Euthanasia.

garinda

garinda

Give, give, give member
Overlooker
Should we have the right to end our own lives under a legal controlled environment?

When our pets are sick we don't keep treating them until they die when they are terminally ill. We take what we call a humane decision to end it's suffering, and end their life with an injection. Why can't people be afforded the same choice?


There have been lots of cases were people have taken the informed choice to carry out their wishes to end their lives in what they see as an intolerable situation, but it is still illegal. Even to aid a suicide is illegal and can and has resulted in imprisonment.
 
I think it should be allowed - if I was terminally ill with no chance of a cure, I would like the decision to be able to end it.

It's less messy than jumping off Beachy Head, anyway
 
Oh, this is such a difficult thread. I don't think that anyone should ever be prosecuted for helping a family member to end their own life.....as long as there is definite proof that this is what the terminally ill person really wanted to do. Now, how that could be safely legislated for, I don't know.
My one concern is that grasping relatives do not conveniently end the life of a family member and then benefit financially from the deceased's estate.

The recent case of a Doctor being struck off the register for helping a terminally ill friend to die was most unfortunate. It appears that they had a pact that the doctor would help his friend once his friend had got to the end of his tether with the pain. Striking this man off the medical register served no useful purpose because the man had been retired for something like 15 years.

I think there should be some kind of framework drawn up to help the terminally ill.....but I'm glad I won't be the one deciding how it will work.
 
Vorlon.....I couldn't do the Beachy Head thing......it is scary. I think you must really have to be desperate to jump off Beachy Head. I went there last November and couldn't bear to look over the edge.
 
I have to agree with Margaret... the simple answer is yes I believe in Euthanasia... the problem is it isn't simple to legislate and that I think is what the stumbling block is... :confused:
 
oh this is hard,,,i wouldent want to be a vegitable,but i wouldent want to put the onus on someone else to end my life,,
and what if someone got fed up of a family member being ill .they might just bump them off to be free of commitment..........oh i think i am on the fence on this one..
 
It could be done legally as it is in the Netherlands now. I'm not suggesting that we all cart off great aunt Doris to the vets so we can spend our inhertitance, but we should have the informed choice about when the quality of life is deemed unacceptable, just as we do for animal's lives now.

I do approach this subject from a slightly different perspective, having an incurrable degenerative disease, ableit one that isn't going to kill me. I'm not being defeatist, as I'm hoping there will be a cure before long, if there isn't, and rather than being able to live dependently, I would certainly like the option when to end my life legally rather than live with. in my opinion, a poor quality of life.
 
Garinda, there is an organisation in Switzerland that helps non Swiss nationals to do this......it is called Dignitas.

I think 'Living wills' go some way to address this problem.....except they don't allow active intervention to end life. Say you were in a Vegetative State.....or were terminally ill without any hope of a cure.....you could document that you didn't want to be resuscitated, or you didn't want active treatment, but you couldn't ask for your death to be facilitated.
 
my hubby also has got a degenerate desease ,but he battles on,somedays he is much worse than others,, it gets him down to think there are a lot of things he cant do now,and he hates being dependant on other people ,,but to me its no big deal. i married him in sickness and in health ,and i am sure he would do the same for me.we have some wonderful memouries of when we were both fit and healthy...
i just say live for today coz you dont know what is round the corner.....
 
grannyclaret said:
my hubby also has got a degenerate desease ,but he battles on,somedays he is much worse than others,, it gets him down to think there are a lot of things he cant do now,and he hates being dependant on other people ,,but to me its no big deal. i married him in sickness and in health ,and i am sure he would do the same for me.we have some wonderful memouries of when we were both fit and healthy...
i just say live for today coz you dont know what is round the corner.....
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I'm not in favour of enforced euthanasia, that would be a very dangerous road to go down, just that I think people should be given a choice.
 
When my Father was dying of very advanced cancer a few years ago, I personally at NO stage felt like letting go of my dad, but that was selfish thinking on my part, I feel that my dad would have taken the option of euthanasia if it was available about 2wks before his "Natural ???" death, During that last time period he was in real pain, he had a pump attached to him to administer morthine(?) and also patches of morthine(?) to apply to the skin. He got to the stage that he did not want any of us to go into the room with him, because he could see the pain it caused us to see him like that. And lets face it at that stage we all, including my dad, where waiting for his death.

So I think that under such circumstances it would be kind to all concerned to say goodbye with dignity.
 
It could be like it is now for donor cards. You could make an informed decision whilst you are well, with the option of changing your mind later if you did want to continue wuth treatment.

