Approaches to Care in Physician Assisted Suicide

By Sam Oliver

There is a growing interest in suicide. When people start looking for more information about suicide, you'll be in a position to meet their needs. This article is a brief description of much information on this subject. Let's start with 3 levels to discern in the act of euthanasia.

There are three levels to discern in the act of euthanasia:

1. One is a patient who is comatose or brain dead. In these cases the doctor is asked to "pull the plug," or remove the patient from mechanical life support. These cases are generally not challenged by the general public. It is an act of withdrawing or withholding necessary mechanisms used to sustain a life that cannot sustain itself. It is here that the recognition of one's personality is gone and the shell of a body is all that remains.

2. Another act of euthanasia involves the use of morphine to hospitalized patients in the painful final stages of her or his life with diseases such as cancer and AIDS.

3. The last category of euthanasia is patients in relatively good health and at the beginning of a terminal illness wishing to end their lives. Such cases as Alzheimer's and Cancer preclude patients to want information on PAS. This is the most controversial of the three issues involved in euthanasia.

Euthanasia originated from the Greek language meaning "good death." It is the intentional termination of a life by another person capable of doing so by the request of the person wanting to die. Here are a few terms that one needs to know in PAS that define actions taking place.

Passive Euthanasia is the hastening of a death by means of altering some form of support and letting nature take its course. This can include; removing life support equipment, stopping medical treatment or procedures, stopping food and water consumption which leads to dehydration or starving to death, and withholding CPR (Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation). The most common use of PAS is to give patients large doses of morphine to control pain. It is most likely that the pain relief will suppress respiration and cause death earlier than it would have otherwise happened. This is also done on patients who are in a persistive vegetative state or patients not able to regain consciousness due to brain damage.

Active Euthanasia is the use of intentional means to cause the death of a person through a direct action. Dr. Jack Kevorkian, a Michigan physician made this well known in 1998 with a patient who had ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease). His patient was afraid of the long suffering involved in ALS and wanted to die a quick and painless death. Dr. Kevorkian injected controlled substances into this patient and caused death. Kevorkian was charged with 1st degree murder, but the jury found him guilty of 2nd degree murder in March of 1999.

Physician Assisted Suicide is the provision of information or means to a dying patient with the intent to commit suicide.

Involuntary Euthanasia is the ending of a life without a patient clearly requesting it.

"There are many reasons why patients want to utilize PAS. Some are simply clinically depressed, of which, one's illness has brought on or one's emotional and mental processing of their illness has led to suffering in ways beyond the body. Others live in chronic pain-due to lack of healthcare coverage or means to obtain medication. This later group would rather die early and not incur medical expenses on those they leave behind. A serious disorder or disease such as: ASL, Huntington's Disease, Multiple Sclerosis, AIDS, Alzheimer's, etc. are just some of the illnesses people would rather avoid losing their independence and finances over. In some ways, this gives people a feeling of control over the process of their lives."

Sam Oliver, author of, "Integrating the Feminine Spirit: Returning to the Womb of Creation" For more information on this author; http://www.soulandspirit.org

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sam_Oliver

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~For more information, you might enjoy reading my book, More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife. Purchase paperback on Amazon.com. It's also on Amazon as an e-book for those who have Kindle or Sony Readers. The audio book is now available!
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What Happens to Our Loved Ones When They Die a Violent Death?

By Melissa Van Rossum

With all the news lately about violent attacks, including Ann Pressly, the news anchor from Little Rock, Arkansas who was beaten to death and the members of Jennifer Hudson's family who was killed, people are naturally wondering what happens to a loved one when they die a violent death.

I've met several ghosts who died from violent attacks. One of the most memorable people I met was Tim McClean, the man who was beheaded on a Greyhound bus in Canada.

I don't normally read graphic news pieces, but his story popped up on an internet page I was visiting and I ended up reading a couple of paragraphs of it. If you're familiar with this story you know why I stopped reading it after only a couple of paragraphs.

The remarkable thing was that I was in my basement office when I read the story. I shut down my computer, turned out the lights and began to climb the stairs. By the time I reached the top of the second flight, there was Tim, with his iPod earphones still in his ears, standing outside my bedroom doorway. I hadn't yet seen a photo of him, but I knew it was him since I had already connected with his energy from reading the story.

