Oh that's terrible, sohy.
I worked closely with Barbara Mancini when I was advocating for medical aid-in-dying. Her story is a cautionary tale about a misguided police attack on her, because law enforcement felt that she had deliberately given her dying father a lethal dose of morphine.
A patient can't ask, and a loved one can't do the deed. It's not safe or legal.
When working on the legislation advocacy in New Jersey, I learned that ALS patients wouldn't qualify under the law, because they can't self-administer the medication. I think a lot of people don't realize what the legal options are.
I don't know mine, because that is rich people knowledge, and my own legal status at my potential end of life is out of my hands. Ah well.
For the curious, the legal options for ALS essentially amount to ceasing to provide water or push fluids.
Dehydration will happen quickly and is one of the more painless ways to go that don't involve giving lethal aid.
I think
@southernhybrid was the one who brought this up here last? They might know more.
This is, sadly, advice I had to pass on to a coworker whose father is currently descending into the deepest stages of ALS. I'm not sure, for all his Christianity, that he will be able to make the right decision to let his father pass.
I am the one who mentioned that dehydration is usually a pleasant way to go. It's in a post, just a few posts before this one. Dehydration usually prevents the gasping sound, known as the death rattle, which happens in the last stages of life, as the person can no longer swallow or cough up the extra secretions. It's best never to push fluids on a terminally ill person once they are approaching the end of life. The claim is that the person isn't suffering while experiencing what is commonly known as the death rattle. I'm not so sure about that, but regardless, it's very hard on the family who is watching the person die, seeing them struggle to breathe. If they are dehydrated, they usually drift away without any excess secretions building up, making them gasp for breath. I've seen people die while very hydrated and while dehydrated. I hope nobody pushes fluids on me, when I'm nearing the end, as very few of us will simply die in our sleep, or die quickly, like the sweet little patient of mine who died while eating breakfast. Only the lucky few die that way, so please make out a living will and specify exactly what you want when the end comes near. I need to update mine, but at least my husband is my durable medical power of attorney and I don't think he would push aggressive treatments on me, if I were. unable to say what I wanted. Still, we both need to update our advanced directives in the near future. Don't forget to give a copy to someone close to you or to at least let them know where they are.