Discussion Do you think “psychiatric euthanasia” will become legalized/gain widespread acceptance in the coming decades?

[FloraKilter]

By psychiatric euthanasia I mean a physician prescribes you N or a similar drug due to incurable suffering stemming from a psychiatric condition. This is currently legal and practiced in the Netherlands and Belgium. But it's fairly difficult to get a physician on board and can take years.

I read some articles about it— this one:https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/06/22/the-death-treatment for example — about a year ago. it's suppose to be "shocking" and "morbid," but I see it gaining mainstream acceptance in the next 10 or 20 years.

a couple of reasons:

1. life expectancy rates in the USA are already decking due to drug overdose and suicide. Demand is increasing. Despair is increasing. And this is all despite the arsenal of antidepressants and other psychiatric drugs being prescribed liberally.

2. climate change and everything that comes with it: extreme weather events, famine, climate refugee crisis, disease pandemics etc. plus the loss of the world as we know it.

3. increasing wealth inequality and the vanishing middle class. Along with a broken healthcare system. I'm a millennial with no retirement savings, no assets, and no chance of ever being able to buy a house (best way to build wealth). I have worked since I was 17, never been unemployed for longer than a month, and I have a bachelors. I'm currently working 50 hours a week and saving nothing, just paying off debt. I'm typical of my generation! We won't have the option of retiring!

so wouldn't the humane thing to do be to offer euthanasia services for the hopeless? I mean I know I'll be working til I die, so wouldn't it be nice if I could bow out on my schedule, before my body gets too decrepit and medical bills bankrupt me? I fantasize about getting a sure fire, peaceful Rx a lot.

I predict attitudes towards psychiatric euthanasia will rapidly turn sympathetic over the 2020's.

 

[FTL.Wanderer]

yes. a lot more people who aren't nearly as far gone as i am, i've been reading, are seriously considering suicide as their retirement plan. i don't think people REALLY care about suicide. unless it's about someone they love (duh). if someone gets people to see suicide as a cost-saving, i think it would become a lot more acceptable. i no longer pay attention to feigned shock over things like suicide. if the gen pop really gave a damn, there are a LOT of things they could do to mitigate suicide. what's the expression? virtue signaling...

 

[Notf1xable]

There's so many factors that would keep this from happening in the US. Between the religious people that would never want that to happen, and companies that need people alive to work, to get money from etc. The US is behind in a lot of things, I mean it has potential, but it's no where near the forward thinking country it portrays to be. Too many people are suffering for various reasons that could even start to be addressed dealing with quality of life. We even have a hard time letting people dying of terminal physical illnesses go of their own volition.

 

[*KNAZ*]

I wish they would do that but it wouldn't be in time to benefit me. I'm sure there would be a lot of noise and opposition to it. Basically the government would be losing its tax base and wage slaves. Having more and more of the population offing itself out of despair. Sounds like a growing protest movement of self extinction. Could lead to some major reforms to improve quality of life and meaningfulness. I am so disconnected from this society, century, decade. It has nothing that I find appealing or worthy of striving for. Just vulgar, narcissistic, isolating, shallow, vain, selfish, crass, and lacking in any classical beauty and grace. I guess the England of Charles Dickens could be considered worse but I think our tech just makes our shit even worse and more in your face. It's everywhere. People everywhere are miserable and hopeless despite all the tech advances we have made and all the psych meds. Think I saw a stat that 25% of Americans are on some kind of pill? Pills that are supposed to work but in reality don't do anything but make it all worse

I hope my courage builds and builds until I finally can CTB. What a shit world.

 

[Darkhaven]

No.
Pro lifers still have too much influence in politics.
Most countries don't even allow euthanasia for physically ill patients let alone psychiatry patients.

 

[GreyMonkey]

Only if things get so bad that voluntary death relieves some kind of pressure on a struggling economic system and the world biosphere.

Although I do imagine voluntary exit for late age and terminal debilitating illness will gain traction.


My hope would be instead there is significant investment into mental health care that is humane, person-centred and focused on real recovery and integration rather than basic management.

 

[bigj75]

I wish. will be a long ass time from now.

 

[FloraKilter]

Yes, the religious contingent in the US represents a pretty big hurdle. But maybe not. The same conservatives that were opposed to the affordable care act because of "Obama death panels" that would execute grandma for cost savings seemed to be screaming "let the die!" about uninsured people needing medical care during the 2016 election when the ACA and health care were big issues.

I don't think much of religion-derived morals. They actually fluctuate a lot and very religious people are easily manipulated by messaging that feels right and familiar. With the right spin you could get "prolifers" endorsing "dignified" and "selfless" euthanasia.

the need for wage slaves is a tricky one. The capitalist powers that be won't be too keen on workers in their 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s retiring early. But I think they'd permit it in a heartbeat as soon as an employee got cancer or hurt. But the chance to get an easy script for suicide would demotivate a good chunk of the workforce. So there would be considerable opposition to young people accessing euthanasia.

