Suicide is a complicated topic. More often than not there is never a good time to bring it up. People have deep feelings concerning the matter. And assisted suicide has been a hot button issue for years. Other countries outside the US do it and it has been very successful. But America doesn't seem to be ready.
One thing is for sure, it is a private, intimate choice that only one person can make. So how do we sit and have a chat about it? None of us wants to die alone and suffering. So if we have a choice to avoid that, aren't we allowed to take it? Let's see what the world thinks.
Redditor u/Scarlet3665 wanted to see who was willing to discuss one of life's most controversial topics, by asking:
What do you think about assisted suicide?
Death is never something we want to face, but it's coming for us; one way or another. And I feel like there maybe some comfort in being able to control it. Just a random thought.
Think it Through
"I think people should have the right to decide they no longer want to be on this earth. Especially if they are very sick. In my state you can do assisted suicide when you are terminal, but you do have to attend several counseling sessions first. At this point you have to be terminally ill here but I have heard of other countries that also include chronic medical and mental conditions that are not considered terminal even though you might suffer for the rest of your life, but will not die from said conditions."
What we Deserve
"As someone who had to watch a man starve himself to death because he was terminally ill and Dr assisted suicide is illegal in that state, I agree. Terminally ill people deserve the option. He was in so much pain and also couldn't remember his family half the time. He couldn't take it anymore and wanted to go on his own terms."
"It would have been more humane to have doctor assisted rather than him having to put himself through extra pain so that he could die but also not crap over his family in the process. (Because if he did it any other way they would have been considered "complicit", whereas stopping eating was just considered "senile."
The Humane Thing
"Somehow it is the humane thing to do with any other animal. To 'put them out of their misery,' as it were. Yet somehow some humans don't get the need for others to do the same for themselves. I'll never understand why it's even up for debate. I can't believe anyone who's seen cancer painfully ravage a body for months on end while the person's only fate is not to enjoy life, but wait to die, cannot possibly think there's a case against it."
Let her go...
"My wife worked at a place that was basically day care for elderly. A woman there could not take care of herself, she could barely walk or use her hands. Her son had died, and she had no other family. She was being taken care of by her sons ex-wife and the new husband. She knew she was just a burden and wanted to die. People really should have the right to decide."
Control
"We all die. I'd rather go surrounded by people I love and care about, while I still have control of my mind and bowels. Having my relatives bankrupt themselves to pay to warehouse me somewhere surrounded by other senile, miserable people in agonising pain and underpaid uncaring staff seems less appealing."
All viable stands to take. Watching loved ones wither away is one life's worst pains. So this decision impacts many. Make it with care.
One Pill
"My grandma was 89 and wasn't dying of anything in particular—she didn't have cancer or dementia or anything—but her memory was slowly failing and her body was generally falling apart from old age and a leg injury from fifty years prior. She had been a widow for fourteen years. She was lonely and in pain all the time, and her family lived across the ocean so we couldn't see her as much as we'd want to."
"There was nothing actively killing her, but she did NOT want to be alive anymore. She wasn't depressed, just old and in pain and ready to be done. She was able to go to a place in Switzerland, with all four of her children, and take a pill to end her life while her children sang to her and she looked out at the mountains."
"We all got to say goodbye to her and she got to be completely in control of the end of her life. I can only hope that if I am ever in that situation, then world will be kind enough to let me close my own exit as beautifully and peacefully as my grandma did."
- EThDOtaG
Like Animals
"We give animals the dignity, respect and love of putting them down if they're dying in pain, we should do the same for humans."
- Bpool91
"Agreed, plus animals can't even consent to it like people can! It's crazy to me that in some places a person, especially one living a life of constant pain, or having a terminal illness can't decide for themselves. It's barbaric when you think about it."
- weswhile
Society Thoughts
"I think if you want to end your life it is nobody's place to decide otherwise for you. And since you have to assume that those determined to die will find another way which usually involves financial transaction with criminals or involvement of innocent people (say when you jump in front of a train), it seems reasonable to me to provide suicide options without great social impact. That being said - I think this only is a realistic option for a society that has a positive base attitude towards human lives which I think is not the case in most western countries nowadays."
Invasive Watchers
"It should be every person's right to painlessly end their banal existence if they so desire. You know why churches and governments make up excuses as to why you should/ shouldn't be allowed to commit suicide? Because a crap ton of people would be doing it."
"But the cause of suffering remains, suicide is more a reflection on society and how it/we have failed to accommodate everyone or by placing people in stressful conditions creating mental breakdowns for capitalistic goals or for the unrealistic American dream."
Becoming Common
"Nowhere near common enough. Everyone should have the option to check out at any time, and most nations/states are big enough to help with this. As it stands, suicide is often incredibly messy and traumatic, impacting many people negatively when it happens (friends, family members, police, healthcare workers, etc.). This is all avoidable for the most part. I think it should be carefully regulated to ensure the system works as well as possible, but that it is there in case anyone needs it."
Maybe it's time we think about assisted suicide in the mainstream.
If you or someone you know is struggling, you can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
To find help outside the United States, the International Association for Suicide Prevention has resources available at https://www.iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/
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