Discussion Could emotional heartbreak (not physical) qualify for Dignitas?

[TAW122]

There was a story of an elderly couple whose husband had a terminal illness and were in their 70s or 80s in age, and then flew to Dignitas (can't remember if it was from AUS or UK), many years ago, maybe early 2000's or around 2010 or so.

Anyhow, without getting too much in depth of the details, the main story was that the husband was granted the greenlight to death with dignity (due to terminal illness or so) and since the couple were bound together till death, the wife (who then would have been widowed after her husband's passing) also decided to go as well even though she was not terminally ill, but she would not (and cannot) accept not having her husband anymore, and she too, was also granted death with dignity. I don't remember if they both died at the same time, but I would imagine not too far apart in time (husband may have gone sooner then the wife follows).

Unfortunately, I could not find the article or news for it, but that isn't really the main point here. The main question that is on my mind is would heartbreak (not a physical illness like spinal cord injury, cancer, or any physical damage like loss of limb, eyesight, or what not) itself qualify (if documented enough) for Dignitas or so, or is it not a thing? Perhaps I may have misremembered something, but I do recall that there was a documentary of Dignitas (several of them) and one of them or so had a couple who both sought the service even though one of them was terminally ill while the other was not.

The main purpose of this thread is to inquire whether there was such a case in the past that was green-lighted by Dignitas, then this would imply that there may be a possibility for someone to qualify under the same, if not similar circumstances. While it may be difficult, the fact that if has happened before will at least set some precedent there for future cases. It is always a benefit to expand eligibility criteria of right to die services because the people who need it the most often do not receive it (versus those who are already on the verge of death in the foreseeable future, which is generally six months or less of life). While I have my own method to CTB, this is just something I wondered before but never knew the answer to.

 

[Forever Sleep]

That is interesting. I've never heard of this. It sounds too humane to be true to be honest. If she was also in her 80's, I wonder if she also had health complications so- qualified on those grounds.

That said- I think I've heard mention of a dual sarco pod so- maybe it's on Nitschke's mind.

Seems strange for it to be Dignitas too. I got the impression they had stricter requirements than other organisations.

Personally, I can't see it happening. Maybe for the very elderly, married for 60 years, about to be bereaved person who has health problems themselves but, as a rule- if they struggle to accept mental illness as a legitimate reason, I doubt they'd have nuch time for a broken heart.

I doubt they would have much compassion for a twenty year old who's just broken up with their first love interest, a bereaved middle aged person or an incel/ femcel who can't stand the thought of living alone though- if you were thinking the reasoning could extend.

 

[TAW122]

@Forever Sleep Yeah, I don't think it would have been easy at all, and even less so for people who are under 50 or whatever arbitrary age that RTD organizations have. I would think that I would only be seriously considered if I am of elderly age, well past middle age, barring maybe serious physical ailments and impairments like paralysis, spinal cord injuries, and/or severely limiting and debilitating physical chronic illness. So for psychological or even mental conditions it would be extremely hard to even get approved if at all.

 

[DeathSweetDeath]

Pegasos already accepts applicants with no physical ailments. They granted a woman VAD because at 50, she didn't want to live after the death of her son. You call it heartbreak, they call it depression. You'd need to get a formal diagnosis & seek treatment first, as would be required for any condition. If treatment fails, you could then show Pegasos that you have a diagnosed case of treatment resistant depression. You would of course need to be in midlife or beyond to be considered, and have a family member agree to sign off on it. I wish you peace whatever course of action you take .

 

[It'sMyLife]

A 26 year old man Kiano Vafaeian in Canada just died. He had some diabetes apparently but it was his depression that was seemingly what got him approved under maid. It's probably not the norm but it seems like Canada has expanded what is allowed under maid. Nitschke is apparently working on the double sarco. Building an exit bag setup isn't that difficult
Short video on the guy in Canada


Sarco

The suicide pod for couples

Philip Nitschke, the controversial right-to-die campaigner, has designed a new euthanasia device, the Double Dutch Sarco pod, for couples who want to die together.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[TAW122]

@DeathSweetDeath Thanks for the information and while I may not likely come across that anytime soon as I'm only in my mid 30's currently (still more than one and a half decades before I hit the age which Pegasos will even consider me), it is good to know about this option if/should somehow in the unfortunate event I end up not being able to CTB in the near future. The last part is going to be a hassle because I don't see anyone in my family who would support that (perhaps only for terminal illnesses like late stage cancer or ALS that is nearing death, less than six months to live). Out of curiosity though, I wonder if Pegasos is off-limits to those without any family? (e.g. a single individual with no significant other, their parents gone/passed away, etc.)

@It'sMyLife That is an interesting story, and while I think there are cases in Canada's MAiD, I think it may be one of those special cases, but as far as official policy, I think it is still far away from being adopted (the exclusion for MAiD whose sole underlying condition is mental illness is set to expire in March 2027, and it wouldn't be surprising if it only continues to be delayed, eventually even failing to be removed). Sadly, I'm an US citizen so MAiD isn't applicable for me (at least in it's current form since Canada doesn't allow CTB tourism or foreigners to use MAiD afaik).

Nevertheless, this is good information to know, especially Pegasos if I ever run into a situation where I would utilize it.

 

[BeanCurd]

Pegasos already accepts applicants with no physical ailments. They granted a woman VAD because at 50, she didn't want to live after the death of her son. You call it heartbreak, they call it depression. You'd need to get a formal diagnosis & seek treatment first, as would be required for any condition. If treatment fails, you could then show Pegasos that you have a diagnosed case of treatment resistant depression. You would of course need to be in midlife or beyond to be considered, and have a family member agree to sign off on it. I wish you peace whatever course of action you take .

I saw a similar story of a woman from the UK who died at Pegasos due to grief after the death of her daughter. Her name was Amanda Bloom, you can find stuff about her story online.