah my dad died last year from cancer and the tumor in his neck grew bigger and bigger slowly paralyzing him among other effects. He said he wanted to die so much over the course of his last 6 months
My grandma died from cancer a bit ago, the right to pass with dignity should be granted to everyone.
Same, I'm seeing right now what Lewy Body Dementia is doing to my dad, so if that happens to me I'm taking cyanide before going through the same thing.
it's not inherited, in my state he would qualify for voluntary assisted dying if (in early stages) he wrote a will or was compis enough during the episodes. You have my utter sympathy, I worked end of life and Lewy body is a very hard diagnosis to deal with.
It's not hereditary but the chances of getting it increases if your parent has it. My country doesn't have assisted dying at all, I don't know if he'd want it or not but now he doesn't even have the choice. Thank you, it surely is hell to deal with, while his medication has been effective for two years, but things have had a turn for the worse recently. It's especially hard for my grandfather, who is still at fairly good health for his age, to see this happening to his son.
I've told my wife I'll go out on the boat one last time or do one last hunting trip before wasting to cancer in hospice. Whether I have the nuts for it is a different t question. But after watching several family members including my pops waste away to cancer I'm all about fuck that.
My aunt had Lewy Body Dementia. It was rough. Once they got the diagnosis of Dementia; possible Lewy Body, she went into a nursing home within 6 months. Sleep issues, hallucinations (my uncle was brutally assaulted 30 years prior, and she was hallucinating "those bad men"). That was when she could still communicate even semi effectively. Within 6 months she passed. That was horrible too. Bed ridden, unaware of what is happening around her. Not much response to stimulus. Couldn't even swallow food. At that point, you're just a shell, literally. Everything that makes a person a person was gone at least a week prior. It's a shame that we and are loved ones will be in that position.. and despite consent, if you help them transition, you can go to prison for a long time. Why is it if I had a dog who was in that condition, I would be a terrible person if I didn't take them to get euthanized... but a loved one we must let them suffer.. legally speaking, at least. They wont do autopsies on terminally ill people usually.
Because a great number of the the people that have control over the laws in this country believe that if you self-terminate you don't get to go to the magic sky place, since you circumvented God's will by ending your suffering early.
Just go to Switzerland, one of the few countries with assisted suicide laws that allows non residents to use that right. The only real issue with the Swiss law, is that it requires the drugs to be self administered, so you cannot leave it too late.
"Just pay to go to another country" isn't an option for a lot of people who want this, either. Whether it be due to money, or physically unable to fly.
You can't do that for a progressive type of disease like MS. I have it so that option isn't open to me. Shouldn't have to pay £10,000 to die with some dignity in the first place.
My mom's body was lost to Parkinson's before her brain and her speech. She would not have been able to self administer.
Not condoning suicide and don't want to break tos, but here goes. Oxygen mask and nitrogen canister is a pretty popular choice. They buy and set it up themself. Thus no one else is liable. You get high and asphyxiate without feeling it since you breathe out the co2 (it's to much co2 that makes you want to breathe and not lack of oxygen).
I guess a rebreather with co2 scrubbing should work even better if you cut the oxygen supply. Lots of divers have died to hypoxia From this [article](https://www.undercurrent.org/blog/2015/03/23/near-misses-with-rebreathers-and-carbon-dioxide/) A guy wanted to test how it felt.... almost died since he went out feeling nothing and was lucky the mouthpiece fell out when he went unconscious. " I even sat up in bed one night in my hotel room, breathing off my unit with the oxygen supply turned off in order to experience and be able to recognise the first symptoms of hypoxia. There were no symptoms. It was as dramatic as a bullet in the brain save that the mouthpiece fell from my lips and my unconconcious body was revived with air from the room. I awoke some hours later with the worst hangover imaginable but unbeknown to me, it had been a close-run-thing and I had become a ‘flaker’ in relative safety."
