To think euthanasia should be legal in the UK

[ThereWillBeAdequateFood]

Just that really. Many countries have legalised euthanasia for terminally ill adults. I think it’s about time the U.K. did the same?

It’s not right that it’s only an option for those with the money to go abroad to have this as an option.

I think the idea of life being so sacred we must preserve it at all costs is wrong. We are all going to die some day anyway. I would prefer it to be in comfort rather than long drawn out agony.

Isn’t it unethical that families can push to keep a relative alive and in pain & suffering just because they don’t want to lose that loved one?

Why is that ok, but the tiny risk that some people may feel pressured into ending their life when terminally ill anyway is not?

I think the clicky link is fine.

Who is to say that someone like my DS or someone with dementia has no quality of life or isn't happy when given the right support

What if the law was that the person would have to give fully informed consent (twice verbal once written).
That could potentially leave a lot of elderly patients with dementia unable to access euthanasia. You would need to give consent whilst you still had capacity and stipulate the conditions and circumstances where you would wish to end your life.

The legal framework and safeguards would be feasible, as policymakers could learn from evidence from other countries.

Some illnesses for some people are so debilitating and painful that even the very best palliative care - which isn’t available to the vast majority of us in the UK - can’t reduce suffering mucu.

People with degenerative conditions wishing to end their life before going through the worst stages have to travel to a clinic overseas, while they are still able to do so, and earlier than they wanted to go, and their family take legal risks.

I'd be concerned that future governments will be so concerned about finances and over population, that they will cleverly make it so the urge and desire to continue living will be seen as socially unacceptable and irresponsible.

No, a poll is not crass. Litmus test of (small sample, certain demographics!) public opinion. Proper, large surveys on these matters would be a good thing.

I completely agree. We should have autonomy over our own bodies, including when we die. I have an advanced directive and would consider Dignitas should my health look likely to deteriorate to a level beyond which I would not tolerate.

I watched my 37 year old DH die of cancer in a hospice. The last three weeks were horrid, the last three days were hell. They should never ever of happened - it was cruel, undignified and utterly utterly horrific for both him and I. If I didn’t have children I would have put a pillow over his head to end it and not felt a single iota of regret - I love him with all my heart and no-one should ever ever suffer like that.

Loopy, I think that's one of the saddest things about the status quo: people who end their lives before they want to, when they could have had weeks or months of good quality life with their families and friends if they didn't have to make plans while they're still well enough to travel.

Plus it's incredibly expensive so those who find life intolerable, or fear that they will soon, risk a botched job at home, or spouse ending up in prison, or just have to suffer.

Am I the only one who thinks it's totally crass to reduce this serious subject to a clickly poll on AIBU

Maybe you have a point. But if you want to know what people think asking them is generally a good idea.
There’s also room for debate on this thread.

The young person in I think the Netherlands recently who was suffering from mental illness and euthanized is an excellent example.

That didn't happen. FFS. That girl's request to be euthanised was denied. She killed herself. Get your facts straight! People should be allowed legal and dignified ways of ending their lives if they see fit to do so.

I agree.
How come when an able-bodied person attempts suicide, they’re not arrested yet when a disabled or ill person wants to end their life with someone’s help, it’s seen as a massive crime?
Basically able-bodied people have the choice whereas other people don’t

My father had a stroke which meant he could no longer swallow; he couldn't talk either. He indicated that all he wanted was palliative care, and was starved to death in a hospital that used the Liverpool Care pathway. It took him ten days to die. (I know, from having talked to him before this happened, that what he was expecting was an "accidental" overdose of a painkiller such as used to be given in a humane society. It didn't happen.)

If I'd had the means, I would have killed him myself on about the fourth day, when the terrified animal looking out of his eyes wasn't my father any more.

I now hope that I will have the guts to commit suicide before I fall alive into the hands of the medics as he did, because it would be greatly preferable. Or that this country will come to its senses before I have to, and start to permit assisted dying.

It’s not right that it’s only an option for those with the money to go abroad to have this as an option.

Well, that's true. But I don't think it should be an option for anyone.

I am wary of it being legal.
Considering the way disabled people and those with lds are treated by society,, it scares me

But if you want to know what people think asking them is generally a good idea

I know all devices are different but on my laptop all I see when I click on this thread is your OP and huge vote buttons. There's no indication that there's a debate lower down and it really isn't a yes or no answer topic, what kind of valid conclusion can be drawn from voting with no explanation, suppose all the people who can't be bothered to debate all vote that you are unreasonable what useful information does that give you? afaik you can't tell if the voters then enter the debate or mindlessly click and run.

