by Jan Wright

Created on: May 25, 2009

Freedom is a wonderful concept. We have the freedom of speech, the freedom to worship how we choose and the freedom to marry who we want, live where we want, find the job that we want and to pursue those things that make us happy. The right or freedom to kill ourselves is quite an interesting concept. Some say that the freedom to pursue our happiness includes our right to commit suicide because in effect: "Suicide would make us happy." I disagree on the basis that suicide "won't" make you happy, it will make you "dead," and as of now, the consensus is that dead people have no feelings. Thus, in essence, suicide won't make you happy.

A severe mental illness is defined on the basis of your likelihood of either harming one's self or others. If you feel as if you want to commit suicide, then, you are not thinking clearly. This has been shown by many who have, at one time in their lives, wanted to commit suicide. they have admitted that they were not thinking clearly and thus could not make these types of decisions.

I know personally of some disabled people who have had a difficult time adjusting to their disability. In fact, this type of case is in the news quite allot. Some people suggest that they should have the right to commit suicide because they are choosing to end their life instead of living with their disability. I disagree. Often depression follows an onset of a disability. Furthermore, this is proven by the statistics between those who have had a disability for their entire lives and those who have only contracted or accidentally experienced the disability. Those who have had an accident or who have gradually felt the effects of a debilitating disability are much more likely to make an attempt at committing suicide due to this disability. This denotes an inability to adjust and a feeling of worthlessness.

The last point is simply this. There are many who don't want to live. This does not necessarily mean that they want to die. They can't stand life. Many don't necessarily want to kill themselves. They just see no good reason for living. These are two different concepts. You can, in effect, not see any good in your life and not want to continue on in the pain of living, yet not necessarily want to kill yourself. Many who say they want to commit suicide really don't want to kill themselves, they just want to escape the pain of living. These, as I have said before are two totally different concepts. But, because they are mentally unable to think objectively, it is more difficult for them to come to such a conclusion.

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