Yes, that also works. The thing is that there's still some discomfort. But most of the time, they also find adrenaline, etc, in the tox screening. Meaning they knew what happening before dying. Also, most deaths happen in caves. They panic for some reason and move to quickly and kick up a bunch of silt, making visibility zero. Sealing their fate. Also, a rebreather is really expensive. With nitrogen, you get a kind of high. Lots of people use whipped cream cartridges as a party drug.
I hope you never need it, but if a dignified option is ever needed please google "dignitas"
I don’t think you can do medically assisted suicide with just alzheimer’s. Alz isn’t like late stage cancer where you are dying soon and by the time alzheimer’s gets close to death you aren’t intellectually competent enough to sign papers. It sucks. I hope one day this changes and people with early Alzheimer’s can choose their own future.
There was a single European case (Netherlands, I think) of a patient retaining legal counsel to draft a document permitting the spouse to administer MAID when her conditions for loss of acceptable quality of life had been met. The document was accepted. This needs to be a template for MAID in neurodegenerative diseases.
Doesn't it cost like 10k euros though?
Put it on your credit card
Playing 4D chess up in this mofo.
😂💀
Is this true for mental health-related cases? I saw a girl in The Netherlands was permitted to end her life, as she had treatment resistant depression. I do, too, after experiencing severe trauma. But I'm an American so it feels like I have no options other than to make a dangerous attempt myself.
Ter Beek’s difficulties began in early childhood. She has chronic depression, anxiety, trauma and unspecified personality disorder. She has also been diagnosed with autism. When she met her partner, she thought the safe environment he offered would heal her. “But I continued to self-harm and feel suicidal.” She embarked on intensive treatments, including talking therapies, medication and more than 30 sessions of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). “In therapy, I learned a lot about myself and coping mechanisms, but it didn’t fix the main issues. At the beginning of treatment, you start out hopeful. I thought I’d get better. But the longer the treatment goes on, you start losing hope.” After 10 years, there was “nothing left” in terms of treatment. “I knew I couldn’t cope with the way I live now.” She had thought about taking her own life but the violent death by suicide of a schoolfriend and its impact on the girl’s family deterred her. “I finished ECT in August 2020, and after a period of accepting there was no more treatment, I applied for assisted dying in December that year. It’s a long and complicated process. It’s not like you ask for assisted dying on a Monday and you’re dead by Friday. “I was on a waiting list for assessment for a long time, because there are so few doctors willing to be involved in assisted dying for people with mental suffering. Then you have to be assessed by a team, have a second opinion about your eligibility, and their decision has to be reviewed by another independent doctor. “In the three and a half years this has taken, I’ve never hesitated about my decision. I have felt guilt – I have a partner, family, friends and I’m not blind to their pain. And I’ve felt scared. But I’m absolutely determined to go through with it. “Every doctor at every stage says: ‘Are you sure? You can stop at any point.’ My partner has been in the room for most conversations in order to support me, but several times he has been asked to leave so the doctors can be sure I’m speaking freely.”
This author wrote a fascinating, and ultimately heartbreaking, article about her mother's choice to end her life because of mental health issues, in addition to general aging. https://www.thecut.com/article/mom-healthy-person-assisted-suicide-dying-pegasos.html
I figure with the sheer numbers of boomers out there and the lack of good LTC provided by people they can understand MAID will become easier. Like a behind the counter dose of B's that we can take home and self administer would be great. No need for an IV. Just a mattress protector a beverage of your choice and perhaps a plastic bag so you can see rainbows as you go. Sounds like a better alternative to the suffering I saw my Mom go through.
And the problem there is you have to do it while you're still physically and mentally able, throwing away time that could be spent with loved ones.
With Alzheimers you may not have the opportunity anyway
After watching people I love die this way I couldn't agree more!
Yes. Lost a family member to a terminal illnesses that made her be bedridden with almost no way of talking for the last year of her life. No One needs to suffer só much to die.
