Gold medal winning Marieke Vervoort stated that she is considering euthanasia after the conclusion of the Rio games. This has sparked a large deal of controversy in the world, as there is difference of opinion on whether she should have the right to end her own life.
Speaking to Le Parisien, she said: "Everybody sees me laugh with my gold medal, but no one sees the dark side. I suffer greatly, sometimes sleeping only 10 minutes a night—and still go for the gold. Rio is my last wish."
I am for her. If she feels assisted suicide is the answer, I am not going to try and stop her, or judge her, or do anything but support her. I do this for a variety of reasons.
1. I understand her physical pain.
I may not be a paralympian, but I am sick. I have had those days, those nights when I cannot sleep because I am in so much pain. I know that if I got to the point where the bad days out number the good. When there was no hope of getting better. I would want to be able to end my life, because living in pain is not living at all.
2. I understand her emotional pain.
It is hard to explain to other people your pain. The other day I was with some fellow students talking about the case of Marieke Vervoort. There was a student who said, "If she says know one understands her pain she should just talk to someone instead of killing herself." This isn't easy. It is really hard to make people understand. I find it difficult to talk to even those closest to me about my condition. When I talk to my mom and tell her I am in pain, she can't really understand it because she isn't feeling it herself. She can try, but she'll never be able to feel it the way I do. It's emotionally painful. So, I stop talking about it. I get tired of having to explain every time I am in pain so I suffer through it alone.
3. She has the right to choose.
It is her body and her life and she is the one who has to live it. Torturing somebody is something that is seen as wrong and something that needs to be stopped. If someone's body is causing them so much pain that it is torturing them, then they should have the right to end their life to escape the torture. Ultimately it should be their decision because they are the one which the pain is being inflicted upon.
