Euthanasia for the Depressed?

[Chad32]

That's kind of a gray area for me. Depression isn't terminal. You can take meds for it. It is a clinical mental illness, though, so it should be taken seriously.

[brewer]

Thanks Saxmoof for the full interview. This was interesting reading. For me it brings up more questions than answers so still no opinion on this particular case.

[Jenny A]

Suicide is, absent actual confinement, always available to anyone. It isn't a right the state can take away without actually incarcerating the individual and even then it isn't easy to prevent a determined suicide. So the question isn't should the depressed have a right to commit suicide, the question is whether they should be allowed assistance from others.

I've had several long deep depressions, and while I was certainly lucid and rational, I was missing one thing, any great interest in living. Wanting to commit suicide isn't an escape from the side effects of depression, it's part and parcel of the illness itself. And once well, desire goes away. That's rather different from chronic pain, or permanent disability, or terminal illness. So no, I don't think doctors should assist a patient in carrying out suicide when that same patient is highly unlikely to want to commit suicide once they are well.

[Whateverist]

Personally I would be in favor of euthanasia for the Republican party of the United States, quite apart from whether they are seeking it or not. Why aren't we discussing euthanasia among the groups where it would do the most good?

Depression makes people deeper. I wouldn't want to lose them. They should be supported during these times. Unless of course they are Republicans.

[Cyberman]

On a strictly personal note, I fully support this. I need to be with my Sam one way or another so bad I can't breathe.

[Ravenshire]

Suicide is, absent actual confinement, always available to anyone.  It isn't a right the state can take away without actually incarcerating the individual and even then it isn't easy to prevent a determined suicide.  So the question isn't should the depressed have a right to commit suicide, the question is whether they should be allowed assistance from others.

I've had several long deep depressions, and while I was certainly lucid and rational, I was missing one thing, any great interest in living.  Wanting to commit suicide isn't an escape from the side effects of depression, it's part and parcel of the illness itself.  And once well, desire goes away.  That's rather different from chronic pain, or permanent disability,  or terminal illness.  So no, I don't think doctors should assist a patient in carrying out suicide when that same patient is highly unlikely to want to commit suicide once they are well.

(emphasis is mine)

Always assuming they will become well again.

I agree with what you're saying, but where do we draw the line between waiting, and in many jurisdictions, actively preventing suicide and deciding that enough is enough. The only person who can decide when suffering, of any type, has become unendurable, is the person suffering.

[Whateverist]

On a strictly personal note, I fully support this. I need to be with my Sam one way or another so bad I can't breathe.

Would I be a shit for asking in what sense dying would put you together with her?

[Cyberman]

No. Ether we togther again reuntied , or we togehtr in the ground, or we nither care anymore. Win win whoever way u slice it.

[Pyrrho]

...

I hate to say it but self inflicted suicide is always available, why is she asking permission if she really wants to complete her actions?

Many times, self-inflicted suicide attempts can go badly.  For example, people who shoot themselves in the head with a gun do not always die.  And if they do not die, then they are generally worse off than they were before.  The point isn't to suffer and then die; the point is to die as cleanly and easily as possible.

Also, many means of death are unavailable to the general public.  I cannot go and buy any drugs I want from a pharmacy.  I need a prescription for many of the drugs they sell.  So if I want to use some of the better drugs for this purpose, I need to get someone's permission to get them.

If they sold death kits "over the counter," then it might eliminate the need to get someone's help in choosing a good death in most cases.  But they do not sell such things.

[Angrboda]

...

I hate to say it but self inflicted suicide is always available, why is she asking permission if she really wants to complete her actions?

Many times, self-inflicted suicide attempts can go badly.  For example, people who shoot themselves in the head with a gun do not always die.  And if they do not die, then they are generally worse off than they were before.  The point isn't to suffer and then die; the point is to die as cleanly and easily as possible.

Also, many means of death are unavailable to the general public.  I cannot go and buy any drugs I want from a pharmacy.  I need a prescription for many of the drugs they sell.  So if I want to use some of the better drugs for this purpose, I need to get someone's permission to get them.

If they sold death kits "over the counter," then it might eliminate the need to get someone's help in choosing a good death in most cases.  But they do not sell such things.

The problem is endemic to suicide. Basically you're trying to damage the body or brain enough that it can't be resuscitated. So if you fail, odds are you will do significant damage to yourself in the attempt. If you only partially damage your brain you could end up in a much more serious situation than prior to the attempt. The most reliable method, as recommended in the book Final Exit is to basically put a baggy over your head and go to sleep. This is depriving the brain of oxygen and if you are interrupted before death, you will inevitably be left with some brain damage. I was lucky in a sense in that the only damage I did to myself last time was to lose 9 of my fingers. Suicide failure is a very serious concern for anyone contemplating it. Even with a "death kit", nothing would be guaranteed.