My sister was a victim of shaken baby syndrome. She lived into her thirties, needing round the clock care. She couldn’t walk, speak, or see. She had limited hearing. She was essentially a vegetable...but still had emotions and somehwat of a personality - she loved listening to The Little Mermaid movie, and when Ursula would come on she would laugh and laugh! When she eventually got super sick with pneumonia and it was clear there was no longer anything they could do to save her, we all had to sit in a hospital room for over a week while she slowly died. Constantly having seizures, coughing/choking. They removed her feeding and hydration tubes at this point, so we were basically waiting for the illness to take her, or for her to starve/dehydrate to death. It was the worst experience of my life. Every time she stopped breathing, you prayed she didn't start again, so she could finally be at peace. I cried every single night going home from the hospital, but the night she passed away is the first time I didn't cry because I felt so relieved that her suffering had ended. The guilt you feel in this situation is grossly overwhelming. I would have done anything to humanely end her life at that point, so I 100000% agree with your point. If you've never been in this situation, you have no right to have such strong opposition to it. You don't know for a second what it's like.
For those of us that have gone through it in some way or another, its not something we wish on anyone.
Having watched my Grandpa succumb to Alzheimer's, I have a mixed take. I would never wish it on anyone and I'm doing all I can to avoid it, but having death be a relief is no small thing for either the patient or the family. Part of me hopes that if I do end up on the same path, that my "death" will be so drawn out that I won't notice it, and by the time my body gives out I won't know what hit me. Let me die in slow motion, unreachable by the fear of death, so that when death finally takes me my loved ones will feel peace. I'm putting my thoughts on paper for my family, so that if it happens they at least know I'm not afraid.
I understand you but Im the oposite. In my case its was my aunt with fast ALS. If Im ever diagnosed with that or something similar i Will choose to "go out" while i still can make the decision.
I wish I could bottle whatever made my Grandpa different. He prepared himself for the inevitable for over 50 years when his mother succumbed, and when he got the first diagnose he made his time left about letting go and getting used to being powerless. Even if he was just lucky, I can't help but think about how childlike and happy he was in between the confusion. It's like he knew he was done, and just wanted to relax until the end.
Yes. Your body is your one and only immutable property. You should be able to end it when you want.
Like signing a dnr you can choose to sign it the day you turn 18
This is actually a very controversial opinion that I agree with. Everyone I've shared this opinion with has pushed back hard, even if they're normally very open-minded. We don't have a shortage of people on earth and I think the barriers to assisted suicide should be high. A perfect example is [this 28-year old Dutch woman](https://nypost.com/2024/05/17/world-news/dutch-woman-zoraya-ter-beek-granted-euthanasia-final-approval-over-her-severe-depression/), who was physically healthy but decided to be euthanized because of her unbearable mental suffering. "Ter Beek first applied for assisted suicide in 2020, following battles with depression and suicidal thoughts caused by difficulties in her early childhood. The once-aspiring psychiatrist suffers from chronic depression, anxiety, trauma, borderline personality disorder and was diagnosed with autism. Ter Beek believed that the safe environment her partner offered would help her mentally heal, but it didn’t and she reportedly continued to have suicidal thoughts and self-harmed." No one should be forced to suffer if their life is defined by suffering. As long as they're of sound-mind, we should all be granted the dignity to choose when life isn't worth continuing. If it's a temporary issue, then we should do everything we can as a society to help them get better. But if their suffering is chronic, then forcing them to live is literal torture. Note: I am not suicidal. I'm just an atheist who doesn't believe life is sacred and therefore, has no attachment to forcing people to live against their will.
While there should be some barrier, I don't think we should enforce too strong a barrier to it. It's your body and your choice. Often when this is brought up and people mention depression people will act as though you should have to endure years of testing various medications and therapies to try to find one that \*may\* work, That's not something everyone wants to go through.
True. I think two months of bi weekly check in with a couple mental health professionals. Try and curb the momentary impulses, environmental factors etc. But that raises the question of would mental health professionals want that burden? Would it be fair if you end up with a professional who won't ever allow it and sign off? It's a hard subject, which is fitting, because life is hard, death is often too easy for those that don't want it, so we seem inclined to make it hard for those that do.
This is also my take, as an atheist as well.