I think it's disgraceful that people have been imprisoned for carrrying out the wishes of their loved ones to help them end their lives with dignity.
 
Yes I think you should be able to say when you have had enough.

It's hard to watch someone suffer, and like you said Rindy, you wouldn't put a animal through it.

I work with very poorly people, that say they have had their years anyway, but medical intervention like peg feeds etc........are keeping them alive.

I look after a lady with motor neurons disease, and she has made a living will, that states if she is unable to eat and drink, then under no circumstances does she wish for a peg feed to be fitted. She is well capable at the moment to make this decision, and may I add a very level headed lady. I'm sure if I was the same, I would opt out of being kept alive for the rest of my days, led in bed strapped to a peg feed, with no hope of life getting any better.
 
oh what a hard choice,,, i think it must be awfal to be of sound mind in a body that is useless........i can see both points of view now ,,,,,,,,,
 
I think you should be allowed to terminate your life if eg terminal illness BUT the problem is legislating it & clear legal boundaries problem be it where possible inheritance abuse could manifest bigtime.
 
I to am in favour of living wills that would include a decision to be 'put to sleep' if I was unable to communicate or live a life where I wasn't aware of my surroundings. It would drive me crazy to have a working mind and no way of expressing my thoughts. I guess the above only really covers sudden events such as an accident or medical emergency. It must be harder for those already diagnosed with some condition to make an balanced judgement but I feel they should be allowed to do so.

I also think that in the latter stages of life (by which I mean that last day when we all know the end is coming) we should be able to make an informed choice to end someones suffering. When my dad died it was quick and relatively painless. His heart stopped twice and was got going again but we were told it wouldn't last long. It was long enough to say our goodbyes and I will always be grateful to the medical staff for those 20 minutes. I (and I believe he too)would have hated sitting there waiting for hours for him to pass on, never knowing if that was his last breath.

Ian
 
simon said:
When my Father was dying of very advanced cancer a few years ago, I personally at NO stage felt like letting go of my dad, but that was selfish thinking on my part, I feel that my dad would have taken the option of euthanasia if it was available about 2wks before his "Natural ???" death, During that last time period he was in real pain, he had a pump attached to him to administer morthine(?) and also patches of morthine(?) to apply to the skin. He got to the stage that he did not want any of us to go into the room with him, because he could see the pain it caused us to see him like that. And lets face it at that stage we all, including my dad, where waiting for his death.

So I think that under such circumstances it would be kind to all concerned to say goodbye with dignity.
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My grandad was like that & lying in hospice knowing he was going anyway but had to await the cancer to seal it first bless him he given up smoking & drink when he was diagnosed but while in his last day or so he sodded it & had some beers & his favourite pipe with his family around him & passed away shortly after, i think he felt better for doing it.
 
I think when a diagnosis of terminal illness is made, the patient and the relatives should be consulted as to what stage of the illness intervention should be continued.

I too, watched my father die of Lung cancer.....he never asked about his illness.....he was not told he was dying, but he knew he was. It was very hard for him to handle, and he withdrew from life and all that should make life worth living. He suffered physically, only in the last 48 hours......but from diagnosis to death he mentally was crucified. There is NO treatment for this sort of mental pain......physical pain can be helped by Morphine...... but mental pain is torture......for both the patient and the relatives. To have talked to him about death would have hurt him even more. I am 13 years on from this event and still I find it difficult to deal with. Doctors and Nurses do their best in these circumstances, but there is no easy answer. I don't think my father would have opted to die......I think he feared death. And I could not have made that decision to end his life.....but having said that I was glad when he did die. Even though I know that this was the only outcome, and he was relieved of the effort of breathing......I feel guilty about it.
I have also watched other people die like that, and it is heartbreaking to watch.
 
I believe in Euthanasia in principal, but also agree with some of the comments on here, that the legislation may be difficult to ensure people are not getting bumped off for their money. Probably the best way would be, for only a doctor to have the right to offer Euthanasia to the person concerned, or to the relatives, if the person was too far gone to know what was happening. At least this way, it would ensure someone with no axe to grind was making the original decision to offer the facility.
 
There are so many pros and cons to this that it is a decission that would be hard for anyone to take. Personally it would be a case of weighing up what is the chance of they person being stable enough to make the dicission themselves for I could not do it without the regret. Some people could and some couldnt but sometimes the patient knows there is no hope and gives up leading to a slow demise. This is not for the faint of heart and legislation could never cover it all, and yet people would rather go with dignity than watch their friends and family suffer because they are suffering. I think if the patient is of sound mind the dicission is theirs and theirs and theirs alone. If the are not then it comes down to the profesional opinion of the medical staff.
 
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