
6/5/19 PLEASE NOTE UPDATE AT BOTTOM OF THIS POST!
This is legit one of the most f*cked up things I’ve ever read.
Now, I know many of y’all will disagree with me about this, but I am not entirely opposed to people deciding to end their lives when they are suffering terminal illnesses that have no cure, and have no hope for recovery, and only promise long-term suffering.
But this? Euthanizing someone because of depression? Yikes.
Noa Pothoven, a 17-year old Dutch girl who was raped as a young child, decided she was done with life and sought the services of an “end of life clinic” to help her die. As a 17-year old she did not require parental approval. In fact, children can be as young as 16 in the Netherlands and make this choice without parental approval. She died in a hospital bed in her living room.
According to the sourcelink, Noa had “felt that life had become unbearable and she could no longer carry on.” She suffered from PTSD, depression and anorexia. She posted a farewell photo on Instagram, in which she wrote:
‘I deliberated for quite a while whether or not I should share this, but decided to do it anyway.
‘Maybe this comes as a surprise to some, given my posts about hospitalisation, but my plan has been there for a long time and is not impulsive.
‘I will get straight to the point: within a maximum of 10 days I will die. After years of battling and fighting, I am drained. I have quit eating and drinking for a while now, and after many discussions and evaluations, it was decided to let me go because my suffering is unbearable.’
‘I breathe, but I no longer live.’
‘Love is letting go, in this case.
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Noa Pothoven (@noamaestro) on
Physician-assisted suicide is legal in 7 states as well as DC. And I get it, when the reason is due to a terminal illness. I don’t see depression as terminal, because plenty of people have been successfully treated for it.
What do you guys think?
UPDATE: I’m not sure this makes things any better, but for what it’s worth…read this entire thread.
A 17-year-old rape victim was NOT euthanised in the Netherlands.@euronews @Independent @DailyMailUK @dailybeast are all wrong
— Naomi O'Leary (@NaomiOhReally) June 5, 2019
It took me about 10 mins to check with the reporter who wrote the original Dutch story.
Noa Pothoven asked for euthanasia and was refused (cont.) pic.twitter.com/e7PYQSCxG1