Secrets, secrets, are no fun, you say?
Wrong. Secrets are very fun to keep. In fact, we should all work on building our trust we've set up with our loved ones so they feel comfortable holding on to our secrets for a long time. That way, ours don't end up on a list like this one.
Since we're all here, however, let's learn some stuff!
*The following article contains discussion of suicide/self-harm.
Reddit user, Duck_Diggler_, wanted to know the secrets no one else was supposed to know when they asked:
"What's a secret you'll take to your grave but you'll share with reddit because you need to get it off your chest?"
It's Just A Habit That Got Out Of Hand. Right?
"The amount of empty liquor bottles I found hidden around the house after my husband passed away. I knew that he liked to drink, sometimes a little too much, and it was something we bickered about occasionally, but I didn't appreciate the full scope of how much exactly he was drinking. Maybe 2-3 years before his death he started working from home full-time and I'm guessing being home alone all day was when he started going off the rails."
"Absolutely nothing to do with the circumstances surrounding his death and I wouldn't want to tarnish his memory to family or friends, so I keep it to myself but I don't mind sharing it with strangers."
– Hrekires
Unable To Properly Move On
"A year ago my partner of 8 years left me out of the blue, two months before our wedding."
"People tell me how ‘strong’ I am and how well I’m doing. Compliment my work ethic (I work 60+ hours a week between two jobs) and tell me how ‘admirable’ my coping skills are. When people ask I’m quite firm in saying how much better off I am without him and how happy I am."
"Truth is, I think of him every minute of everyday, I work so much to avoid being alone in our house, I still love him, I cry myself to sleep at least twice a week, I think about suicide a lot and truly I don’t think I’ll ever love anyone like I love him. He was truly my best friend."
"We bought a dog a few months before he left me, I don’t know where I’d be if she didn’t come into my life."
– ArtVirtual6866
When Even The Family Doesn't Back Them Up
"My ex-girlfriends family told me to break up with her because of her erratic behaviour - I will never ever let her know this -"
– beermansam
Exploding Tank, But Not The Cool Kind
"I lit a firework in a public park and panicked so I flushed it down the toilet... boom. No more toilet. Whoops, I was 12."
– No_Housing_4819
Walking To What She Really Wants
"My first day as a nanny looking after a baby girl. I take her to the park and I'm taking videos of her and getting her to walk to me. She walks three steps to me and then falls on her butt and cries. It occurs to me that I don't actually know if she has walked with her parents yet, she isn't sure of foot yet. Speaking to her mum later on she tells me she is super close but hasn't walked yet. I figure she must have walked with me because she was feeling clingy without her mum. I never told her parents she walked with me and it was about three weeks later she finally walked for her parents."
– Sydneyfigtree
Getting Revenge Any Way You Can
"Not as dark as the most in here..but as a teen I had a really bad relationship with my dad...and one day I was really pissed and signed his e-mail up in any freakin newsletter I could find online... He still get's spam mails and doesn't know why .. (we get along great now)"
– CutimedSiltecSorbact
Sometimes It Never Leaves You
"The first and only time I stole something in my(M8) life was from my neighbor who was having a yard sale to take his kids to Disney land. He had a DS game of backyard baseball and I had the money for it, it was $5 and I wanted it. I went up with the money and he told me that he was going to give it to the landlords kid who was my age too. I was so mad and annoyed that he was going to get the game for free. A few hours later I went back outside and I saw he wasn’t there, I walked up to the stand and I saw the game was still there so I took it. I also grabbed a bag of golf balls he had for $10 and a few more games that were marked $1 each so he wouldn’t think it was me."
"I then ran into my apartment and the guilt was eating me up, 30 minutes later he knocked and asked if I took the games because he knew I wanted one. I told him no that I was inside the whole time. I never played any of those games I felt so damn bad I couldn’t put in my DS. I even wanted to take them back but I knew I would get caught. They did end up going to that trip, and the landlord kid was mad he didn’t get his game (I didn’t like him so I was fine with it). I still have that guilt and I remember the prices of everything and the stand."
