Her family and friends still visit her and I have seen pictures of her in the gardens around the facilities. Obviously, this isn't the ideal life...but it is a life.
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Her family and friends still visit her and I have seen pictures of her in the gardens around the facilities. Obviously, this isn't the ideal life...but it is a life.
Everyone over 18 should have a living will made out - I did it years ago. http://www.uslivingwillregistry.com/
Amen, Sammi.......that's exactly what I was trying to say.
:confused: I think this is a very hard decision from all point of views.
If I were the husband of this woman and I had thought, "Okay, it's been 13 yrs., nothing's changed, would she have wanted it this way?" etc. I'm sure the questions in this man must go on for miles.
If I were the family of this woman, I think all I could think, is one day she will return to us. Unfortunately, I feel this is false hope however, miracles do happen.
The Governor who's hands this lie in. "I'm damned if I do and damned if I don't." "Please God, could you answer this one for me?"
The way I feel about it. If it were me. Yes, I would want my husband to give me time to see if there was any chance of recovery. However, for myself I would have limited this to maybe at most a year. I truly can't belive this has gone on for 13 yrs. I think her family is delusional(sp) in thinking thier daughter may ever recover and I'm sure that is a painful fact to accept. However there has to come a time where enough is enough! Just curious but what have her doctors said about her chances of ever recovering? I can't imagine that they have been too optimistic.
Thanks Sammi! I'm going there now!!
Very thoughtful remarks, Denise! It's a very complex subject that has confounded ethicists and philosophers for centuries. I can say that as a nurse, my feelings on this toipc have run the gamut. Bottom line for me, each case needs to be taken individually. Most important is that each of us makes clear to those we love and who will be in a position to make decisions for us, our feelings and wishes.
What precious pups, Denise! Welcome to Pet Talk!:)
:D Thanks for the warm welcome!
Denise, you picked a whooper to join us. :eek: But your thoughts were so "right on". I think we have all looked at this situation from every angle. It is horrible, no other words to describe it. :( I think we have all learned a very valuable lesson here about communicating our wishes to everyone who would be involved if by chance something similar were to happen to us.
Welcome to Pet Talk......we need to talk pets!!! :)
Read this on FOX News a little while ago..............
Schiavo Says In-Laws Motivated by Money
Tuesday, October 28, 2003
TAMPA, Fla. — A man involved in a bitter dispute with his in-laws over whether his brain-damaged wife should be kept alive says money and the influence of conservative political causes motivates her parents to block his battle to let her die.
In his first interview since the latest round of legal fighting in the highly publicized case, Michael Schiavo (search) said Monday during a television interview that he continues to fight to end his wife's life because her wishes were not to be kept alive artificially.
"This is Terri's wish," he said of the removal of her feeding tube. "And I am going to follow that if this is the last thing I can do for Terri."
Terri Schiavo (search), 39, has been in a persistent vegetative state since 1990 when a chemical imbalance, brought on by an eating disorder, caused her heart to stop and deprived her brain of oxygen.
Her parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, believe their daughter could be rehabilitated and dispute the husband's contention that she did not want to be kept alive artificially.
Terri Schiavo's feeding tube was removed for six days earlier this month before the Florida Legislature and Gov. Jeb Bush (search) enacted a special law to have it reinserted. The move touched off an international debate over the Schiavo case and right-to-die issues.
Terri Schiavo is being treated at a Pinellas Park hospice while her husband's attorney and the American Civil Liberties Union prepare to challenge the constitutionality of "Terri's Law." The first filings in that legal fight are due Wednesday.
Appearing less than an hour later on Fox News' "On the Record with Greta Van Sustern," the attorney for the Schindlers countered that
Schiavo knew his wife never had end-of-life wishes.
"It's hard to know what to believe with him because he says whatever the occasion demands or what is in his financial interests," said the attorney, Pat Anderson.
Schiavo said his relationship with the Schindlers soured after he was awarded a 1993 medical malpractice claim of about $1 million. Schiavo says the settlement was awarded because doctors misdiagnosed Terri Schiavo's health problems.
He said after that, his father-in-law asked him for a share of the money, and he refused to give him any.
Boy this story just gets messier and messier. And the one that is really suffering is poor Terri. :D
I thought this press release was interesting.
October 22, 2003
For Immediate Release:
AAPS Doctors: Schindler-Schiavo is NOT a “death with dignity” issue
The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS) issued this statement from Jane M. Orient, M.D. in response to the emergency action of the Florida legislature to reinstate feeding and hydration of Terri Schindler-Schiavo:
“Terri Schindler-Schiavo has won a temporary stay from execution by a method too cruel to be used for convicted criminals. And yet her husband’s attorney is trying to spin it into a “death with dignity issue” with his comments on Tuesday.
“He says it’s cruel to begin rehydration. The opposite is true – dehydration is a cruel, painful death. It is unconscionable that the state would have allowed removal of her feeding tube in the first place—it’s nothing less than state-sponsored euthanasia.
“She is not dependent on advanced medical interventions. Nothing is mechanically beating her heart, or forcing oxygen into her lungs. She is simply being fed through a gastrostomy tube. Would we allow a retarded child to be starved to death?
“Some physicians believe that Terri could be rehabilitated to some
extent, at least so that she would be able to swallow oral feedings and eliminate theneed for the tube. She should be allowed to try, but so far her husband has blocked every attempt to see if she can swallow. Doctors have offered pro bono treatment, if money is the barrier for her husband.
“Although severely disabled, some believe that she does have the capacity to communicate a desire to live. The husband has obstructed efforts atrehabilitation or independent assessments of his wife's true state.
“Where are the “compassionate end-of-life” groups such as the Robert Wood Johnson “Last Acts” initiative, and why aren’t they weighing in on this?
“The ethical question for her nurses and physicians is whether they will cooperate in carrying out a death warrant.
“And the ethical question for all of us is whether we will allow the state to obstruct the efforts of people who want to provide medical care to a patient who wants to receive it.
“If we go down that path, who’s to say what treatment the state will prevent you from getting.”
Completely outside this issue- I'd just like to say this death is a painless one. The media is making it out to be "starvation" because that makes for good news and public outcry. But in reality, the body is medicated and there is no pain. I know this because it is the method of death my family has chosen for my grandmother when the time comes. In fact, it is very peaceful.
If anyone is still interested in following this story I just saw on TV that Oprah will be dealing with the Schiavo case on her show tomorrow.
First, I can accept this as your honest opinion, but is this whatQuote:
Originally posted by Soledad
Her family and friends still visit her and I have seen pictures of her in the gardens around the facilities. Obviously, this isn't the ideal life...but it is a life.
you want for yourself if you were in her situation? I can say for
a fact that I personally would not like to have my body alive
without a functioning brain. I would not consider that a"life"
I'd want to endure. I have expressed my thoughts to
all family members & they agree to honor my wishes & I will
honor theirs. I wish this poor lady a dignified life & a peaceful
passing. :(
I've talked to some people in the medical field who say this isQuote:
Originally posted by 2kitties
Completely outside this issue- I'd just like to say this death is a painless one. The media is making it out to be "starvation" because that makes for good news and public outcry. But in reality, the body is medicated and there is no pain. I know this because it is the method of death my family has chosen for my grandmother when the time comes. In fact, it is very peaceful.
true. I believe them. They know the physical aspects of the body.