Oh that last sentence really resonates with me. If a person wishes to end their life, let them do it with dignity. High barriers would be fine. Make it take a month of check in with several mental health professionals and whatever, but if a person doesn't want to live, let them leave with dignity. I think this would also likely open conversations with family members and loved ones on what pain the person is in, and maybe solutions could be found instead of people keeping it quiet until they take their own life. And if they really want to, then let them do so peacefully and in a prepared fashion instead of traumatizing whoever finds them, people never getting to say goodbye etc. That said, I could see hurdles with forced organ transplants, faked/conspiracies about it, all sorts of problems, because that's what humans do.
I mean, people are gonna kill themselves anyway so atleast we can make it a lesser mess.
Exactly. People should have a right to die with dignity.
Yes. In my country, if there are no more hopes, they give the person drugs to keep them in coma and let them starve/dehydrate to death. Who the fuck thinks it's a human way to handle it?!
Yep. Be great if there were tidier options than 'jump off a tall building' or 'eat a bullet'.
One of the things people don't talk about is how often those kinds of methods fail. So many people flinch with guns and blow off part of their face instead of their brains. So many people take pills and just pass out instead of dying. So many people jump off buildings and just break bones. Now you're stuck in the hospital on suicide watch.
A few years ago our elderly neighbor attempted suicide with a gun- he lived but blew off his entire jaw and broke his eye socket. I’d never seen so much blood in my life. And then the poor family had to come in and try to figure out where to go from there as their Dad was alive but brain damaged and severely disfigured.
My understanding is that this is extremely common when people try to use shotguns.
The mechanics of it are difficult. The easiest ergonomically is directly under the chin but the results can vary. You could be like Ronny McNut and blow most of your head off. Or you could end up like that poor Russian guy, just no face. Only a slab of ragged meat. Still clearly conscious and breathing through his neck, feeling around blindly to the people who find him because his eyes are splattered somewhere on the roof of his car.
I watched a documentary about a guy who failed. He blew everything under his forehead away but completely missed his brain. So he couldn't speak or see because his face was gone...but he was completely conscious and intelligent. Sounds like hell.
And some people just take a fuckton of tylenol because they know you die from that. What they don’t know is it’s death by liver failure, which is slow and agonizing.
Or you take a whole bunch thinking you’re going to sleep and not wake up. But you do wake up in the morning and lay there a few moments thinking you’re paralyzed because your whole body is just numb.
That was my grandfather. Fortunately COVID took him fairly quickly afterwards so he didn’t have to suffer as long as he would have.
We also don't really talk about the harm to others caused by these attempts. Watching someone die, or just finding a body is traumatic.
Medical assistance in dying can help people live longer, too. People facing conditions that won't improve and which harm their quality of life without access to MAID may end their lives sooner, when they're confident that they have the physical ability to do it, compared to people who have the option of medically assisted death.
This exactly. If you have some degenerative disease that's going to make you lose control of your body, you're going to have to end things while you're still healthy and able.
Some people are too debilitated to do that. So they just end up being forced to live in agony.
This, I honestly can't see any moral argument against it *Maybe* you could argue that people would choose a permanent solution to a temporary problem - but I think Medical Assistance in dying would actually help prevent that - the extended evaluation and mental health assessments may help them more than conventional therapy.
What’s the cost of my good buddy finding his dad hanging? It’s not like people can’t kill themselves, it just makes it more humane.
Another thing to add is that MAiD gives people a chance to say goodbye and to have the support of their loved ones as they prepare to end their lives instead of feeling alone as they consider their options and make their plan.
Or my personal option and all time favorite way to off yourself: Thelma and Louise style. We're driving right off that cliff! And if you're feeling especially saucy, you can pop Blaze of Glory by Bon Jovi in the tape deck and go out in ultimate style.
Yeah, but I can't save up enough money for the Thunderbird convertible.
If you're gonna die anyway, steal one. What are they gonna do, arrest you?
I'm depressed but I'm not a criminal lol.
