Suicide vs Euthanasia

[gimmepie]

Alright, so we've had a lot of discussion about legalising euthanasia before but I've been wondering lately about how that compares to killing yourself to end psychological distress.

More and more people are switching to the side of the debate that human beings should be allowed to be euthanised to end extreme physical suffering. However, when it comes to mental illnesses or psychological trauma, we still recoil at the thought of ending a life to end mental suffering.

So what makes these two situations different? Should they be considered different? Do you think one scenario is more okay than the other?

 

[Kostas]

Of course it's different.
I will not express my opinion about suicide.
However, I want to tell some things about Euthanasia.
The last years, more and more people suffer from "incurable" illness like cancer.
Because of that and the pain they have, they want to give an end to their life.
I disagree 100%.
You can't tell if it's incurable or not. Everything can happen.
Α familiar person, had a similiar incident with his wife.
She fell into coma and the doctors said that there is no chance for living.
And guess what?!
He made a special room like a hospital in the house and after some years (I think 5) she wake up. And now she is totally fine.
So, I don't know about suicide but I'm against euthanasia.
However it's in the person's hand to decide.
That's it

 

[Her]

If one agrees with it, euthanasia is seen as a grace, a final offer of relief on one's one terms. It is not framed as a mental health issue, as it being a mental health issue generally rules out the option in the first place. It's considered a matter of dignity, not despair. The imagery is more subtle too - you are administered the needle or the concoction of medication and you pass peacefully. Suicide is not given anything but highly visceral, painful connotations. Blood, razors, broken bones, gunshots, etc. It is seen as the last action of despair from the ill, not so much a jump as being pushed. So from the very outset, they are differentiated by the connotations applied to them, despite ultimately achieving the same thing.

If I have more to say I'll edit it in later.

 

[Desert Stream~]

Well I think Suicide is worse, because there are usually better options. If you're parents abuse you, you could always call the police, or run away.
If you are sick, you don't really have a choice, you can't just run away from your problems.

 

[gimmepie]

Well I think Suicide is worse, because there are usually better options. If you're parents abuse you, you could always call the police, or run away.
If you are sick, you don't really have a choice, you can't just run away from your problems.

I don't mean to encourage suicide or anything, but I don't think this is a great argument. Mental illnesses are not curable - at least not yet. They're every bit as destructive to a person as cancer or ALS just not in the same visible way. You don't have a choice in these cases either, you can't run away from a from a problem that's inside your head. So what about these cases?

 

[Lycanthropy]

In some ways euthanasia is exactly the same as suicide: you end the pain of suffering by parting from life. The subtle difference between the two is the matter of suffering. In the case of euthanasia it's physical, while suicide comes from mental suffering (depression).
Euthanasia is committed after an expert, like a doctor, tells you there is no way for a cure. In a depression you have to judge for yourself and depressed as you are that might be a poor point of view.

Both are some sort of okay, I guess. As Angie said, suicidal thoughts are hard to judge by an outsider. As long as you don't bother others by taking your life (like jumping in front of a train) then yes, it's a way. Not sure if it's the best way, but yes, it's a way.

 

[Melody]

Suicide is basically killing one's self; unassisted, unguided and normally people in poor mental health try to make the decision to end their life. These people should normally not be allowed to do this. Suicide is wrong from my point of view. It is acceptable to talk down a suicidal person and have them assessed by a professional to see if they're eligible for Assisted Suicide if they are incurably ill

Euthanasia is when a professional administers medicine to end a patient's life. This is usually because the patient is too far gone for medical science to resuscitate them into consciousness. This is acceptable for people who are comatose longer than a month and medicine cannot bring them out of the coma. This excludes medically induced coma states however. This is morally grey; but I feel like so long as the appropriate people are notified and given time to object to this procedure; it's fine.

Assisted Suicide is suicide; by requesting a medical professional administer medicine to kill you. But if someone is incurably ill to the point they're confined to a bed...then I think it should be up to the professional to ensure they are mentally healthy enough to make that decision. If they are incurably ill and mentally stable enough to decide to end their own life...it should be doable. After a fair waiting period for reflection; the patient is professionally assisted in their suicide per their request.