Do the Terminally Ill Have a Right to Die?

I wish to live as long as possible, but not at the expense of enduring what might be an undignified death, because that decision will always be subjective. In the final days or weeks of my life, if I consider my suffering to be unbearable, I would like the choice to die at home at a time of my choosing surrounded by my loved ones. This may well not be a choice I choose to enact, but it is a choice I would still like to have – a choice that would give me, and many others, enormous comfort.So, I support the right to die. That is, ..euthanasia

Many people outright are hostile to the idea, and believe people should live in pain up until their last breathe; they should fight and struggle for years on end, and if they give up are cowardly selfish beings, despite that perhaps the idea of forcing a person to live for your own benefit is the selfish idealogy.

I choose the way I lived my life, I should be able to choose how to end my life..
And to those who agree or disagree with it, feel free to voice your opinions ..




.

I always thought that i they are in pain, and there is no way to recover, then they should have a choice. Or, if in a coma, the family. Otherwise, its a waste of money, and "life". I you can put down a pet you love because its in pain, why can't you do that to a beloved one? I'd want my family to. I mean, I bet theyre suicidal in the pain, but if they can't do anything about it, its all the worse.

S&F

You do know this is a huge can of worms. This calls into question everyone's basic assumptions about life and afterlife. I won't go into philosophy.

Baring accident, I will go when I want, laws or no laws. I will find a way to spare my family of legal implications. I will not leave a mess. It's off to the forest for me. Some place that I can just go to sleep. Maybe take some pills, or just maybe stop eating and hang out with the chipmunks for a week or so. I don't know.

Everyone knows the horror stories of life lived beyond the ability of the individual to care from him/herself.

I mean, this is the biggest thing we do in life, die, isn't it? It's not like what we will watch on tv tonight.

I know, I'll take some tunes and just bliss out. I even have the music picked out. la la la

I agree as well. When a patient is terminal and it is clear they do not have much time left then they absolutely should be able to choose to end the suffering. I almost look at it like torture. You know your going to die, you are in so much pain and just want it to stop. Also the emotional drain it places on a family who is watching you suffer has to be immense.

Every single person has the right to decide their own death if it harms no others. It is the only thing we truly own and no one has the right to tell us what we can do with it.

Period!

reply to post by jude11


I totally agree with you.

There is no need for euthanasia (the "death" shot) as someone needs to administer it, and most practitioners would rather not play God in that way.

It is easy to end your own suffering simply by refusing fluids. Death by dehydration really is a peaceful way to go, and doesn't take long. Once you are very dehydrated, you'll go to sleep. From there you slip into a coma, and within a few days you are gone.

This was told to me by a hospice nurse when my mom was very ill.

reply to post by Rockerchic4God


I respectfully disagree about the refusing fluids. Dehydration can be an agonizing way to die. Lack of fluid leads to chemical imbalances that can cause seizures,cardiac arythmias which can result in a heart attack (which is painful), and low blood pressure which can also induce chest pain and cardiac problems. I just think it would be much quicker and less painful by giving of some medication that would induce death.

reply to post by sugarcookie1


At a certain point, yes.

Just because you're terminally ill doesn't mean that you will die for sure.. If you're early along in your terminal illness, breakthroughs might happen that could save you.

On the other hand, if you're so far a lng that even a breakthrough wont save you.. my opinion is you have a right to end your life.

reply to post by Rockerchic4God


I think she was sugarcoating, im sorry though.

You can survive for 5 days in most deserts without water, and more if youre lucky. But its hell. Hallucinations, nausea, headaches, fatigue, pain all over. But in a moderate environment? You can survive past a week. My dad has had to treat people found in the desert, theyre in horrible shape. Id want a shot, or pill or something. Or skydiving accident. Yea

Every human life is precious and means something special to another.

Thus no human must be allowed the option to commit suicide.

The problem with illness is such thing when one finds pain unbearable, they would rather end their life, than to continue to seek for medication so that their lives may be prolonged, more so with our medical advances we mankind are making daily.

But the issue isn't so much the physical pain, but rather the prohibitive costs charged by big pharma to keep a person alive. It is absolutely unconscionable of what they are doing.

Thus, even if we humans were to administer an injection on our own to die, it would not be suicide, but a murder committed by big pharma for denying life by jacking up the costs that are beyond the means of the poor and often middle classes.

Money can always be earned back, but when the poor have no opportunities that the rich has, there is no way they can earn enough to pay back medical costs, and eventually even if they survive living on a bed, they and their family will only starve to death.