He was still stunned from all the events of his bodily death and seemed genuinely shy. He stood leaning against the wall with his hands in his pockets. Although he wasn't in any pain, he did seem overwhelmed and ready to go home. I couldn't blame him.

He hadn't gone home earlier out of shock and disbelief of how his body had died. I think for a while, he didn't quite realize he was dead.

But now he did and he wanted to go home.

I gladly helped him on his way and he went home easily to the Other Side.

The important thing to remember when a loved one dies from a violent attack, is that once they leave their body, they're no longer in any pain.

Too often as the ones who stay behind, we stay stuck in the moment of their death or the time they suffered just before their death. They, however, move beyond this moment very quickly.

I met a gentleman several months ago who had committed suicide by shooting himself.

He was the brother of a friend and she was distraught over what he had done. Within minutes of my learning about what had happened, he quickly came to me. His funeral had not yet happened and he was asking me to send him home - which I refused to do.

He was not in any physical pain, but he knew the moment he killed himself that he had done the wrong thing. He was scared and ravaged with guilt and he was afraid of the anger and the judgment of those he had left behind.

He wanted to go home early to escape facing what he thought would be an angry mob. But he couldn't have been more wrong.

He stood in the corner almost shaking, he was so overwhelmed with fear.

"You have to go be with your family right now....I'm not going to help you until after your funeral. You need to go be with your family and do what you can to comfort them, let them know you're sorry, that you're still alive. You need to take responsibility for the pain you've caused them," I told him.

"They're mad at me," he said, "they're furious with me. I don't want to be around them. I'm just a disappointment to them."

"Well, you've done the worst you could have possibly done. They're going to be mad at you for a while. You need to go face the music," I said to him.

"You need to trust me on this, this is the only way you're going to get through this," I said unapologetically.

He finally left and timidly went to his family.

I checked in on him now and then over the week and he began to see how he had had other choices in life that he wasn't aware of at the time. And, just as importantly, he began to feel the love they had for him. They were mad at him, that's true. But they dearly loved him.

While he lived in his body he regularly felt that he was to blame for so much of others' suffering, now he could see that really wasn't the case.

He had begun to learn some very valuable insights even before he crossed over to go Home.

Which, by the way, he did cross over on his own just after his funeral. I don't think he would have been able to do that if he hadn't begun to see beyond the blame and the self-judgment.

Those who leave their bodies violently or tragically, move beyond those terrible last moments very quickly, and we need to as well. The suffering for them ended as soon as they left their bodies and their emotional healing began at the same time.

Melissa Van Rossum is an accomplished psychic & empath, & the author of two books. In her first book, All You've Ever Known, she shares a process that deepens your intuition & awakens your soul to a happier, more successful and authentic life.


In Their Way Home, My Adventures as a Ghost Guide Melissa offers revealing perspective as she shares for the first time the very personal stories of her encounters with real life ghosts who searched her out in their quest to find a way back home, and how she helped them to cross over in to the Light. Plenty of books have been written about ghost sightings but in this book Melissa shares the stories behind why these souls chose to linger on the earth plane and how you can live a happier life by learning from the mistakes they made in life...and in death.


Melissa regularly speaks to the media & groups on topics such as How to Create the Life of Your Dreams, Ghosts and The Paranormal, and What Happens After You Die. You can learn more about Melissa and her books at http://www.allyouveeverknown.com/ and http://www.theirwayhome.com/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Melissa_Van_Rossum

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~For more information, you might enjoy reading my book, More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife. Purchase paperback on Amazon.com. It's also on Amazon as an e-book for those who have Kindle or Sony Readers. The audio book is now available!
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Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide Raise Strong Emotions

By Rosemary Redfern

Euthanasia and assisted suicide are emotive subjects. Our fears about death and dying and the laws, both religious and state, which control the legality of death, are powerful influences on all of us.

Staying alive is one of the strongest drives any animal, humans included, has. At the same time, those who are carnivorous in their diet expect animals to die to feed them. This is part of the food chain and is echoed by the animals who hunt for food as opposed to non carnivorous animals.

Society does not expect anyone to kill another person; yet we execute people we deem to have committed certain crimes. We send our children to fight wars for our countries, knowing they can be killed or maimed. These concepts are accepted are normal. Man is an aggressive creature and very muddled in how it thinks.