"Edit: to clarify I’m 23 now"
– Chivasguy1906
All It Takes Is A Lifeline To Hold On
"When I was nineteen I was seriously considering suicide. I had written letters to my family and everything. The day I was going to do it my mom took me on a surprise errand. It was a woman selling chihuahua puppies. My mom had me pick one out to be just my dog. I fell inlove with that puppy and knew I couldn't leave her by herself. My mom and that dog saved my life."
– UnicornQueefsGlitter
Heartbreak So Bad You Don't Think You Can Go On
"When I was 26 I got divorced. Should have never been married to that woman but here we are. I was already in a bad mental state but that put me to the edge. I after the first couple weeks where I was kinda shell-shocked, then it really sank in and I was just looking for the best opportunity to do it."
"She calls me one day and says she’s taking my dog to the shelter because of some bullsh-t reason. I tell her to f-ck off, I’m coming to get him. I pick him up and get him home, look down at him and know that as long as I have that little fuzzy f-ck, I can’t do it. That was 7 years ago and he’s the reason I’m alive. I don’t know how I’m going to handle it when he passes."
– Barf_el_Moggo
Never Ever Mess With An Allergy
"My cousin purposefully tried to find the people lying about food allergies by putting a little bit at a time of something they were allergic to in their food at a restaurant she worked at. Most of the time she would tell me people would lie just to make sure something wasnt on their order. I'm not sure the restaurant but she got caught and fired after she almost killed a young girl that had a severe reactions to onions."
"My best friend who worked with her when they happen, told me they were regulars and that no matter what they ordered everyone in the family would ask for no onions. The cook was aware of this and would always make sure nothing he used for their food had touched or been anywhere near an onion. Well my cousin, not believing the girls allergy, grabbed a little bit of chopped onion and put it in her food and covered it with something so they wouldn't notice it."
"Well the little girl took a bite and immediately couldn't break. The boss called for an ambulance and her dad used the epipen but she still couldn't breath as good. My cousin found out later that she was put in the hospital due to her putting some onions in her food. The parents were mad and they demanded the owner pay for her medical bills."
"Apparently they wanted to press charges as well but they didn't have cameras and no one would own up to who did it so my cousin didn't get arrested but later on after the owner paid someone told him it was my cousin and he said he wouldn't report her but he was keeping her last check due to him paying the medical bills for the girl. My cousin got arrested a year later for almost killing her then boyfriend at the time doing the same shit. She's now serving time for attempted murder due to her knowing about the allergy."
– Glitter_Love1
Different Paths To Success
"I didn't graduate college, I dropped out, just got lucky with a job that doesn't have anything to do with my 'degree'"
– jojo_ryoko
Too Late To Tell Her Now
"I ratted out my sister for sneaking her boyfriend over to the house at night because she was always mean to me. I told my therapist who I knew would insist I need to tell my aunt. I told them I didn’t want her to know I ratted her out so my aunt said the neighbors saw her one night. My sister brought it up the other day and still hates the neighbors for telling on her. (We are both now in our late 20’s) We are actually really close now and I love my sister so much. I don’t have the heart to tell her it was me. I’d rather she just hold a grudge against the neighbors."
– itsgoingtobeokayyy
Too Late To Tell HIM Now
"I used to work night shifts."
"My dad would let me drive his truck on nights/mornings when the weather was expected to snow bad."
"The morning after my shift it snowed pretty bad.. traffic was absolutely terrible."
"I was finished with my last 3rd 12 hr night shift and absolutely exhausted and not patient."
"I went through a neighborhood to avoid traffic only to find more traffic within the neighborhood, guess people had the similar idea. There was a crash ahead, out of frustration I backed into someone mailbox... luckily I was able to reposition it. As for the truck.. there was a large dent."
"My dad noticed it later that day and blamed the snow plow trucks. I went along with it. To this day he still thinks the snow plow truck was responsible"
– AwkWORD47
Do You Smell Smoke?
"I almost set a kitchen fire about 2 weeks ago. I was boiling some food on the electric stove when it started over spilling. I’m not really sure if water effects a stove, I just know water + electricity = bad. So I turned the stove off and moved the pan away, the area it was on still glowing red."
"Then I was a dumbass and decided to dry the water with kitchen roll. After all, there’s no fire, and I just turned the cooker off, so there was absolutely no way it would be hot enough to start a fire!"
