Where I live, nobody can get euthanasia, not even the terminally ill. I just think that in my opinion, there should be no restrictions for it. Nobody has any obligations to live anyway and if you do not exist it means that you are incapable of suffering. Restricting peaceful methods would just mean that people have to resort to risky ones.
Same thing in my country, active euthanasia is against the law. Few people tried their pleas to the court but always dismissed, though probably silent-passive euthanasia for terminal illness is quite common. This is very sad but true.
Reading what you're saying also makes me feel you have some prejudices against mental illness, judging by the way you are talking about it and choice of words to describe it. I want to clarify that being mentally ill is OK, not in as it's a positive thing in terms of how a person with an illness feels but as in the person is not "crazy." (Crazy as in the negative sterotypical way to judge someone mentally ill.) They are still human, not any less human.
I feel saying that mental illness is subjective interpretation is not entirely correct. It is simplying a quite big and complicated subject.
But I believe I get your point.
Yes, the DSM 5 is not perfect, and not a scientific-only document. But as I said, mental health is such a complex thing to study. But we have to work with the tools we have available to us. Without clarifications, it would also make it difficult hard to study these things most affectiviely.
Research will leave us smarter little by little, look at how it was treated 100 years ago and then today.
Not to say that effective treatment and diagnosis would be very hard without a proper guide and framework.
But these illnesses are very real. People with ADHD aren't just lazy people, schizophrenic people are not possesed by the devil.
Sadly for now, we can't do a blood test or brain scan to accurately diagnose someone to have a mental illness or not. But as I stated, we have to do with what we have available to us. I am certain the future will look very different, just a question of how long.
I do read some of the works of dr. Thomas Szasz as critics of psychiatry/psychology, kinda agree on so many fundamental things. I'm not saying the suffering from
problems of living is not real, it's very real and concerning experience (I have had severe depression too); But labeling "mental illness" in contradiction with legalization of assisted suicide, is wrong thing imho, it can be used against patient's intention as form of coercive medication and forced living. I'm all for voluntary treatment and medication but I guess it's a whole lot of another fundamental topic.
I guess you'll be surprised when you come to a third world country to find that said "mental illnesses" are still being treated with religious sculptures from thousands year ago. Of course, there are mental hospitals here for the poor, while private modern medication that cost so much only the rich can afford it.
Agree that DSM* is much better than religious guidance, but it's merely a diagnostic tools for symptoms rather than solving the problematic root causes. As for the future, I can't be so sure because we haven't even done with the fundamentals, yet.
I don't know what you mean why children don't have human rights, they certainly do. Rather or not suicide should be a human right is not something I will get into.
Children are mostly and generally not as aware and rational as one will be when maturing and growing up. There's a difference being a child and an adult.
It's very interesting questions and statements you are proposing, but also very complex and not simple to give a straight answer to.
In developed countries, we're now seeing a wave of rational suicide recognition especially for elders and adults with terminal illness, but I don't see it happens with the children for the reason you've mentioned; while I do believe right to self determination is human's right, it's confusing that children should have the right just like elders and adults too but they aren't. Does our adult brain developmental stage difference make a legitimate excuse for disapproval of children's right to assisted suicide? I hardly can't find the answer for it, but it must have a correct answer somewhere, especially when you're a parent with real responsibilities.
Yes, it's sensitive and not an easy question. Thanks for replying.