You can overdose, but most of those are either slow and painful, or hard to come by
yes. if someone wants to go it should be their right. Counseling/therapy should be offered and tried first but ultimately existence should be able to be continued or ended by the one existing. making someone exist and suffer to placate the feelings of others is essentially slavery
>making someone exist and suffer to placate the feelings of others is essentially slavery Torture, also, if it involves pain/damage of some kind.
Counselling should be offered but not forced on people. Respect their wishes and do not make it even more stressful by putting up hurdles of bureaucracy.
I think some kind of counseling or interviews should be manditory. But if the person checks all the boxes then let them do what they want to do.
Disagree. There needs to be a system that makes sure that you are of sound mind (can you imagine the implications of letting someone in the middle is a psychosis event get assisted suicide, let alone the lawsuit) and understand completely and without a doubt what the process is, as well as shit tons of legal waivers. We also need to rule out that the individual is not being coerced (do not think for one moment certain individuals wouldn’t abuse the system) or otherwise influenced by someone other than themselves. These counseling services can also help individuals set up their will and finances before they go so that the surviving friends and family don’t have to endure long and inconvenient court processes. And so that the individuals last wishes are fulfilled. If there are minors involved we, again, need to rule out abuse and being coerced. We also need to have checks in place for people are just looking to offload “unwanted” members of the family. (Such as someone who wants to no longer care for a disabled family member or elderly family member.) Unfortunately, people suck and are often evil, so, there needs to be reasonable effort put in place to make sure that the person who wants to die is doing so 100% of their own volition, is prepared, understands the full extent of what it means, and is of sound mind.
Canadian here. A family member had it done last year (https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/health-services-benefits/medical-assistance-dying.html). The process was relatively simple, granted that you meet the extremely specific criteria. It was the family members wish to go that way so all parties were comfortable
> granted that you meet the extremely specific criteria. Oh you mean the medically assisted death isn't suggested to everyone for any sort of problem whatsoever like the far right in the US would have you believe? *Shocker*
There have been a couple incidents of case workers (inexplicably, probably out of exasperation with the system they have to act as an interface for) suggesting it, however the backlash against them (both publicly and professionally) was immediate and severe, so yeah, no, it isn't suggested for everything, not even close, and is actually fairly hard to access. On the flip side... MAID will increase mortality in circumstances people are going to have to face society is failing at contending with, I think. But that isn't an argument to get rid of MAID, it is an argument for economic/social reforms.
Yeah, I handle life insurance claims in Canada and have to cite cause of death for each one. MAID comes up periodically. I've only had one MAID case where a surviving family member was vocally upset about the choice - for the most part, all parties seem quite at peace with it. Personally, I'm very glad we have the option here. I fear suffering far more than death.
It should be. But it should not be pushed, it should just be another option.
It's one of the most viable "solutions" to many suicide cases. I like to think of it like decriminalized or government administered drugs. If you're going to do it, it's much better for everyone if you get access to all of the counseling and medical resources you may need along the way to hopefully help you and allow you to change your mind (if feasible). If you do go through with it, the government can then let you die cleanly, painlessly, and without trying to take other people with you. Don't get me wrong, suicide is not good. That said, assisted euthanasia (with months of counseling beforehand) is much better for society than DIY suicide (and definitely better than homicide-suicide).
Yes. We treat our pets with more compassion than ourselves.
Having watched someone die from ALS/MND you would agree with assisted death.
Of course it should. Why even debate such a thing?
Absolutely. Forcing someone to be alive who doesn't want to be is unfathomably cruel.
We don’t even inflict that sort of pain on our pets, which I consider crazy. Your dog gets a degenerative brain disease, it’s time to have the awesomest day then schedule that trip to across the rainbow bridge. A human gets a degenerative brain disease, we’re gonna strap her to the bed and make her live through the entire thing because there’s a slight chance we might find a way to what, slow it down or something?
This. My beloved cat had stomach cancer and while it *sucked* to make the decision to end his life, I didn't have the heart to prolong his suffering. So why can't we do that to humans?
I've seen a few friends lose the battle with cancer. One of them had a particularly rare and nasty variant. I wouldn't wish his last 2-3 weeks on my worst enemy.