"Feel free to laugh at me now."
"The sheet of kitchen roll sets on fire. Panic. Grab the bot burning end and put it down on the side. Put it right next to the toaster like the absolute moron I am. P a n i c. I didn’t want the fire to spread to the toaster and burn the house down, when I suddenly remembered: I was in the kitchen. Water exists. I just cupped water in my hands and threw it until all the flames were gone. And I will never tell my family because I won’t live it down"
– CC12gg
My Secret Based
"I skipped an intire 2 terms of school by hiding in the tiny hatch in the attic"
– MyHatHasDepression
Hoping For The Best
"I'm pregnant right now, but I can't tell my husband because I usually have miscarriages. I don't want to make him sad because I know how badly he wants a second child. I'm 39 and time is running out. I'm just waiting, trying not to feel anything about it, not excitement, not sadness, just nothing"
– Apprehensive-Ad4244
Something for all of us to learn, really. Make sure you're friends with people who have an eye out for you.
Feel like sharing a secret you were never going to share with anyone? Tell us all about it in the comments!
America is in a terrible situation.
We are addicted to guns and nobody seems to care.
And nothing seems to get done.
RedditorSpecktakles88wanted to take a serious moment to ask:
"What, in your opinion, is a realistic solution to gun violence in the United States?"
I don't know what more there is to say on this topic. But let's try...
American society failing...
"A school shooting is the ugly culmination of multiple facets of established American society failing. A single 'solution' would mean a complete overhaul of countless modern systems."
Lupia_
"Indeed, the whole idea that there’s no, one solution, is what people who don’t really want this to be sorted out rely upon."
"Every time this sort of thing happens and people talk about solutions they demand you give them A solution, pretending to care and be engaged. Then they can easily point out the one you’ve suggested won’t fix the problem, make out that you’re eating everyone’s time and are stupid, and nothing changes."
Aloonatron
Swiss Cheese
"There's a model used in risk analysis called the swiss cheese model - in short, every tactic that you throw at a problem will be like a slice of swiss cheese. Each hole in the slice of cheese is an opportunity for the problem to still slip through. Some slices will have more holes in than others, but if you have enough slices stacked, you won't have any holes."
"So it's not just one solution that's needed - it's lots of solutions, all working together. Some may be less directly effective (such as restricting lobbying), some may be more directly effective (such as making background checks 100% required in all cases)."
Blythyvxr
Too Much Effort
"Well for starters, make sure your local police force isn't made up of a gang of cowards."
CannaPanda69
"How dare you expect police to waste their time stopping mass murder?!?! They have speeding tickets to write and drug kingpins to arrest for having a dimebag in their car!!!"
TheMadTitan2016
"Don't forget about stopping parents from going in to save the kids."
therealbeeblevrox
Complex Issues
"I get that this is the internet, and hence 5000 people have expressed a mostly non-expert opinion, but there are actual public health experts in gun violence, mental health, and injury prevention science that politicians should take policy direction from. Wicked problems require complex, systemic, and science-based solutions."
jamafam
Culture Shifts
"Everyone is arguing that it's a mental health issue, but there are people with mental health issues and crap healthcare all over the world and this STILL doesn't happen. I think the states needs a huge culture shift."
LuigiLoly
"And the vast majority of people who have mental health issues in the US are... not violent. I agree it's mainly a cultural problem. The government can't fix radicalization or the glorification of violence. Better gun laws can help too, but it's a cultural issue."
The_GREAT_Gremlin
Well those all sound good. And not at all new. Gimme more...
No Safety
"People realizing two very important facts that have become painfully clear in the last 4 years:"
"The Government does not care about you. They will not protect you or your children."
"Law Enforcement does not care about you. They will not protect you or your children."
"No one is coming to save you. Act accordingly."
SaltyPilgrim
From Afar...
"In NZ we have a massive mental health problem, yet mass shootings are extremely rare. We also have good gun control laws, with most people with guns using them for farming, hunting, animal population control or hobby shooting."