I'm not saying your question isn't worth discussing, I'm questioning the reduction of any kind of meaningful conclusion to clicks

asking I’m so sorry about your dad. Horrible experience for you and him.

I remember begging the doctor to give my grandad more painkillers when he was on the Liverpool care pathway. She couldn’t has she was afraid he would die of an overdose instead of natural (painful and distressing) causes.

afaik you can't tell if the voters then enter the debate or mindlessly click and run

But people don't have to debate the issue to have made a decision on the issue. It's not like this is a new question, people will have made their minds up long before they saw a clicky link on AIBU.

I know all devices are different but on my laptop all I see when I click on this thread is your OP and huge vote buttons. There's no indication that there's a debate lower down and it really isn't a yes or no answer topic

Firstly it’s AIBU, unless you are very new to mumsnet you know how AIBU threads work. So yes it is a debate.

I'm not saying your question isn't worth discussing, I'm questioning the reduction of any kind of meaningful conclusion to clicks

I’m not under any illusion that this thread is going to change anything. It’s just there so people can have a debate and mumsnetters get a general feel as to whether to population is pro or anti euthanasia in the U.K.

Damn it forgot to add secondly

My Fil had a massive stroke that left him immobile, unable to swallow liquids, doubly incontinent and with some intellectual impairment.

We brought him home from hospital and turned our lovely sunny room overlooking the garden over to him. We plugged in a massive telly and got him Sky to watch the football. We surrounded him with mementoes of a life well lived.

He had DH and me running round after him and keeping him company, BiL up practically every weekend, his girlfriend and our four kids popping in whenever they could. He had lovely carers four times a day keeping him clean and fresh and out of pain, whatever food he wanted, in all honesty we did everything we could for him.

Basically he just turned his face to the wall and faded away over about four months. It was heart rending for the family but he just didn’t want to be alive any more.

If he could have been allowed to end it, it would have been better for everyone.

I agree. Obviously there have to be all sorts of safeguards. But people should not be made to suffer long-term against their will, or live in a vegetative state for many years if it's what they never would have wanted. You would be considered as cruel if you kept a dog or cat alive long-term in pain, yet humans may have to suffer this. In the past it was not such an issue, as there weren't the means to keep people alive for many years in a desperate condition - indeed the main problem was to prevent people from dying prematurely, as so many did. It is great that our life expectancy is so much better than it used to be; but just because you often can keep someone alive almost indefinitely doesn't mean you invariably should. Of course, we have to be sure that people's wishes are genuinely being followed, and that no one is left to die just because Junior wants the inheritance, or Stingyshire County Council wants to save on their medical care. Everyone really should have some sort of living will.

100%, yes. My ex's mum had MS and l'm sure if she'd had the option she'd have chosen to go before she totally lost her speech, her ability to speak and feed, and her continence. l'd feel the same myself.
Quality of life is what matters to me, not longevity. l'd hate to live a long life if l had no independence, was in pain, and had lost my dignity. That isn't life, it's existence.
So long as the person can make the decision lucidly and without coercion, l'm all for it. Clearly there is room for abuse of such a system, so it'd need to be strictly monitored, but if it can work in other countries, personally, l'd much rather have the choice should the situation arise.
l had to make the decision to have both my dogs euthanised. lt was heartbreaking and difficult, but very peaceful and dignified. Which is a damn sight more than l can say about my ex's mum's death. l'm convinced if she and her family had had the option, it would have been very hard, but much kinder.

What if the law was that the person would have to give fully informed consent (twice verbal once written).
That could potentially leave a lot of elderly patients with dementia unable to access euthanasia. You would need to give consent whilst you still had capacity and stipulate the conditions and circumstances where you would wish to end your life.*
The problem is capacity to give consent and many people who others may think have poor quality of life may be content as they are, or content enough

You know how people talk about benefit claimants and families who are reliant on state benefits yet continue to have more children...

Well, I could imagine it turning that way for disabled and seriously ill people. How dare they use nhs resources and cost the tax payer money when they could end it all? How dare they continue to live when it's costing the government money?

It's quite a terrifying thought.