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My mother died in May of metastatic breast cancer. When the brain mets were first diagnosed her first question was how long do I have to live in OR to use the death with dignity act. Her battle with this illness was over three years long. The illness gradually took away more and more options and choices about her life and comfort.

Compassion and Choices of WA provided counseling and guidance within the limits of WA law to allow her as broad a sense of controll as possible. This counseling included extensive information about pain control and measures other than hastening her death that provided additional comfort at a very frightening stage in her path.

This is not about the right to die (assisted suicide) as much as it is about the right to the dignity of self determination when all other options have been taken from you (death with dignity). Mom wanted the comfort of knowing that she could fight as hard for as long as she wanted and be done when she was done. She was, however, equally concerned about us, her children, not being culpable in her death. The means available to hasten her death if she chose were very "quiet" , "covert", and felt to her too shrouded in secrecy. For a straight shooter like my mom, this was not the way she wanted to end her life.

We were able to provide my mother as much comfort as possible through her final breath and I do not think she would have chosen to use medication to hasten her death had it been provided.

That said -- I feel much more strongly about the benefits of providing individuals facing the end of their lives the clear and unquestioned choice about how and when to meet the end of their lives than prior to this experience. This is about the comfort provided to an individual facing the end of their life by knowing that they have the choice to go on each and every day that they have left and that they can choose to do so without fear of a life that will continue beyond their will to live.

posted 4 years, 7 months ago
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