I hope that with an increase of older and terminally ill folks opting for euthanasia there will be more barbituates (and other lethal drugs) floating around.

 

[*KNAZ*]

Yes, the religious contingent in the US represents a pretty big hurdle. But maybe not. The same conservatives that were opposed to the affordable care act because of "Obama death panels" that would execute grandma for cost savings seemed to be screaming "let the die!" about uninsured people needing medical care during the 2016 election when the ACA and health care were big issues.

I don't think much of religion-derived morals. They actually fluctuate a lot and very religious people are easily manipulated by messaging that feels right and familiar. With the right spin you could get "prolifers" endorsing "dignified" and "selfless" euthanasia.

the need for wage slaves is a tricky one. The capitalist powers that be won't be too keen on workers in their 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s retiring early. But I think they'd permit it in a heartbeat as soon as an employee got cancer or hurt. But the chance to get an easy script for suicide would demotivate a good chunk of the workforce. So there would be considerable opposition to young people accessing euthanasia.

I hope that with an increase of older and terminally ill folks opting for euthanasia there will be more barbituates (and other lethal drugs) floating around.

Was sad to see the crackdown on N. And the even worse misguided attempts to crack down on Opiates especially for people in chronic pain. All overblown because of people abusing OxyContin. Have a friend with chronic pain issues and they are even cracking down on tramadol for Pete sake. They are trying to herd everyone into "pain clinics" to be managed. Reminds me of herding people like us into the mental health big pharma gerbil wheel.

 

[Maravillosa]

Yes, the religious contingent in the US represents a pretty big hurdle. But maybe not. The same conservatives that were opposed to the affordable care act because of "Obama death panels" that would execute grandma for cost savings seemed to be screaming "let the die!" about uninsured people needing medical care during the 2016 election when the ACA and health care were big issues.

I don't think much of religion-derived morals. They actually fluctuate a lot and very religious people are easily manipulated by messaging that feels right and familiar. With the right spin you could get "prolifers" endorsing "dignified" and "selfless" euthanasia.

the need for wage slaves is a tricky one. The capitalist powers that be won't be too keen on workers in their 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s retiring early. But I think they'd permit it in a heartbeat as soon as an employee got cancer or hurt. But the chance to get an easy script for suicide would demotivate a good chunk of the workforce. So there would be considerable opposition to young people accessing euthanasia.

I hope that with an increase of older and terminally ill folks opting for euthanasia there will be more barbituates (and other lethal drugs) floating around.

What about people on disability (SSI and/or SSDI in the US)? They are not (or at least are no longer) employees, although they are in their 20s, 30s, 40s, and 50s. I am 53, have been on SSI for 15 years, and have never had a full-time job. It is highly unlikely that I will become a wage slave at this stage in the game, especially since it is hard for job seekers in their 50s and 60s to find suitable and fulfilling employment that uses their skill set.

Also, most of my morals are based in the Catholicism that I do my feeble best to follow. I am a social conservative who fervently opposes abortion, war, and the death penalty (I think the UN should have arrested al-Baghdadi and put him on trial before the World Court in the Hague for crimes against humanity, instead of the US taking him out), but because of my frequent suicidality, I am ambivalent about euthanasia. (I am, however, in favor of government-provided health care to all and do not think the US government should let people die because they are poor.)

 

[Neurodamaged2]

Big pharma and docs / psychs would never let this happen. They'd rather turn you into a zombie with ECT (shock 'therapy') and anti-psychotics (long term chemical lobotomies) then dump you off in some shitty care home or shelter than let you die. I've had it happen to me.

 

[noaccount]

I hope not. I think suicide should be decriminalized, but when whitecoats 'assisting' it is decriminalized - they already hate and abuse us so much, that would just give them way too many chances to pressure people into it, to murder us and say we consented.

 

[TAW122]

As much as I wish for that to happen, it's very unlikely for any forseeable future (let alone within my lifetime) unless something drastically gets much worse, like sudden amount of the working young adult (to maybe mid-aged adults) become unable to be productive in this economy, then I could see that happening. Others mentioned good reasons such as the religious and big pharma are the main gatekeepers and forces that stifle the progress of legalizing laws such as death with dignity. If there is any substantial progress, I think the first to be allowed are those who are terminally ill and meet the criteria for death with dignity (some states already have it, and I think more will come in the coming years, will be slow though). In the states that currently have this, they don't allow those who have poor qualities of life (chronic mental illnesses, physical illnesses) but only those who are close to death (terminal cancer for instance).

I'd say if I am alive in the long term, this would be something that I will keep advocating, if there are death with dignity rallies in my home state, NC, then I would be more than happy to attend a few and continue to push for legalization of death with dignity/euthanasia. I'd guess it could take many decades before the US ends up something similar to what Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland has in terms of death with dignity and assisted suicide.

 

[Sweet emotion]

No not by a long shot

 

[Heart of Ice]

A lot of people seem to have a problem with it. In my experience, people are far more accepting of a euthanasia because of physical problems.

 

[Reyki6667]

No. Not as religion remain and is prevalent, influencing those on power.