The Controversial Trend: Are Younger Generations Embracing Euthanasia as a Means of Ending Their Pain? Postscript.
I read
Substack post about the recent death of 29-year-old Zoraya ter Beek’s, whose life was euthanized last week. She died under the auspices of experiencing “unbearable suffering with no prospect of improvement,” per her psychiatrist.It’s only humans who ever commit suicide. The funny thing is that we can see ourselves clearly when the water flows smoothly, like a mirror. Everything seems beautiful and serene. But when the water becomes turbulent, it becomes harder to see ourselves, if at all. What’s happening underneath the glassy-like water is violent and, in reality, a nightmare.
Was It Peaceful?
Let’s look at the peacefulness of euthanasia. In the Netherlands, euthanasia is legally regulated, and specific drugs are used to ensure it’s performed “humanely and ethically.” Typically, the drugs used include:
Barbiturates (such as Pentobarbital or Secobarbital) - These are central nervous system depressants, eventually leading to unconsciousness.
Muscle relaxants (such as Rocuronium or Vecuronium) - These are administered following a barbiturate to hasten the cessation of respiratory activity.
Other anesthetic agents, such as propofol or midazolam, further suppress consciousness and respiratory activity.
I have no idea what the people who killed this young woman used, but let’s go through the conceivable sequence of actions during euthanasia. Once an intravenous line is established, some combination of pentobarbital, propofol, and midazolam is forced into the veins, suppressing consciousness and breathing. Things seem fantastic and peaceful from the onlooker’s view. The mind is in another place but still conjoined to the body. Capable of coming back. Then, the muscle relaxant is pushed. Depending on the dose and when the muscle relaxant is given, the diaphragm is completely paralyzed, making breathing impossible. The heart rate increases as the body stops breathing to compensate for the severe hypoxemia (low levels of oxygen in the blood) and increased amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) just before death, known as the hypoxic and hypercapnic respiratory drives, respectively. The brainstem’s medulla oblongata triggers these responses, the brain’s life-support system setting off the distress signal to the brain that the body is shutting down.
Whatever beautiful picture she once had is now cracking. It’s probably something like a mirror cracking in front of you. You’re probably aware that your blood flow is ceasing and clotting. In the meantime, the lungs quickly fill up with water due to the lack of blood movement through the lungs and heart. This distress signal is powerful, designed for moments like this, to promote survival. In the context of impending death, particularly in cases of respiratory failure, the body is left unable to respond. This is undoubtedly the root of PTSD from waterboarding prisoners. Whether this death, or any death for that matter, is peaceful is impossible to answer. But looking at it from the lens of nature, there’s not much “peace” about it. Instead, it’s a brutal physiological attempt to save the body and cells.
Will Euthanasia Become the Norm?
We’re in the midst of a mental health crisis. Now, a leading cause of death in males aged 20-29 is suicide. I would encourage you to read Drs. Jonathan Haidt’s and Jean Twenge’s Substacks:
and for more about these statistics.Most doctors prescribe patients antidepressant medications before recommending therapy because the former is now easier, thanks to electronic prescriptions and mid-levels. If the antidepressant drugs prove ineffective, more potent medications will be prescribed to address the issue. Then, therapy might be considered. But even the psychiatrist or psychologist doesn’t really want you to be cured. What they want is relief. Curing depression is painful. Waking up is unpleasant and irritating.
And next, euthanasia is being offered to those severely depressed for whom there’s no hope of waking up, as we’re seeing in Canada and the Netherlands. The root causes of youth suicide lie in the rise in mental illness. This trend of hopelessness, burdensomeness, and depression emerges when individuals are perplexed about the inherent difficulties of life.
Society’s Happiness Problem
The pursuit of happiness is a human right, but not the pursuit of constant happiness. If one feels that their existence is meaningless, it’s not because life lacks purpose; they struggle to realize it. Supporting these individuals to help them find significance and fulfillment in their lives, no matter the societal cost is the cure. One might imagine living off the grid with an Amazonian tribe, or the Eskimos might do the trick. As the great Father Anthony De Mello once said, “They’re born asleep, they live asleep, they marry in their sleep, they breed children in their sleep, they die in their sleep without ever waking up. They never understand the loveliness and the beauty of this thing that we call human existence. You know, all mystics, no matter what their theology, no matter what their religion—are unanimous on one thing: that all is well, all is well.” A great Substack post about Father De Mello is
.It’s uncomfortable for society to say we should give these people better resources. Individuals cannot be held hostage to society’s failings. Healthcare providers must distinguish between a rational, well-informed, fact-based request for assisted dying and a suicidal mental health patient demanding death.
What’s clear is that Zoraya ter Beek is dead. Like a scene from the Twilight Zone, ter Beek’s life was taken, never to be rescued. Ironically, we rescue animals but don’t feel the same about humans. What happened to ter Beek is a dystopian nightmare, a war on human life. Even more dystopic, she tried to make it glamorous by including all the people supporting her death, “My whole friends and my support system, we did it together.” Too bad she can’t read all the likes and emotional support she received on social media. Once it’s out, it’s uncontrollable. As we tread on the high wire of euthanasia, more young adolescents with mental illness will romanticize it.