Would you help your terminally ill loved ones to die, if they were suffering?

Would you want someone to do the same for you?





Please indicate whether you have religious beliefs or not. I know it's difficult to say unless you're actually in the situation, but I'm just curious what you think now...it's one thing to say you'd never do it and another to see/be in pain and it be a completely different story. And for Christians, do you think you're going to hell if someone assists in your ';suicide'; if you have cancer, other disease in which you won't get better...Would you help your terminally ill loved ones to die, if they were suffering?
I have been in that situation with my late BIL. He had been dying and suffering from melanoma (stay out of the sun, people!!!) for three years, fighting it every step of the way. When the hospice nurse came out and checked him one last time my Sis asked her, ';He doesn't seem to really be conscious most of the time anymore. Should we still give him his morphine?'; The nurse told us to ';ask him';, which we did after she left. She also told us that the morphine could possibly kill him more quickly as his respirations were so weak.





I still remember his eyes fluttering when we told him what was up and him rasping out a request for fresh cherries, which we got, and then asking for his morphine injection after he managed to get down three cherries (with help). He was dead half an hour after that injection. My Mother, my Sister and I sat and watched him die. His ashes are sitting here on this particular computer desk, matter of fact. My sis and I promised him we'd scatter them on the 18th hole at Pebble Beach. How we're going to pull that one off, we don't know yet. We're clever women, though. We'll find a way...





So yes, I could do it. I know he probably wouldn't have lasted the night anyway, but he did want that morphine shot knowing it would most likely kill him relatively quickly, and I gave it to him.





I'm a Nordic Heathen, btw. My BIL was non-religious/agnostic.Would you help your terminally ill loved ones to die, if they were suffering?
My husband and I both have living wills stating that we do not want to be kept on machines if that is the only thing keeping us alive. Parents have the same as well.


That said, when it came time to take my grandmother off of her machinery, my mother had an extremely difficult time. It was only my grandmother's main care nurse reminding my mother of how much gram hated it when she had to be hooked up to anything for longer than 5 minutes that helped my mom out.
No, on both counts. I should add I watched my mother die a slow, painful and horrible death over a period lasting a full year following nine years of serious illness. It never once crossed my mind to 'speed things up.'





When my own time comes of course I don't want to die in agonising pain, but I'd rather that than have my family treat me like a worn out Jack Russell.
we had that issue with my dad.





i am one of Jehovah's witnesses; dad was not. but he was in SO much pain, dad just wanted it to end.


so, he asked for painkiller until the natural course took over. the body will shut down on its own. you dont need a kavorkian maniac to 'usher it along'.





gramps
I don't think that I could answer that question unless I ever find myself in that position, either as the relative or the terminally ill person.
I think it is a shame that we live in a society where we will put our pets ';down'; out of compassion, but will not show this same compassion to our loved ones.





It would be a heartbreaking decision, but one I would do.
I've already been through that with my Dad. They called it ';Hospice'; and the morphine made sure he didn't suffer.
If you are talking about assisted suicide, then no. However, there are pain medications (like morphine) that can help.
If they asked, I would help them. Did you know that some doctors will tell their terminally ill patients how much of a certain drug will produce an 'accidental' fatal overdose?





Torg
If they were in serious physical pain, yes, and I'd hope someone would do the same for me. It's about quality of life, not quantity
Yes. I'd want to be euthanized, if there was no coming back. I watched a loved one struggle in palliative care for over a week, around the clock. If it were me, I'd never want to have my loved ones suffer through that, ever.
Yes. and yes.


I have beliefs





And Christians who commit suicide still go to heaven. so I dont think I or anyone else would go to hell for this.
No. Let's call ';assisted suicide'; what it really is: cold-blooded murder.
If the person in question wanted to die, yes I would help them.


If it was me, I would hope that my family members would help me. No point in suffering if you're just going to die anyway.


I'm an atheist.
After having watched a close friend die of cancer, I would say that I would never want to have another loved one in so much pain. This isn't the kind of suffering that we should have to live through. It's not something one can just deal with or get over. It is permanent pain. I would never want to submit my loved ones to torture just because I will miss them. It is a rather selfish act to tell them to live in pain so I can avoid the pain of them passing for a few more days, weeks, months, etc.





That doesn't mean that the decision would be an easy one. I don't know how I would react if the question wasn't hypothetical anymore. I hope that I would be willing to help my family. I would also hope that we weighed all the options. I hope that we would have looked into alternative medicines, other doctors, seen where experimental work is being done, etc. After all of that, if we still feel that ending the suffering is the best option, then I hope I can be the son that they need and end the pain.





I am an atheist. I don't believe that we should suffer or cause others to suffer because we are selfish.
absolutely not,if they want to kill themselves then they should do it themselves(it's not that hard to kill yourself) and i feel the same way about me if i ever wanted to end my life then i'll do it myself rather then let anyone do it for me
Yes, though I would damn Myself to my own Hell for doing so.


THAT is unrequited Love.