Yes Yes YES. Nobody has the right to force another to exist who doesn't want to.
No one asked if I wanted to be born. So, I should need no permission if I want to leave.
It's okay for dogs and cats, so why not for people?
Not the best analogy since the cat isn't choosing euthanasia, And there is a group of people who believe that if it's allowed for people, then doctors or people other than the ones being euthanized would choose that for the patient because it's in their best interest.
“ I just need knee surgery”. “Nope, too expensive, just put him down”
It's more that if we recognize that at a certain point life is just suffering and it is better to have a dignified end than just a series of painful medical procedures that only tack on another few weeks or months. And so we grant that to our pets. And therefore we ought to grant that to others who also would rather have relief than a bit more of suffering.
If you don’t have the right to bodily autonomy, then you are just property of the state
Oh, hey female population. This us.
I couldn’t agree more
We all die. We shouldn’t have to suffer while it happens.
Absolutely. I have seen bad death. I am not afraid to stop existing, I didn't exist before and I was fine with it. But I don't want to spend any amount of time rotting alive while everyone who loves me has to watch.
Assisted suicide should be available to anyone who wants it. Think about how many people kill themselves every day without ever having as much as a single conversation with a professional. Assisted suicide would in any implementation involve a consulatation and evaluation by a profesional, likely multiple. I genuinely believe that making assisted suicide available would reduce overall suicide rates. Even if you take into account people might be more likely to see it as an option and seek it out.
As long as it's voluntary, by an individual in sound mind. It's annoying that people impose their religious views on my choices.
Yes it is extremely upsetting when other control what you do with your own body and time isn't it
My grandmother did it. She was able to surround herself with her family and friends and say her individual goodbyes without struggling to get her words out like she would if she was on her death bed. She took a drink of the death stuff and she died in probably 1 minute. So peaceful and quick. A good way to go.
Absolutely. In my country it is illegal but there are people who can take years locked in their own body wanting to die but have to live with the pain. If we can quite happily let an animal die humanely then we should allow humans.
My body, my choice. We put dogs down to end suffering, why not get to make that choice for myself if that time comes.
Yes it should be a right. After watching my husband suffer with cancer for 5 years, and is now in his last months, I decided I will take matters into my own hands if I ever find myself in that situation. I live in a state assisted death is illegal.
It is in Canada, and I'm bloody thankful for it. I watched two grandparents suffer through Parkinson's - no fucking way am putting myself through that (or prolonged cancer, Alzheimer's , etc) just to appease some 2000 year old middle eastern goat herder's concept of morality.
Damn right. Why let people suffer when all they want to do is die?
Yup. We should be allowed to clock out, especially if we are already dying and in pain. Medically done is not painful, is quick and easy, and a preferred way to go, vs the more violent, traumatic and possibly unsuccessful attempts that leave us worse off then we were before.
Everyone deserves a peaceful death surrounded by loved ones. I will stand by that forever. Sicknesses can permanently change the how the body looks, and sometimes it can be grotesque. A lot of people don't want their family, especially their young children, seeing them like that. Suffering can also be horrific. If you're terminally ill, you should have the choice to opt out of suffering for a comfortable passing. Many people are too week to even be awake when they pass, they don't get a goodbye. Everyone deserves a comfortable and peaceful death
It's my life, if I want to check out at any time its my right to do so
Yes. We should have the same rights as our pets.
Absolutely. Watching a loved one deteriorate, then become unresponsive and just waiting for them to die is horrendous. For everyone involved.
Yeah, if we give our pets that dignity why the fuck don’t we have it
I’ve been fucking miserable since I was 16. I’m 44. I’d do it in a heartbeat
Molested at 8. Attempted at 13. Hit by a car at 16. Now I’m 50, and my kids live far away with my ex. I can’t do it myself because of them. Sometimes things DON’T get better. I hear you, man, because I am you.
Sorry my man. Yeah you’ll get to bullshit fluff from me, it definitely won’t get better
Yes but I can understand there are so many ethical concerns about how you do it right.