The danger for most of us with euthanasia and assisted suicide is that someone will die because they are rich, in the way, getting old and being a nuisance or some other idea. Yet when our pets become distressed with disease and old age, after consulting a vet, we give them the mercy of releasing them with a quiet injection and call it putting the animal to sleep. The grief is no less but we feel it is a kind thing to do.

When humans suffer from dreadful diseases like the end of some cancers, motor neuron disease and diseases which take away the independence and dignity of the individual, those who have nothing to do with the person dictate they should live and suffer. They seem to be devoid of imagination of what it is like to suffer unbearable pain or suffocate slowly because the body cannot get air.

Suicide is frowned upon as a cowardly act. For someone who is desperately disfigured it is seen as the only answer. The only person who can know what it is like, is the individual who is suffering. Their family and friends can have some idea because they see the results every day but they cannot know. When you love someone you do not want them to struggle with survival which is traumatic.

Living wills have been designed so that in the event of an unexpected disaster, the wishes of the person are known. Who knows what is happening inside the head of someone who has been in a coma for years. Who knows what quality of life they have. Why is it so terrible to allow someone to die in peace.

In some countries these elements have been considered and thought through. There are legal controls and nothing is done without the criteria being covered. A person cannot just be disposed of as a whim. Surely this is a humane way to treat people who have gone as far as they can. For the religious, dying means getting the reward they have worked for during their lifetime, a positive thing surely.

There is a strong case for euthanasia and assisted suicide.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rosemary_Redfern

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~For more information, you might enjoy reading my book, More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife. Purchase paperback on Amazon.com. It's also on Amazon as an e-book for those who have Kindle or Sony Readers. The audio book is now available!
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Carl David Speaks About His Brother's Suicide

Our podcast guest, Carl David, is the third descendant of a four-generation art dealer family specializing in American and European seventeenth, eighteenth, nineteenth- and twentieth-century paintings, watercolors, sculptures and drawings.

In part one of this 3-part interview, Carl talks about his book, Bader Field, and his father, Sam David, as they logged hundreds of flight hours reveling in their shared love for flying twin-engine airplanes. Carl also speaks about the suicide of his teenage brother, Bruce, and the impact that the self-inflicted death of a loved one has on an entire family. No one saw it coming. Back then, people didn't talk about suicide and there wasn't much help because getting psychological help had a stigma attached to it.

The family was just getting over Bruce’s death when the patriarch, "Pop" died. Carl assumed a new role as an art dealer when he picked up his father's art business, David David Galleries on Rittenhour Square.

Listen to part one by clicking on the arrow in the player below:

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One thing that helped Carl and his family move past such devastation is the spiritual strength they found within themselves, their closeness with one another, and the afterlife visitations that Sam’s and Bruce’s spirits have paid them. In part two Carl talks about these unusual visitations that include a twin-engine airplane and audible voice. We will also talk about the soul aspects of his brother and his father that Carl sees in both his sons. Carl says the following about death:

"There is no such thing as death; only a change in form as we leave one world and enter another. The only remnants are the fleshy bodies which identified the soul which resided within. The body is a vehicle for movement, for gathering of earthly experiences, for a full range of emotions, for a total collection of situations, obstacles, and solutions as they are overcome. It is the building which houses our black box; a permanent record of events and lessons which will be taken to the next worlds as we are ready to enter them for the continuation of our education. The curriculum never ends; it just changes format with each accumulation of knowledge from the preceding realm."

There is no shame regarding someone who commits suicide. We should try to prevent it because of the devastation it causes those who love the person, but it has little impact on the soul. We are here to learn lessons. if we don't learn them before the body wears out, we get a new body and come back to try again.

Listen to part two by clicking on the arrow in the player below:

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In part three Carl and Yvonne discuss art as a form of spiritual expression. For many years Carl has a mysterious unsigned painting at the gallery. After a spirit visitation at the art gallery about two years ago, he realized the woman in the painting is his maternal grandmother, whom he had never met. Here is a photo of that beautiful painting.

What makes art valuable? Hear Carl's explanation by clicking the arrow in the player below.

The art piece created by Yvonne and Randy Perry (below) is mentioned. Please leave your comments about how this painting speaks to you. There is a giveaway mentioned in our interview, so be sure to listen and take action!

Read more about Carl, his book, his family, and lots of multimedia at http://www.carledavid.com

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For more information, you might enjoy reading More Than Meets the Eye True Stories about Death, Dying, and Afterlife.
Purchase on Amazon.com