"Looking at the US from afar, there seems to be a very paranoid culture centred around a need to protect oneself at all times, and personally I think that’s a core issue. Why are people so scared? Addressing that issue would probably have a substantial effect."
grizznuggets
Media Issues
"Change the media culture, stop publishing names and pictures of shooters, increase mental health awareness and risk assessment when someone wants to own a firearm. Do actual background checks."
ThePantsMcFist
"There has been a major shift in reporting on mass shootings (at least on the local level) where the name of the shooter is reported in the immediate following of the event, and then not mentioned again. Everything afterwards is focused on the names of the victims and community reaction to the shootings. Both local stations I have worked for have implemented this method of reporting."
Hybrid_Johnny
Broken
"As someone on the outside looking in. I feel you have a broken nation and I have no idea how you can fix it. I don't know how well received this will be and I maybe wrong, but I feel like the corrupt elite in your nation are playing with our patriotic values for their own greed under the guise of national security. I mean. A few thousand Americans die in one day and you spend trillions of dollars and 2 decades to bomb impoverished nations, destabilise regions and directly and indirectly kill thousands across the 3rd world in the name of national security and the war on terror."
"Yet tens of thousands of Americans die each year to gun violence and nothing can be done. Is this not a national security issue. How much talent are you losing every year that could benefit both your country and the world if you would just give them a chance to live."
bushmanbob_82
Something to Cling to...
"We also need to give our children hope. They currently do not see a life ahead of them that is equal to or better than the one their parents lead. They see nothing but pain, strife and hopelessness. We need to show that we can give them a world that is as clean when they are adults as it is now. We need to show there will be a career waiting for them, that they will be able to afford housing and be a member of a healthy society. Hope is one critical part of the solution."
GamemasterJeff
We're in some troubled waters friends. We can fix this. We just have to want to.
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As someone fascinated by movies and Hollywood, I possess a significant amount of knowledge about celebrities.
The Golden Age of Hollywood? Yes. Modern-day performers? You name it.
I also have a morbid mind so as you can imagine, I have a lot of knowledge about celebrity deaths. I sometimes think about Heath Ledger, who died of an accidental overdose in 2008. What must it be like to die that way, and to die alone?
What about Bobby Driscoll, best known for voicing the title character in Disney's Peter Pan?
He died of heart failure, also alone, and his body was discovered in an abandoned building in the East Village of Manhattan. His body was later buried in a pauper's grave and remains on New York's Hart Island.
There are other tragic celebrity deaths that have captured the nation's–and even the world's–imagination.
People shared their thoughts after Redditor Boldstarspindleshawk asked the online community:
"What celebrity suffered the worst death?"
Owen Hart
"He won’t be the biggest celebrity on this list, but the wrestler Owen Hart plunged to his death from 70 feet in the air in front of 20,000 people during a live pay-per-view. He was supposed to descend from the rafters in a superhero-like entrance, but it went terribly wrong."
"WWE insisted on doing the stunt without the proper safety equipment (since they wanted Owen to do a 'quick release'), and they hired a below-par rigging company that would agree to do it (since most wouldn’t). They were grossly negligent."
Cinammon16
Hart's death was also extremely controversial because WWE chose to continue the event even though he was severely injured in front of a live audience! Can you imagine?
Isadora Duncan
"Isadora Duncan, a famous dancer in the 1920’s wore a long scarf. She jumped in a sports car with no roof and the scarf got caught in the spokes of one of the wheels, and she was strangled."
JazzRider
Duncan's death always frightened me.
It's an example of how one thing, one choice, can go horribly wrong.
Kirsty MacColl
"It's Kirsty MacColl to me. Sliced up by the propeller of an illegally operated boat while saving her children from the same, for the boat's rich owner to buy his way out of justice."
Hattix
She died saving her son, who suffered minor head and rib injuries.
She died instantly.
Vic Morrow
"Jennifer Jason Leigh’s father, Vic Morrow. On the set of the Twilight Zone movie. Morrow and two children were killed. The helicopter crashed decapitating him and one of the children. The other child was crushed to death."
Illustrious_Tie491
These deaths caused a major scandal, ultimately impacting the career of director John Landis and resulting in a change to child labor laws in regard to film sets.
