(no subject)
Today is Prickle-Prickle, the 11st day of Discord in the YOLD 3171
If I ever end up in a persistent vegetative state with no hope of improvement, my most fervent wish is that my loved ones do not let me be used as a political pawn in the way Terri Schiavo has been. Like that "get your war on" strip says, “[My living will] says that if I fall into a persistent vegetative state, and Tom DeLay comes within a hundred miles of me, I am to turn into a zombie and rip his fucking head off”. Not that I think I personally would ever come to the attention of Congress (although I doubt Terri ever thought she would either). I do understand Terri’s parents not wanting to give up hope - nobody wants to outlive their children - but it’s long since gone past the point where that hope was anything but futile; it’s time to accept that your daughter has been gone for many years, do your grieving, and try to move on.
The good thing that’s come out of watching this should-be-private drama unfold in such a messy, public fashion is that it’s a real kick in the ass to get some sort of advance directives drawn up. My partner and I are not married, and if something were to happen to me today my legal guardian would be my brother or sister as my closest living relatives. I haven’t discussed this topic with either of them. I suppose technically I haven’t really discussed it concretely with anyone. I’m only in my mid-30s, I find it far too easy to think that I’ve got all the time in the world to worry about making a will, or anything of the sort. That’s exactly how Terri Schiavo ended up in this situation though; at 26, who wants to think about the fact that you’re not immortal? If she had drawn up a living will, this situation would’ve unfolded quietly and privately years ago, the same way so many similar cases do every single day.
For the record, once it becomes clear that there is no hope of recovery, I do not want to spend years hooked up to a feeding tube or a ventilator. If what makes me really me is no longer there, I don’t want the people who love me to spend months or years clinging to what’s an essentially empty shell. That said, I’d really appreciate it if there is absolutely no doubt about my chances before the tubes are pulled. =) I have nightmares sometimes about being trapped in an unresponsive body while being aware of everything going on around me; if the relevant portions of my brain have been replaced by liquid though, I think it would be safe to assume that is not what’s going on.
[Cloned (mostly) from the blahg.]
If I ever end up in a persistent vegetative state with no hope of improvement, my most fervent wish is that my loved ones do not let me be used as a political pawn in the way Terri Schiavo has been. Like that "get your war on" strip says, “[My living will] says that if I fall into a persistent vegetative state, and Tom DeLay comes within a hundred miles of me, I am to turn into a zombie and rip his fucking head off”. Not that I think I personally would ever come to the attention of Congress (although I doubt Terri ever thought she would either). I do understand Terri’s parents not wanting to give up hope - nobody wants to outlive their children - but it’s long since gone past the point where that hope was anything but futile; it’s time to accept that your daughter has been gone for many years, do your grieving, and try to move on.
The good thing that’s come out of watching this should-be-private drama unfold in such a messy, public fashion is that it’s a real kick in the ass to get some sort of advance directives drawn up. My partner and I are not married, and if something were to happen to me today my legal guardian would be my brother or sister as my closest living relatives. I haven’t discussed this topic with either of them. I suppose technically I haven’t really discussed it concretely with anyone. I’m only in my mid-30s, I find it far too easy to think that I’ve got all the time in the world to worry about making a will, or anything of the sort. That’s exactly how Terri Schiavo ended up in this situation though; at 26, who wants to think about the fact that you’re not immortal? If she had drawn up a living will, this situation would’ve unfolded quietly and privately years ago, the same way so many similar cases do every single day.
For the record, once it becomes clear that there is no hope of recovery, I do not want to spend years hooked up to a feeding tube or a ventilator. If what makes me really me is no longer there, I don’t want the people who love me to spend months or years clinging to what’s an essentially empty shell. That said, I’d really appreciate it if there is absolutely no doubt about my chances before the tubes are pulled. =) I have nightmares sometimes about being trapped in an unresponsive body while being aware of everything going on around me; if the relevant portions of my brain have been replaced by liquid though, I think it would be safe to assume that is not what’s going on.
- An overview of Advance Directives and Do Not Resuscitate Orders, from the American Academy of Family Physicians
- A discussion of Advance Directives (PDF) from The National Council on Ageing (http://www.ageconcern.org.uk).
- Partnership for Caring offers state-specific advance directive documents, although they ask you to register with them in order to receive the documents. (I’m pleased to note that you have to specifically opt in to receive their email, rather than having to opt out.)
- The US Living Will Registry also links to state-specific advance directive forms without any registration requirement for the ones I spot-checked.
[Cloned (mostly) from the blahg.]