I'm making this post just to emphasize something another SS member said, which i think is really relevant to the convos about methods and whatnot. There seems to be some confusion about what survival instinct is, and I often see SI conflated with higher-order psychological hangups about CTB.
fightingsioux says it better than i ever could, so here is the included text from a post of his (which i've edited just for readability):
Realizing this was really helpful for me to understand what sort of thoughts and instincts i would be fighting as i approach CTB. I hope it is helpful for others as well.
fightingsioux says it better than i ever could, so here is the included text from a post of his (which i've edited just for readability):
[Concerning survival instinct] there are two types.
The first type includes things like hypercapnia (a physical reflex to the the build-up of carbon dioxide) that can include anything from wild, panicked physical actions to hiccups or yawning. The startle reflex, coughing, the mammalian diving reflex, jerking your hand away from a hot stove are all other examples.These are deep-seated, instinctual, uncontrollable, evolutionary adaptations that are indelibly programmed in our brainstems...
[Then there] is the second type of survival instinct. It's psychological. But it's very powerful and very real, perhaps just as powerful and real as any physically instinctual brainstem reflex. And just as difficult to control. Some people call it the will to live; others self-preservation, fear of dying, a primitive force that clings to life. On and on. Religious folks have their take on it, social activists have their take, poets theirs, even politicians weigh in, unfortunately.
Let's just say that that taking one's own life, for most people, is a scary proposition!And as with anything that scares us, we react.
You're going to have this same psychological/emotional survival instinct kick in no matter what method you choose. Standing at the edge of a high place or your finger on the trigger of a gun or your hand around a glass of SN--you'll have that moment of doubt and fear. When my time comes so will I. I wish I knew the answer, but I don't
....no matter what the method, you will have that moment...that moment at the brink.
Realizing this was really helpful for me to understand what sort of thoughts and instincts i would be fighting as i approach CTB. I hope it is helpful for others as well.