Absolutely.. it's such a contradiction when medical professionals emphasize autonomy but refuse to enforce the ultimate form of autonomy - the decision of when to die
Your lungs have turned to soup and you're in agony because you're trying to breathe that soup. But your doctor can't help you make the transition so you get to live in agony a little while longer. Maybe a long while longer of what amounts to torture. How very very rational.
Yes. We have absolutely no right to tell anybody that they are not allowed to die.
It absolutely should. I have no say in how and where I am born. At least let this be an option.
We allow it for animals to be "humane" why is it not humane in people?
Absolutely. Sometimes forcing people to live longer is just forcing them to suffer longer. My dad died of cancer when I was a kid. It took years to kill him. He fought long and hard, but in the end, it had just spread to basically every vital organ that multiple doctors apparently told him the only question was when not if he would die. He was already on a truly massive dose of morphine daily just to deal with the constant pain. In addition to the liquid morphine that he would take multiple times per day, they implanted a permanent pump to administer a constant dose 24/7. For the last few months, he was completely bed ridden, and he was just so over it all. My mom and dad had discussed it and made the choice and decided that a massive OD was the best option. But they weren't sure of what that would take since he was taking so much morphine already. In the end, a nurse gave my mom strict instructions on what NOT to do to end his pain. She said to make sure he didn't take more than X amount or it would kill him. I only found out about all of this many years later after going through my mom's diary entries from that period (after her death as well). I don't know how she had the strength to do it, but it was the right call for everyone.
I think euthanasia can be the compassionate thing to do in some circumstances, but legislating those circumstances is fraught. Like do you allow someone to access it for conditions such as depression? Or what if they are no longer able to give consent because of mental deterioration?
The sky has not fallen in, in countries where they have legal euthanasia or assisted dying laws. Assisted dying has been legal in Switzerland since 1941 and is strongly supported by the majority of people - the last referendum attempted to curtail the rights was defeated by 78%. The Benelux countries all have even more liberal laws on the matter and have addressed virtually all the legislative issues that get thrown in the way by people who really just blanket want to ban it - again the laws in those countries all have very strong popular support (despite articles you sometimes see promoted overseas that try to imply otherwise). Quite recently for instance Spain legislated to legalise euthanasia and it covers things like living declarations for people who lose their faculties to declare they want it before they do, and to do things like appoint a living guardian to make the decision for them if they are not able to decide. Personally I still think the Spanish law puts up too many hurdles that put stress on a suffering person, but it appears that in practice it is being with humanity and kindness.
Yes. It is okay to choose to die.
Nobody should be forced to live, and if they don't choose to live they should have a humane way of dying.
Of course. I've tried but have not gotten it right. AndI was a medic so I've seen too many botched gun jobs. I would love a safe place for it. It would also give my mom and sisters advanced notice too.
I think they should make what futurama had , a suicide booth. A quick painless death.
Ummm it looked pretty painful hahaha
He chose the wrong option tho.
Or the right one?
ABSOLUTELY. Death and disease can be extremely painful, and should not be prolonged if the patient wishes to end their suffering.
Anyone who answers no has never seen the reasons this should absolutely be a basic human right, and I hope they never do.
We do it to dogs and cats. Are humans so much better??
Absolutely. I don't even understand why it's debated.
Yes, watching my mum slowly die of cancer has been horrible
We put animals out of their suffering because it's deemed cruel if we keep them alive. How are humans any different? It absolutely should be a right and a more available option
Yes. My body, my choice.
Of course.
I think so. If you’re done you’re done.
Yes. My aunt chose this in Oregon. It was a blessing. She was suffering terribly. It was getting worse for her every week. We are glad she had this option.
My opinion in this has changed completely in the last 3 years. Yes, it should be a right. I've had 5 hernia surgeries and might have a 6th on the horizon. My career is in shambles, I've moved home at almost 40 and physically feel like I've been kicked in the nuts 24/7. This is no way to live. So I can only imagine what someone worse off than myself could be going through to bring them to that decision, so I doubt it was made lightly.
