In a way, I have been a student of death since my young years. My mother's death when I was 13 was sad, but it also freed her from a tough existence. As I saw it then, I saw her death as positive for her. Death, admittedly, is often a two-edged sword. Even in the best of circumstances, someone usually is beset by grief when a loved one dies.
At any rate, I have often reported that I will not go down the route of treatment if treatment only extends my life my months. There are certain types of treatment that are done not to extend life but to ameliorate the pain associated with the disease's attack on the system, e.g., certain cancers will cause excruciating pain because they impinge on certain other organs etc.
I contrast this stance with my willingness to accept treatment if a cure is the goal, e.g., prostectomy if I was diagnosed with prostate cancer.
I was totally sympathetic with the physician who described the horrendous situation where elderly people were being treated for diseases that would have caused their death in years past without any appreciable benefit to the quality of their lives.
Without advocating euthanasia, it would be important for me not to extend life just to breathe!
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