Sharon Tate
"Sharon Tates' was pretty bad. Getting stabbed to death while pregnant and begging for your unborn child's life is pretty f**cking brutal."
HempParty
The horrors and crimes committed by the Manson family continue to draw fascination to this very day.
Lou Gehrig
"Lou Gerhig. ALS causes loss of muscle control but many people diagnosed know what's in store for them. They know they will be losing the ability to walk, talk and even breathe."
legumey
The Lou Gehrig Memorial Award is given annually to the MLB player who best exhibits Gehrig's integrity and character.
Judith Barsi
"Judith Barsi voiced characters in The Land Before Time and All Dogs Go to Heaven. She died at the hands of her father in a muder-suicide after years of abuse."
"A murder suicide after a long campaign of both physical and psychological abuse too. She was just 10 years old."
darkwolfuwu
Barsi and her mother were buried in adjoining plots.
Her tombstone includes the phrase "Yep! Yep! Yep!" a phrase uttered by Ducky, the character she voices in the 1988 animated classic The Land Before Time.
Selena
"Selena. Being murdered by someone you thought you could trust and being snuffed out when she was on the cusp of superstardom. All her hard work since a little girl down the drain."
JadeStratus
Selena is more famous now than she was when she was alive.
It's crazy to think about.
Meanwhile, Yolanda Saldivar, who murdered her, is still in prison.
She is eligible for parole in 2025.
Christopher Reeve
"Christopher Reeve (Superman) died after bed sores became infected after breaking his neck and getting paralyzed."
SerVimesGOT
Christopher Reeve led a hard life after his horseback riding accident and yet remained such a kind and generous figure.
Anton Yelchin
"Anton Yelchin. I can't imagine anything worse than slowly dying in a torturous manner with not a soul nearby and zero way to get help or save yourself. I'm not afraid of much, not heights or claustrophobic or drowning, but dying in a helpless manner slowly is one thing that terrifies me truly."
KassSpin
This death was such a shock and a huge blow to Star Trek fans worldwide.
Yelchin was 28 when his SUV rolled down his driveway and pinned him against a brick pillar gate post.
His death was due to blunt traumatic asphyxia.
Jon-Erik Hexum
"Jon-Erik Hexum. He was an actor who was playing around with a gun loaded with blanks during a delay in filming. As a joke, he put the gun to his head and pulled the trigger."
Flashpoint123
This death, much like the death of Brandon Lee and the death of a crew member on the set of the movie Rust, have challenged views about safety on the sets of Hollywood films.
When you learn more about Hollywood, you can very easily fall down a rabbit hole.
James Dean: That car crash sounds terrifying.
Barbara Payton: Became a prostitute and died of alcoholism in her late 30s.
Phil Hartman: Murdered by his wife.
Have a celebrity you'd like to mention? Feel free to sound off in the comments below!
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WARNING: the following article contains discussion of suicide/self-harm.
Life sometimes certainly can feel like you've reached the end of your rope.
People will go through a multitude of experiences before feeling like suicide is the only option. While we hope for a positive outcome and everyone can get the help they need, that doesn't always happen.
But sometimes, people are unsuccessful in their attempt to end their life and have a change of heart. They can share their tales with others in the hopes of dissuading them from making that choice.
Reddit user, Gay_Infidel, wanted to know what things were like on the other side when they asked:
"Suicide attempt survivors, what are some moments you would have missed out on if you had taken your lives?"
Count.
Sometimes that's all you need to do.
Count up the things you have now, the things you will have or the things you want to have.
Seems like that's a common occurrence afterwards.
Tell Yourself What You Might Miss
"I used to do this on the anniversary of my attempt as a way to appreciate being alive for another year. There were some years where it was hard to come up with things to be thankful for. . .but I felt it was important for me to do it anyway. It will be 20 years in February."
"So some major moments I would have missed out on. . .
- Met a wonderful man and support in my life. Got married.
- Buying (and paying off) my car.
- Dog sledding on a glacier.
- Visited another country. (Turkey)
- Graduated college.
- Experienced the wonderful world of Cosplay.
- Experienced the wonderful world of LARPing.
- Adopted two wonderful dogs, Darwin and Eevee.
