The governments of Manitoba and Saskatchewan say they are concerned about the potential risks of allowing Canadians to seek medical assistance in dying solely on the basis of a mental illness.
Of course they are. In this desolate wasteland called the prairies, finding any sort of mental health professionals is damn near impossible, much less properly structured support. Allowing this would just illustrate the failings of these provinces to properly fund and structure mental health supports.
solely on the basis of a mental illness.
Perhaps they don’t know anyone who’s struggled through a lifetime of mental illness that no doctor or medication can help with. Worse, they get no assistance from the government, so they are left struggling to support themselves for decades.
If you can’t help them live, at least help them die. Unending suffering isn’t a way to live.
Can suicidal people get assisted dying?
On March 9, 2023, the extension of the temporary exclusion of eligibility for medical assistance in dying (MAID) received Royal Assent and came into force, postponing the eligibility date for persons suffering solely from mental illness until March 17, 2024.
https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/cj-jp/ad-am/sheet-fiche.html
From what I recall, it wasn’t supposed to allow that but I don’t know how they’re planning to sift out people with “treatment-resistant depression” who are from those who aren’t suicidal. Tragically, all depression is probably treatable if cost isn’t an issue. But it is. Same as with disabled people who want to live but choose MAID because they can’t stand living in pain and poverty and have no way out.
It’s not “treatment-resistant depression”. It’s seeing the world for what it is and wanting off the ride. I won’t be missed - no family or friends. 20yrs of suicide attempts is just a drain on the state. Be easier for everyone if I was just killed off.
Granted you probs don’t offer it to foreigners. :/
Oh the “treatment-resistant” thing is absolutely garbage. Especially I imagine if you’re in the UK and you’ve been shoehorned into CBT as your only option. But even if it feels impossible to achieve, I bet there is some set of realistic life conditions (individually and on a societal level) that you would absolutely want to live for if you felt you could plausibly see them achieved?
I don’t know if you’ll be able to relate, but the conclusion I came to based on my experience and research for my own situation is that the perceived enormity of the gap between how things are in the moment and where we’d like them to be is the thing that’s so crushingly painful to experience. The real things we need to bridge this are probably ways to be empowered both to manage trauma and to feel that it IS okay to have dreams and it ISN’T pointless to work towards them. But each person probably benefits from different approaches to achieving both of these things, and the best approach for a person’s needs can even change over time. (If we all had strong social networks, it wouldn’t be as much of an issue, but having a hierarchical social order weakens that possibility for most people.)
Often, the message sent by typical approaches to treatment is to tell people: “Your entire view of life is wrong because you’re depressed, so we must reprogram your brain until you concede we’re right AND can function just barely well enough to contribute to GDP.” The dehumanizing nature of many aspects of the systems we live under are definitely promoting depression. Especially for those of us who can’t help noticing how those systems work.
I hope you can find a therapist or other party willing to listen, be real with you, and ask you the right follow-up questions based on your specific needs.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
The governments of Manitoba and Saskatchewan say they are concerned about the potential risks of allowing Canadians to seek medical assistance in dying solely on the basis of a mental illness.
Provinces have expressed fears that the country may not yet be ready for the change to take effect in March, federal Health Minister Mark Holland recently acknowledged.
The witnesses who appeared offered a range of opinions, giving parliamentarians an up-close look at the divisions that persist within the legal and medical communities.
“We agree with those calling for further consideration and consultation to ensure appropriate clinical standards and safeguards are in place to protect vulnerable Canadians,” a spokesperson wrote in a statement.
“Saskatchewan remains concerned with both the pace and scope of the federal government’s proposed expansion,” said spokesman Matthew Glover.
Tim McLeod, Saskatchewan’s mental health and addictions minister, raised the issue during a roundtable meeting with the federal government last year, Glover added.
The original article contains 395 words, the summary contains 155 words. Saved 61%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
