When I read the stories about overwhelmed hospitals, people gasping for air, massive numbers of deaths and bodies piling up in Italy from the Covid-19 pandemic, I expected we’d soon be talking about euthanasia (aka assisted suicide) in the US.
At the very least, I expected we’d be discussing giving medications to accelerate dying to people who’d been on ventilators for extended periods of time with no hope for recovery.
I also figured with the number of people who were predicted to get sick and require expensive treatment, that even die hard anti-euthanasia people would think about this as a cost saving measure. I know that’s a morbid thought, but I’m sure others have thought about it.
We’ve had a million people infected, 100,000 dead and I have heard nothing about this.
Literally nothing.
The news has been dominated by Covid-related predictions, discussions and arguments. Politics is 100% dominated by Covid related topics.
But nobody is talking about easing the process of death.
Why aren’t we talking about the right to die with dignity?
My wife suffered needlessly for months before she died from ling cancer because Florida does not have a death with dignity law.
I expect that we will see tens of thousands of people suffer from this virus and from subsequent health issues caused by it in the years to come.
Some people will want to fight. I get that and respect it. They should have the options to fight for their lives.
Many others will be ready to die.
In the US, we will allow people to refuse medical treatment and die. But first, we make sure they have the opportunity to suffer a painful, lingering, process until they die a “natural” death.
Anyone I know who has had a pet put to sleep says they would like like to die the same way – sedated, at peace and on their own terms.
We give this to our pets, but in most states will not provide this options to our families, our loved ones and ourselves.
The Truth About Death
Watching my wife in agonizing pain for months was brutal. Every night I hoped she’d die to end her suffering. Instead, I cutely attempt to comfort her as she writhed, moaned and screamed in pain while she suffered a slow, lingering death.
If I wasn’t afraid of being sent to jail for murder, I would have killed her to end her suffering. If we had been given enough medicine, she would have overdosed so she could fall asleep and never wake up.
Let’s think about that.
Instead of her being given the option to gently fall asleep and then stop breathing, the only choice to end her suffering would be for her husband to kill her and ruin his life. Or, to take all of her medications and hope they killed her. If she didn’t die from an overdose, we knew she’d never get any more medications for her pain thus making her misery even greater.
That’s how we show our “love” in this society for the dying.
It’s pathetic.
I spoke to a friend about my disappointment and frustration with my hernia surgery recovery. One thing that has become clear to me is I do not want to live without being able to do intense physical activity.
The hernia recovery will be short term. But someday, my physical decline will be permanent. When that happens, I will end my life.
It’s sad that if I made that choice today, I would have to commit a crime and leave a mess for others to clean up. It would mean a bullet to the brain, a violent car crash, or some other method that will be painful, brutal and traumatic.
He suggested, that when the time come, I should move to a state that offer death with dignity instead.
That’s a good idea.
The problem is that when the time comes, it may be too late to move.
By the time my wife had given up, she was too sick to move. Plus, how could we possibly relocate, establish residency and meet all of the requirements for the DWD process? The logistics would have been impossible.
The fact that we have not enabled DWD in all US states is criminal.
Other countries do much better.
I won’t list them all here. Due to our county’s religion, politics and fear surrounding death, I have no hope that we will enable DWD because it is the right thing to do.
But, I cynically count on capitalism. At some point, the government and large insurance companies will not want to payout the excessive healthcare costs for taking care of terminal patients.
I know there are a lot of fingers in the pie – doctors, hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, insurers – who all make money providing excessive end of life care.
But at some point, when the money and reimbursements dry up, our insurance companies we refuse to pay.
I think that’s when a national DWD law will pass.
Until then, in all but a few US states, we will continue to treat our dogs and cats with more compassion than our loved ones.
Pathetic.