Do you support suicide assistance?

Do you support suicide assistance?

  • Yes

    Votes: 21 44.7%

  • No

    Votes: 16 34.0%

  • Don´t know

    Votes: 8 17.0%

  • Other

    Votes: 2 4.3%
  • Total voters
    47
jillio said:
Had assisted suicide been an available option, it is quite likely that she could have refused curative treatment as she chose to, and received palliative treatment that might have shortened her life by a few days, but prevented such horrible suffering not just for her, but for those that loved her, as well.

I am sorry for your loss, and I am sorry that these memories are the last you have of your beloved mother. My heart goes out to you.
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Thanks, Jillio. :hug: The doctors said that I saved her life when I called 911 because if I hadn't, she wouldn't have made it through the night. Fortunately my mother spent the next two days pain free in the hospital. In fact, she felt well enough to call me via relay to thank me for saving her life and telling me how much she loved me. When I saw her in the hospital the evening of her death, she was more like the woman my family remembered her to be and she was lucky to die in her sleep -- the way she had always wanted to leave this Earth. Knowing that made the painful last memories I had of her a little easier to take.
 
Hear Again said:
As for the issue of assisted suicide, I voted "I don't know," but on second thought, I'd have to vote "yes." I never want to see anything like what my mother went through again. Once is enough...
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:dunno: but because of this, I would, on second thought too, vote yes. no one had to go through that. :( not a good ending to memorize.

I'm so glad she was able to call you and thanked you, way much better than what you last saw, hear again.

however I vote no on committing suicide.
 
Cheri said:
Okay, Let me ask you something, if capital punishment was illegal, what do you expect them to do with inmates if their prison is overcrowd? Allowing some of them back on the streets? We need to ask ourselves how we're willing to go to prevent future crimes such as murder. And you know according to the studies, executions can saves lives, murders can be prevented in the society. ;)
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I support treatment of prisoners that show a willingness to change their lives.
 
Cheri said:
I'm sorry to hear about your mother, my sympathies goes out to you. :hug: I understand where you are coming from, I haven't seen much of what she went through, because of that she did not want any visitors at her place of home watching her suffering, but one day everyone received a phone call and was asked to come over because she felt that her time is coming to an end, we all came to visited her that afternoon, then that evening she passed away. I had goose bumps.
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Cheri,

Thanks -- I'm sorry for your loss as well. :hug: I have to admit that I felt the same way when it came to my mother. In fact, I was in denial regarding my mother's cancer because I just couldn't believe that it was really happening. If I had been in your situation and had not seen my mother suffer as much as she had, my opinion of assisted suicide would probably be different.
 
Hear Again said:
Thanks, Jillio. :hug: The doctors said that I saved her life when I called 911 because if I hadn't, she wouldn't have made it through the night. Fortunately my mother spent the next two days pain free in the hospital. In fact, she felt well enough to call me via relay to thank me for saving her life and telling me how much she loved me. When I saw her in the hospital the evening of her death, she was more like the woman my family remembered her to be and she was lucky to die in her sleep -- the way she had always wanted to leave this Earth. Knowing that made the painful last memories I had of her a little easier to take.
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I glad that she was pain free at the end, and that you had some good last moments with her.
 
freckles said:
:dunno: but because of this, I would, on second thought too, vote yes. no one had to go through that. :( not a good ending to memorize.

I'm so glad she was able to call you and thanked you, way much better than what you last saw, hear again.

however I vote no on committing suicide.
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I was really touched by her phone call. It made me feel alot better about the last few days before her death because I knew she was more like her old self again.
 
I think any death of a loved one is especially tough on anyone, and I don't know how I'd deal with a situation when my loved one/s chose suicide, legal or not. However, what is my role and what decides that?

I see this as a question of ethics rather than religion. Religion's position on suicide is a given; it is a sin. Ethics are somewhat more broader than that; not everyone chooses to be religious but they still have ethics all the same. If the government takes a position on 'assisted' suicide for the terminally ill and for the elderly, I would hope that the Church and State are separated on this issue and that there are safeguards in place. What if the elderly patients had dementia and did not have a living will, and were coerced into committing legal suicide by their relatives who get tired of them? There'd have to be certain citerias for the patients to meet in order to be granted legal suicide. I am pro-choice as always, but with choices, comes responsibility.
 
Liza said:
I think any death of a loved one is especially tough on anyone, and I don't know how I'd deal with a situation when my loved one/s chose suicide, legal or not. However, what is my role and what decides that?

