fear of death , page-69

wherehu, thank you for what had the potential to be a genuinely interesting discussion. Hopefully it still can be.

I'm surprised that, despite the large number of posts above, (admittedly I've only flicked through them) I've not noted anything about voluntary euthanasia.

Dr Phillip Nitschke has observed over and over that people who have the means to end their lives peacefully at a time of their own choosing then go on to enjoy what remains of their lives, rather than being overwhelmed by fear that they will lose control of how they die.

I don't at all fear death, but very much fear losing my sense of control over how extended and painful the dying process might be. The notion of lying unattended in some squalid nursing home in my own waste and with unrelieved pain is a dreadful prospect.

I have no interest in religion, regard it more as a force for evil than for good, but have to admit to some envy of those believers who are comforted in the apparent belief that whatever happens to them is "God's Will" and therefore "he does not send us anything with which we cannot deal".
To me that's just rubbish.

When I think about death, I regard it as simply part of the normal life cycle. Everything has its time, human beings very much included.

I would just like our society to become more civilised in its approach to death and allow voluntary enthanasia, rather than necessarily condemning many to die in unresolved pain and huge loss of dignity.