Big Pharma, as you get ready for your golf games and a tipper at the luxurious clubhouse, your hands are stained with the blood and murder of the poor and middle classes.

This is something that goes through my mind a lot and it is troubling. I have watched people suffer in hospitals with terminal illness, and have seen some who were absolutely independent people be butchered down into pooping in diapers, and peeing in bottles plugged into their side. Not able to go where they want and sometimes having accidents on themselves because someone wasn't their to help them to the bathroom. Seen them go from free thinkers to being bound by invisible illusions of holes in the floor and monsters coming to get them from the wall. It made me think what I would want in a situation similar. I made up my mind one day when my grandmother was dying that I wouldn't make my family suffer by watching me become a vegetable from a strong willed and able minded independent man that I am. It goes against everything I am to allow myself to become like that, if I go in the words of an older lady who came walking by when I visiting my grand one day, "I just go my own way." That's how I live and that's how I will die. No doctor, and no pencil pushing fool in DC is going to tell me otherwise. That's just my personal feelings on the subject.

reply to post by Miraj


Thats true, there would have to be some set of guidelines. I mean if a guy goes to the doctor tomorow and finds out he has terminal cancer, he should not just be able to say ok i want to die now. It is the last stages of terminal illness, when every resource has been used and you pretty much have less than a month left, thats the time where it should be up to the patient to say enough is enough.

Absolutely.

I have the right to scar my body, to tattoo my body beyond recognition, to have EE implants to the point of ridiculousness, to pierce every inch of flesh I can get a needle in, smoke two packs of cigarettes a day, drink a liter of quervo daily, stay up all night, etc.

All of these things are legal and can be done so because it is OUR body.We have control over what we do and do not do to it until the government steps in because they imagine they know best... just like father.

What's more is the fact that I can say when my dog can die by injection because it is too costly to save (whole other issue) him/her. So apparantly we have supreme control over that. Even more so with less government interference. Why is that?

I think anyone over the age of consent has the right to die whether they are terminally ill or not. We either OWN our OWN bodies entirely or we do not OWN them at all. People with a true "death wish" will accomplish it one way or another. Why not make it less painful than it usually is?

The government allows you to believe you are the sole owner of yourself. This is just furher evidence that big government owns us all... lock, stock, and barrel.

Probably not the most popular opinion to be sure. But I do own that much.

Everyone has the right to die with dignity.
Everyone.

We think nothing of euthenizing our beloved pets to stop their suffering, why not our family members or ourselves? Why would anyone want their loved one to suffer needlessly?

Originally posted by chancemusky
I always thought that i they are in pain, and there is no way to recover, then they should have a choice. Or, if in a coma, the family. Otherwise, its a waste of money, and "life". I you can put down a pet you love because its in pain, why can't you do that to a beloved one? I'd want my family to. I mean, I bet theyre suicidal in the pain, but if they can't do anything about it, its all the worse.

S&F

I agree with you and this is what i want my family to accept as my wish..

Originally posted by TerryMcGuire
You do know this is a huge can of worms. This calls into question everyone's basic assumptions about life and afterlife. I won't go into philosophy.

Baring accident, I will go when I want, laws or no laws. I will find a way to spare my family of legal implications. I will not leave a mess. It's off to the forest for me. Some place that I can just go to sleep. Maybe take some pills, or just maybe stop eating and hang out with the chipmunks for a week or so. I don't know.

Everyone knows the horror stories of life lived beyond the ability of the individual to care from him/herself.

I mean, this is the biggest thing we do in life, die, isn't it? It's not like what we will watch on tv tonight.

I know, I'll take some tunes and just bliss out. I even have the music picked out. la la la

I know this is a huge can of worms..And i do understand the philosophy of it all..and spareing the family of legal implications is on my mind i would want them to be involved,and i agree dieing is the biggest thing we do in life and i don't think a person should just suffer to live..your idea with the music is a good one..thanks for the reply

Originally posted by lcbjr1979
I agree as well. When a patient is terminal and it is clear they do not have much time left then they absolutely should be able to choose to end the suffering. I almost look at it like torture. You know your going to die, you are in so much pain and just want it to stop. Also the emotional drain it places on a family who is watching you suffer has to be immense.

Thank you and im glad you agree and for a person to suffer is torture and the familys involved also its a huge drain on the whole family

Originally posted by jude11
Every single person has the right to decide their own death if it harms no others. It is the only thing we truly own and no one has the right to tell us what we can do with it.

Period!

Thank you and i agree people should have the right to decide their own death when and at the place of there choosing...