Discussion Is life worth living if you can't walk?

[Loulou]

I know the answer varies from person to person, I'd just like to get a few opinions.

So if your life was perfect/exactly as you wanted it to be but you could only walk with crutches and were always at risk for injuries, would you find that a life worth living?

I feel like you're just so vulnerable when you can't walk, it's scary to live like that.

 

[アホペンギン]

No, at least not for me. Some people manage to make it work out and enjoy life to its fullest extent, despite being disabled. This applies for most disabilities, actually.

 

[notverylucid]

If I was born that way, then I presume I could live like that because that would be the norm. However, if I suddenly had my ability to walk taken away (e.g. paralysis), then I wouldn't be able to live like that knowing what I used to have.

 

[phersper]

check the paralympic athletes, they re living to the fullest even with a disability. Sometimes I think mental illnesses could be more debilitating than some (not all) physical ones. But that s just my opinion.

 

[cgrtt.brns]

if everything else was perfect? fuck yeah. id take being completely paralysed from the waist down but being happy with life over being physically able and in constant mental torture.
if i became paralysed as my life is now though, absolutely not. my life isnt worth living as it is anyway.

 

[FuneralCry]

I personally wouldn't see existence as being worth it under any circumstances, existing just isn't for me, I would always prefer non-existence, only death comforts me. I just don't see the point in suffering so unnecessarily and in general I just don't have any interest in existing, it's not worth anything for me, I don't desire any kind of existence, I've only ever desired nothingness.

 

[Forever Sleep]

I don't know. Depends if you are in lots of pain as well. The one thing I would say about disabilities- not to belittle the diabled but- society will (or ideally should) help you more. You'll likely receive benefits. I've worked for companies that bend over backwards to support their disabled employees. That comes down to luck though probably. I've also seen people have tremendous struggles even to do basic things because their needs weren't catered for. I guess it depends on what your skills are and if you're still able to use your potential. A dancer that loses her legs is going to have a harder time than a writer I imagine.

 

[Per Ardua Ad Astra]

Not for me :(

A perfect life for me = normal healthy physical body … and mind.

Unaccountable malpractice caused irreversible paralysis / loss of my mobility.

So no justice = no basic medical care , nor resources , nor support — nor exit.

I lived for movement + full expression of my mind + soul through my physical self.

I was an archaeologist / anthropologist.

+ Dance, yoga , sports , physical connections with people, pets , nature , exploring , etc … full bodily autonomy.

So my existence is horrific - more like "locked-in syndrome".

I'd rather lose my mind than my body — and then be able to CTB.

 

[azo]

Yes. The greatest asset for many is the mind. If my cognitive abilities were perfect and I was free from any psychological illness, I could live with a form of physical paralysis. Stephen Hawking, for instance, did brilliant work and contributed to his field even after he lost his ability to walk.

 

[Homo erectus]

I think the simple answer is no. Not for human, not for people without exceptional talent or resources. But from another perspective, are trees, which can't move but live in the same place for a long time, more successful than animals that move all the time?

 

[vanadium23]

Honestly whether your life is worth living isn't something other people can decide. There are people who have lived fulfilling lives despite being unable to walk, though; the American president Franklin Delano Roosevelt comes to mind.

So if your life was perfect/exactly as you wanted it to be but you could only walk with crutches and were always at risk for injuries, would you find that a life worth living?

For me personally? Damn yes. I'm bedridden most of the time anyway.

 

[MyLifeisHell]

It depends on the individual. I know a woman who was suddenly rendered paralyzed and had to give up her career as an ER doctor and who seems to be trying to live for the sake of her family. And on the other hand I remember a story where a young hunter fell off a platform and was rendered paralyzed (full or para I don't know) and even though he had a pregnant wife still chose to have life support terminated because he just couldn't bear a life without mobility.