3 ms·
Using a throwaway. Apologies. My grandfather died of cancer before he was 75. I don’t know what it was, but the symptoms and his rapid decline were horrific.
by throwaway250501 1y ago
Using a throwaway. Apologies.
My grandfather died of cancer before he was 75. I don’t know what it was, but the symptoms and his rapid decline were horrific.
My father died of multiple myeloma before he was 75. He was lucky not to suffer chemo, but from diagnosis to death took 14 months.
Now I have started observing the same symptoms which my father had at my age and have started planning ahead. I’m too cowardly to get a checkup.
But I’m not going to waste 90% of my retirement savings on cancer treatment, of all things. Would rather leave it for the next generation.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sallekhana https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sallekhana
- PorterBHall 1y agoThank you for sharing that link. This whole question has been on my mind a lot lately. I am 55 years old, and my son is 11. Both of my parents died in nursing homes. I don’t yet know how I want to die, but I have a good idea of how I don’t want to die. The idea of being in an institution that essentially holds me prisoner while depleting anything left I have saved for my son keeps me awake at night. I’d rather take a long walk into the woods on a cold night, but I’m afraid that I will lose my nerve and miss my chance. I hope that time is still a few decades away. Sallekhana seems like a more intentional, natural way to die than the way most Americans do today.
- lif 1y agofwiw, I hear you & have had close relative with similar story. Five Wishes provides a simple form that seems worthwhile (am curious as to anyone who has experience with how the 5 wishes document is handled/honored irl) https://www.fivewishes.org/ https://www.fivewishes.org/