- Had my artwork featured on site for a very popular videogame.
- Got to see my favorite band live in concert three times."
You Find Your Calling
"Moving to supported living, learning to live independently and discovering my calling as a manga artist."
Mrgreen37
"I’m so happy for you. I’m a social worker and there is such a stigma around supported living. There is absolutely no shame in needing some help! More people need to realize this."
loveroflongbois
"Just want to say, supported living helped me tremendously! I lived in that arrangement while I got my first degree and I couldn't have succeeded as I did without it. I visited the NY Congress people to show them success comes from those arrangements."
"I became a Licensed Social Worker (LMSW) and I know sometimes it's hard to know if/when you're helping people, but success happens!"
AhFFSImTooOldForThis
A Moment Too Many
"I would have missed out on the birth of my nephew."
"I would have missed out on my niece's first steps."
"I would have missed out on the chance to see them grow up."
"I would have missed out on all the good times we've shared together."
"I'm glad I didn't take my life. There are too many good moments worth living for."
SnooDonkeys5625
Not every experience leaves you with a positive feeling.
But it's a feeling, and sometimes that appears to be enough.
At Least You Can Laugh About It With The Rest Of The Internet
"After my second attempt, I was in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. The responder with me asked me to name something I was looking forward to that I would have missed if I had succeeded that day."
"I said the last season of Game of Thrones. Those last three episodes felt like a personal giant middle finger to me."
NowWithMoreChocolate
Every Rose Has Its Thorns, But That's Okay. They Still Smell Nice.
"Mmm..not really any of note. I wasnt overall wrong...life has become worse."
"But I dont regret surviving either and Ive come to embrace the pain of life."
"Like, whether or not I kill myself, I will still die. I might as well stick around..why rush towards something you will be at no matter what?"
"Might as well stop and smell the roses.."
"Maybe something I would have missed out on is realizing how absurd people are. Like, I have people on a daily basis pressuring me because I'm 5 minutes late, or they haven't done something by the exact letter of the book...and I'm like, dude, you know you are going to die, right?"
"Like..in the end, none of this matters? And you're complaining about someone being a couple minutes late?"
"Watching people lose their sh*t over the most irrelevant stuff..for me, that's a bit fun lol."
xisnotx
Sometimes, all you need to know is there's one more day, one more person, which you really need to stick around to witness.
Something Small, But Meaningful. And Floofy.
"Honestly nothing that I really care about besides getting a cat."
_escapist_
"The cat is enough. There have been times in my life when I lived solely for my cats. Your cat deserves to have you and your love, and you deserve their love too. That’s beautiful, my friend."
loveroflongbois
"I used to be suicidal. Was seconds away at one point. But now I live alone with my cat and everything is perfect. Well not perfect, but I know I won’t ever be close to attempting anytime soon because I couldn’t leave my cat"
MFlinn4
A Person Who Needs You
"The birth of my son, who has helped me grow in ways that I never thought possible. Seeing him grow up to be the adorable little goofball that he is."
Swimming_Garlic_9536
"My son saved my life. I had attempted for the fourth time about 15 months before I got pregnant. But once that kid was born, it all changed. I would have missed everything that kid has given me."
happytrees822
Just One More Day...
"I met my now-husband two days after my attempt."
"Two days."
"So now my biggest advice is to get through today, because tomorrow might be the day things start to turn around and you won't know unless you're there to find out..."
"...I met my husband because I lived another day, that's it. It's not some magic ritual."
"But statistically, yes, if you don't die today you'll probably end up meeting the love of your life someday, that's why this thread is populated with similar stories. Listen."
"I know things are bleak right now and that seems impossible because I was there. I felt that."
"And I know a relationship isn't a cure-all for depression because it took a good struggle of a few years of self-hate that my husband had to deal with, but stuck with me through."
"8 years later, I still have bad days, bad weeks. You're going to. And that's okay because you're going to have good days and good weeks, too. It does get better with time, but you won't know unless you're there to find out."
"I met my partner about a week later! We've been together eight years now. We're both so different (and in much better places!) than we were when we first met, and I'm so glad I didn't miss the chance to get to know my favorite person ever."
Necromantic_Inside
**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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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/