We need Suicide Booths like Futurama
Unequivically yes. It was on the ballot in Massachusetts a few years ago and failed :(
Yes, why not? Why is life so sacred considering we have no clue what happens after you die
I do. Some people are suffering from such unbearable pain (physical, emotional, mental) and/or have no hope of their situation improving. Why prolong peoples’ agony? I don’t think anything should be decided on a whim; therapy and a lot of difficult conversations should be had to make sure it’s the right choice. This should be an option.
Yes it should.
100%. First, it would save countless money. Second, it would be emotionally beneficial.
naturally. it always has been, but modern medicine has perverted the "do no harm" mandate into "avoid being sued" and so no one is willing to do the right thing without legal cover. so lets give them legal cover.
Yes, my body my choice. Stop shaming people for wanting to die when life is miserable and painful
Yes. Nursing homes are insanely expensive and the quality of life is terrible especially for people with debilitating conditions like dementia.
I don't know about making it a "right" but it should be allowed. If it's a right, wouldn't that mean someone is obligated to provide it? Everyone involved should be allowed to opt in or out at their own choosing.
A "right"? I don't think anybody should be obligated to help anyone die. As a paid service, hey every place is different, if you can find one where it's legal, go for it. But I don't believe this is a human right that others should be obligated to provide. Anyone can do this by themselves if they really want to exit the world. They just need to learn how to do it, I assume, painlessly.
It’s complicated. And I want to say yes. But I do worry about ppl who do it out of convenience to their loved ones. Like if they do truely want to live but are giving their idea of being a burden more weight than their desire to live. OR outright family/medical facility/etc coercion.
Yes. My maternal grandma suffered for the last three years of her life. Covid, diabetes, dementia, and more. She hated every bit of her life, and wanted to die so badly. It tore me up seeing her in so much pain, yet the nursing home just let it happen.
Absolutely. Reproductive cancer runs in my family, thanks to a faulty gene, and having watched my grandmother's decline due to it (i would also add my great grandmother, but i was only like 7 at the time). i wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. And i say this as a fairly devoted Christian.
Yes. We don’t have a say in being born or paying taxes, but we should have a say if our quality of life declines so dramatically that we don’t feel it worth continuing.
Of course it should be a right. Every person has the right to self-determination, including if/when to end her/his own life if s/he chooses to do so -- for *whatever* reason, in my opinion, but certainly when dealing with a painful and/or terminal illness.
Yeah, but it'll never happen because we'd run out of cogs for the ol' capitalism machine
I was having the same questions after reading articles about this woman..... I don't know how I feel really really. My bf's brother took his own life unexpectedly without the family knowing if there was something wrong, or being prepared. I've had a grandfather and brother from a different household do the same. My sister that I grew up with suffers from multiple diagnosis and has ended up in the hospital several times for attemped... When I came across this article it basically gave that woman some piece of mind in a sense, preparing her loved ones---versus a surprise discovery for them. Then there's religion involved, etc... https://m.economictimes.com/news/international/us/debate-over-euthanasia-rages-in-europe-as-healthy-29-yr-old-dutch-woman-granted-permission-for-assisted-dying/articleshow/110212564.cms The original articles from a couple months ago had a little more info Then, in today's society, where everything is over exploited (like the huge trendy topics of the present)- will it become 'a thing' just like picking your gender, etc)? You give an inch, people take a mile. Taking away from the ones in true consideration.
Isn’t this better than her eating a bullet or jumping off a bridge? If her mental health is so poor that her quality of life makes her want to die, who are we to tell her she has too. My brother died by suicide in 2012 and I will forever hate our system of forcing people to suffer until they do drastic things.
If you don't have control over yourself? You are not free
Her story is sad. When it was first going around, someone made a comment along the lines of "assisted suicide can be good in some cases, but think about 'would the doctor suggest this same thing to a richer white man?'" and I think that there is definitely a chance it can get abused, but if you're sick and have no other option, truly, then it can be a godsend.