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In the Supreme Court case of Gonzales vs. Oregon, the federal government is attempting to uphold The Controlled Substances Act of 1970. This federal law makes it illegal to prescribe controlled substances for assisted suicide, and doctors who follow state law to assist will be penalized. Ultimately, the highest court in the land is making a decision as to whether or not terminally ill Americans have the right to abruptly terminate their lives along with the pain they endure day in and day out. Some believe that suicide is a choice. Others believe that suicide is about lack of choice. This time of uncertainty presents a pivotal opportunity to examine suicide as a health issue, and to explore the presence of choice within this social problem.

Derek Humphry, an internationally recognized author, journalist, and euthanasia activist is convinced that people aren’t really free unless they are able to die according to and at the time of their selection (10/14/05). In an e-mail sent to INTHEFRAY, Mr. Humphry wrote: “The right to choose to die when terminally or hopelessly ill is to me the ultimate civil and personal liberty” (Source of quote: private e-mail from Derek Humphry, 10/14/05).

Humphry specified that assisted suicide should only be available for dying or hopelessly ill people whose bodies have decimated to the point of limited mobility and strength.

Diane Brice, program director for Suicide Prevention Service of the Central Coast, brought up the point that, in the case of assisted suicide, many times terminally ill patients never actually use the lethal pills that are prescribed to them. Instead, patients keep the pills close to them, as an option to end their lives if the pain ever becomes unbearable. “That lets me know that control is the issue,” said Brice.

The International Task Force on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide reports that, while 326 prescriptions for lethal substances were dispersed within the last seven years, only 209 assisted suicide deaths were reported.

Michelle McCarthy, director of crisis services at SPS, stated that suicidal individuals do not wish for death. “When you’re suicidal, it’s like being in a tunnel or a box. It’s an altered state. People are in a lot of pain. Sometimes the pain becomes unbearable...people are looking for a way to end their pain.”

McCarthy pointed out that suicide is really about lacking resources, such as social support, making them unable to experience any options during moments of overwhelming pain. Ms. McCarthy delegates a group of volunteers who work on the Suicide Prevention Service Crisis Line (1-877-ONE-LIFE). The volunteers are trained to recognize the callers’ thoughts, decisions, and abilities to choose.

McCarthy expressed confidence in the abilities of individuals who call the crisis line: “People have their own answers. People know how to take care of themselves. They just need support in the process. After talking, you may still have the same issues, problems, and that emotional bundle that you’ve been carrying around might be a little bit lighter.”

Other suicide activists have extended knowledge onto the Internet. Metanoia, an online therapy Web site, has created an Internet crisis page. The message on the page embarks with a message, “If you are thinking about suicide, Read This First.” Below the title is a letter to the reader. The first line follows: “If you are feeling suicidal now, please stop long enough to read this. It will only take about five minutes. I do not want to talk you out of your bad feelings. I am not a therapist or other mental health professional — only someone who knows what it is like to be in pain.”

The presence of online media resources for people in a suicidal mind state is vitally important. Crisis Link, another Internet resource site, states that one of the biggest mythical warnings surrounding suicide is, “Don’t mention suicide to someone who is showing signs of severe depression. It will plant the idea in their minds, and they will act on it.” However, society’s conviction to avoid the subject of suicide has only intensified this social problem and made it difficult for community members to acquire resources.

In regards to assisted suicide, it seems that, rather than focusing specifically on ending their lives, terminally ill patients simply yearn for some form of control over the pain that isolates them in states of physical agony while they live out their final days. Many times these people are cared for in supportive environments such as hospitals and homes. However, when somebody has no support during times of crisis, it is very common for one to feel as though they do not have control. In this case, suicide is not about making the choice to give up on life. It is about feeling disempowered to the point where they cannot experience any choice, leaving thoughts of suicidal action. Suicide prevention is about self-empowerment, about helping someone who is in crisis to understand that they are valuable, and to acknowledge pain.

Diane Brice stated that society discourages people from recognizing the full extent of human emotions. “We are allowed to be sad today, but not next week, even if those feelings come up again.”

For people such as Humphry, Brice, and McCarthy, who encounter suicide regularly, the goal, as stated by Diane Brice, is “To get real about our human condition...about loving and losing.”

For more information about suicide prevention services, call Suicide Prevention Service of the Central Coast at 831-459-9373.

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