I see this as a question of ethics rather than religion. Religion's position on suicide is a given; it is a sin. Ethics are somewhat more broader than that; not everyone chooses to be religious but they still have ethics all the same. If the government takes a position on 'assisted' suicide for the terminally ill and for the elderly, I would hope that the Church and State are separated on this issue and that there are safeguards in place. What if the elderly patients had dementia and did not have a living will, and were coerced into committing legal suicide by their relatives who get tired of them? There'd have to be certain citerias for the patients to meet in order to be granted legal suicide. I am pro-choice as always, but with choices, comes responsibility.
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:gpost: This is how I feel. I support assisted suicide, but I would hope that there are guidelines in place that must be followed. Most laws have loopholes and these loopholes can be exploited to end someone's life wrongfully.

Quick story for you:

A few years ago, I became desperately ill with life threatening infections. I had to have two surgeries to save my life. After the second surgery, my blood pressure dropped to low levels. I have a living will that spelled out my wishes and the hospital knew this. One of the things stipulated in the living will was the withholding of food and fluids. Btw, I was NOT terminally. I was in a deperate medical situation and my life was threatened, but I was not terminally ill.

The low blood pressure was ignored for much of the day. Finally, after my Mother inquired, it was learned that I was not given adequate IV fluids in the recovery room and this was why my blood pressure was so stinking low. It wasn't until after I requested to see the doctor that I was given the needed fluids and I stablized.

I still support the right to die with dignity, but you also need to be careful. Had I been unconsience and not been able to advocate for myself, I don't know what would have happened. I would urge everybody to have a living will, but also have a health care proxy in place. If you can't speak for yourself, you're going to need someone to speak for you!
 
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I do agree that precautions need to be in place before a living will is carried out.

However, I also think that hospitals that ignore living wills, deserve to be prosecuted for doing so, especially if the patient's situation matches the situation described in their living will.
 
From what I have seen, there is no dignity in dying.
Just saying.
 
I believe everybody has a destiny of their own in this world. Painful or not , its their experience. The choices they make for themselves is also part of this path and experience. Therefore I would neither stand in their way nor decide they had suffered enough and take their life myself. I dont have to agree or disagree with their will. They can choose the time they will depart this world.

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Suicide is killing oneself.

Homicide is killing another person, whether it is by request or not.

Calling a homicide an "assisted suicide" doesn't change the facts of the case.

Main Entry: ho·mi·cide
Pronunciation: 'hä-m&-"sId, 'hO-
Function: noun
Etymology: Latin homicidium, from homo human being + caedere to cut, kill
1 : a person who kills another
2 : the killing of one human being by another —compare MANSLAUGHTER, MURDERcriminal homicide
: homicide committed by a person with a criminal state of mind (as intentionally, with premeditation, knowingly, recklessly, or with criminal negligence)deliberate homicide
: homicide caused purposely and knowingly —used in Montana excusable homicide
: homicide that is committed by accident or misfortune by a person doing a lawful act by lawful means with usual and ordinary caution and without any unlawful intent and that is excused under the law with no criminal punishment imposed; also : JUSTIFIABLE HOMICIDE in this entry felonious homicide
: homicide committed without justification homicide by misadventure
: homicide that occurs as the result of an accident caused by a person doing a lawful act with no unlawful intent justifiable homicide
: homicide that is committed in self-defense, in defense of another and esp. a member of one's family or sometimes in defense of a residence, in preventing a felony esp. involving great bodily harm, or in performing a legal duty and that is justified under the law with no criminal punishment imposed; also : EXCUSABLE HOMICIDE in this entry negligent homicide
: homicide caused by a person's criminally negligent act reckless homicide
: homicide caused by a person's reckless acts
NOTE: In Illinois, involuntary manslaughter committed by use of a motor vehicle is called reckless homicide.ve·hic·u·lar homicide
/vE-'hi-ky&-l&r-/
: homicide committed by the use of a vehicle (as an automobile or boat)

Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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BradB08 said:
I do agree that precautions need to be in place before a living will is carried out.

However, I also think that hospitals that ignore living wills, deserve to be prosecuted for doing so, especially if the patient's situation matches the situation described in their living will.
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I see your point, but mine was followed to the letter and I nearly died. I think the solution is to have not only the document, but also a trusted individual to advocate for you. My blood pressure dropped to 77/40. Extremely low. All that was needed was a bag of IV fluids, but the needed fluids weren't hung. They expected me to take in fluids orally. How could I? I wasn't even 24 hrs post-op. I was heavily medicated for pain and still coming out of the anesthesia.

It's a sticky wicket. I think the person is better off with a living will than without one, but if I was someone, I would also appoint a health care proxy to back up that document (or revoke it) when necessary.
 
I missed that part of your post but I do agree.

I'd want a family member or friend who understood the living will and would act in a manner that is unbiased.
 
It's easy for people to say "No" when they have never experienced the suffering of a family member.

And if they have and they still say "No", well, that's not very considerate is it?
 
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