Assisted Suicide for the terminally ill

[Virge]

Ray and I have a 28 year old friend from the corps who was diagnosed with testicular cancer this summer. They operated on him, opening him up from groin to rib cage, gave him radiation and chemo but never gave him a realistic chance of recovery.

The doctors have told him there's nothing more they can do except keep him out of pain and referred him for hospice care. Without coming out and directly saying it or giving details in emails, he's let everyone know he's ready for it to be over.

Most people in the US think assisted suicide doesn't exist and it's better that way for everyone. The fact is that it happens all the time and very seldom gets publicity. It's not like there's one doctor or nurse who administers a lethal dose of anything. It takes place in a different way with many people involved, all acting silently, each playing a role in helping someone die with dignity and peace. There's never any evidence or even any suspicion of wrong doing.

I talked about it to 'someone who'd know" and was told it all operates on the same principle as a Ouija Board. No one can be blamed for moving the reading piece because there are so many hands on it. That makes sense to me.

I have no problems with it even though I don't believe I'd want to go that way. I may change my mind when my turn comes to make that decision.

Feedback?

[trywait]

check out that story about the girl from California who moved to Oregon for their assisted dying law. heartbreaking story

[spencer]

I fully believe in the right to die. I find it cruel to force someone to continue living even if it means no quality of life. I watched my grandfather suffer through 10 agonizing months because he wasn't allowed the option of assisted dying. He could have avoided all of that if the doctor's had listened to him when he told him to just let him go but they weren't allowed to.

The whole 10 months my dad always said "We treat our pets better than our people."

[LONDONER]

If we have a pet, a cat or a dog that is terminally ill and in pain, we usually don't have any hesitation in putting it painlessly to sleep. I am in full agreement with euthanasia carried out under the proper conditions; two doctors minimum and maybe a solicitor or lawyer involved. If I ever get to the stage of being terminally ill or totally incapacitated, that's the route I would choose.

[palbert]

Totally in favor of assisted suicide for the terminally physically ill.

I am not sure I would go as far as the Dutch and consider it for depression or other mental illness. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/20...ssion.html

[Virge]

This doesn't apply to people who are in hospitals during their last days. It helps me understand why hospice care is so humane and so much in demand.

In the final stages of life with terminal diseases home care patients are usually prescribed opiate pain meds in large amounts in pills, liquids and even suppositories that can be inserted anally or in vaginas in women. These meds are either administered by the patient to himself or by relatives and caregivers. I've heard caregivers ask doctors and nurses about exceeding recommended dosages for terminally ill patients. The answer is always some version of "at this point, that doesn't matter anymore."

All it takes from there is four or five concerned caregivers each independently doing their best to keep the patient free of pain with drugs dosages that don't matter anymore.

There's the Ouija Board version of assisted suicide. No single caregiver has a complete awareness of the acts of all others. There's no around the clock supervision by authorities. to make sure terminal patients die of whatever disease they have.

I have no problems with this. I can not imagine letting anyone i love suffer needlessly even though I would never wish they'd die.

[2tuff]

May I suggest he immediately finds and uses a professional homoeopath and if its not too late he may just survive. Take a look at Gemmo Hoefkens story about surviving terminal cancer when doctors had given up on her 'Lucky to be Alive' is the article name.

They may also want to look into Max Gerson and the Gerson Institute along with Dr William Donald Kelley's work. There are lots of excellent methods and research outside the medical butchery. If a being is too late then a proven healer may not have time to heal but there have been numerous terminal cases healed by various natural methods.

A being cannot cure cancer with toxic mustard gas chemotherapies and radiations both of which cause cancer. We live in such a backward society to believe such things. I use homoeopathy on a daily basis to repair my body from issues I've had and got for now. I know it works and works extremely well. But then again why else would the Queen of Great Britain use it as her main treatment under her homoeopath phyisician Dr Peter Fisher.

[CellarDweller]

I'm not sure this is an option I would take, but I have no problem with the option being there for those who want it.

[Cuddly]

If the only thing you have left is pain and misery, you should be allowed to be euthanized.

My husbear has told awful stories about how cancer got his mother and she should've died 6 months before she actually did. The cancer spread through her and she changed character. She became really evil. That must've been an awful experience, for the friends and family, but as with alzheimer patients, she hopefully/probably didn't notice the change, atleast after a while.

I can imagine, though, that when you're dying you'd want to live every day you can. Or would you? If you're in pain, then I guess you wouldn't?

[LJay]

This is one of those things more easily endorsed in the abstract than close to home. My former boss and his family pulled the plug on his dad and it was not easy.

An advance directive is very valuable in these cases.

Virge, you are certainly right that medical professionals have their own understandings. My mother was a nurse working with geriatric patients in a nursing home infirmary. She never did anything active, but certain patients were allowed to go the way nature took them. The staff there was very close to the clientele, many of whom were residents for 10-20 years.

What would I wish? Well, I read a long article from the AARP website earlier today concerning the making of plans for an estate. I was impressed with how thorough it was. All I can say is that I have a lot to do before exiting stage left. It certainly is not a quickly made decision.

For me, the odd thing is realizing that the timetable may be out of my hands. Freaky.