*The following article contains discussion of suicide/self-harm.
However, euthanasia, or what is known as "mercy killing," is illegal in all 50 states.
Curious to hear from strangers online about the controversial topic, Redditor ConcentrateNo1426 asked:
"What is your stance on human euthanasia?"
Many people had strong thoughts in favor of euthanasia, especially those who've watched their parents pass away.
A Mother's Final Words
"My mom died this way. She was suffering terribly from ALS. She was able to die being held by those who loved her. Right after we gave her the fatal dose she said to me 'This is what I wanted. I’ll miss you.' In the face of a fatal disease, I believe everyone should have the right to decide how they want their ending to look instead of being forced to suffer a painful death."
– katee_bo_batee
Death With Dignity
"Also here to say watching someone die from ALS will convince you that Death with Dignity should absolutely be legal. It was horrific watching someone go through it, and in the end being trapped in their useless body. There is no cure, and your only outlook is a slow, painful death."
– overconfidentquartz
She Was An Animal Lover
"My mother was a huge animal person. We had dogs, cats, horses, cows...all manner of beasties. And she lavished the best possible care on all of them, but when their quality of life dropped off at the end, when there was nothing left for them but a life filled with pain and sickness, she'd have them put down. She'd hold them in her arms, tell them they'd been the best (whatever), and say goodbye."
"That's how I was taught to deal with pets, and that's how I've always done it."
"When my mother got brain cancer (a GBM, which is effectively incurable), and after treatment options had been exhausted, I got to watch her starve to death on a morphine drip for close to a month. And all I could think during that period, is how enraged she would have been if someone had done that to an animal."
"So yea. Euthanasia, 100%. F'k this barbaric, 'Gotta wait for you to suffer to death' nonsense. What is the point?"
– notagoodboye
A Grandfather Gets To "Go Home"
"My grandfather was just put to rest today. He had an appointment. Monday at 11 o'clock. The nurse and doctor came to his home and helped him be comfortable and anxiety free, and then the doctor brought the cocktail and injected into his iv. The program deals with body removal and my grandmother arranged for a cremation."
"He lives--lived in Canada and did it through MAID He had terminal cancer and was suffering essentially lying in bed for weeks on drugs to abate the pain, not a way to live, he decided."
"He had to have his main doctor (oncologist) okay it and sign off and then met with another doctor who reviewed his case to verify that he was a candidate, and then was signed off for it by a psychologist who decided he was in his right mind to make this decision for himself."
"It's hard, but it was his decision and I support him. My grandmother got to handle things pragmatically and prepare and he gets to "go home" as he said. He just kept saying, 'I'm going home today!'"
– Hollywould9
A Final Act Of Love
"My mother 'committed' assisted suicide two weeks ago after battling colon cancer for 6 years."
"First and foremost, I recognize that this was the best course of action for her. She had exhausted all treatment options and was in a mind-boggling amount of pain. She couldn’t tolerate most forms of pain mitigation, so she was simply suffering. Once she decided to stop all treatment, this seemed like the natural and obvious choice for her, and it was one my sister and I respected."
"It is, however, important to note how deeply and truly traumatizing it was to watch my mom, I cannot escape the image of how her skin turned gray and how I watched her heart sputter and stop. Every time I close my eyes, I see her neck as I watched her pulse slow. I am well and truly struggling to deal with the process, and I think it needs to be said that it is a deeply disturbing part of the reality."
"That being said, it is a distinct luxury and privilege to know when, where, and how your loved one will pass. I got to talk to her about how she was feeling in the days leading up to it, and I got to hug and kiss her and say goodbye. A lot of people do not get to do that, and the absolute beauty of that is not lost on me. I am deeply grateful to have sat next to her and held her hand while she drifted to sleep."
"Despite the tragedy and trauma of it all, I genuinely see her 'euthanasia' as her final act of love. I support assisted suicide and believe, without hesitation, that it is the most humane and compassionate option we can offer to those who are suffering."
– plssendfood
How The Aunt Would Feel About Not Being Allowed To Die
"My dog is very sick right now, no hope of recovery. Tomorrow I'm taking her in to be euthanized. I'm a wreck. Three days ago I returned from a trip home to say goodbye to my dear aunt, she is on hospice, wearing a diaper and doesn't even know she is a part of the world anymore. She would not have wanted that, she would HATE that she hasn't been allowed to pass with dignity."
– mustainsally
People share their thoughts on why they feel euthanasia is a humane way to end a life.
The Woman Who Had No Peaceful Alternative
"When I was a little girl I used to go to a very old church with mostly older folks. There was an older woman (prob in her sixties) who I really adored for some reason. She was sweet, I sat beside her and probably chatted her ears off in that annoying way children do. One Sunday she didn't show and she didn't show for the rest of the Sundays after that. She went home after a service, wrote a note for everyone and apologized before she killed herself. Because she was suffering the late stages of cancer and it was so painful that this God fearing woman who never missed a service felt that the only option was to kill herself. Think of how differently that would have went for her surviving family who found her and the rest of us if euthanasia was positively received. She could have said goodbye on better terms. I don't think she would have been so desperate."
– Rumdiculous
He Called Himself A Coward
"My dad took his own life last year, around the same age as the woman from your church. He’d been struggling with dementia that he’d kept hidden from the rest of the fam."
"As I work through all the trauma and the grief, the main thing I’m left with is the knowledge that he died feeling like a coward, desperate and alone with a gun in his hand. He deserved better than that. We all do."
"Edit: Since several people have commented on this - he said in a note he felt like a coward. It’s part of the reason I feel so strongly that he deserved to die with medical assistance, surrounded by family and knowing how loved he was."
– ghost_hoax
A Strong Belief
"If a person is unable to have any quality of life I believe they should be free to have a choice to stop living."
– piperfae_
Suffering through life is no way to live, especially if a person is experiencing ongoing pain and taking medicine to prolong their life without a cure for their illness.
But for those struggling with depression or other forms of mental illness, a permanent solution to a presumptive temporary problem should not be the answer.
There is help.
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/
Want to "know" more?
Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
Never miss another big, odd, funny or heartbreaking moment again.
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/Scarlet3665wanted 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/