Craig Ewert has ALS, or Lou Gherigs disease. He lives in Northern England with his wife Mary who is shown taking care of his daily needs like bathing and shaving. They tell the story of how they met and eloped a year after that first meeting. They raised their two children in Chicago and then moved abroad. Craig was diagnosed in 2006 and through research found the corporation, Dignitas, that assists people with committing suicide. Assisted suicide is legal in Switzerland and a few other places including 3 US states. ALS sufferers live on average 2-5 years but Craig was deteriorating fast and was suffering. Craig had a visit from his children and then decided to contact Dignitas and scheduled his suicide. Craig says he has two choices- either go through with the suicide and die, or don't go through with it and suffer, cause suffering for his family, and then die anyway. He says with great contentment that right now he is alive and he must be aware and enjoy every moment of living. Knowing the date of his death has just made something indefinite and unknown, definite; but, it doesn’t change the fact that he must die someday anyway. One day before the scheduled suicide Craig finds out it is Swiss law that he cannot go forward without a Doctors approval. He gets the approval due to his disease and prognosis. A social worker will help prepare the fatal drug and help administer it. In the last chapter of the film, Craig and Mary arrive at the place where Craig will die and the social worker describes the procedure. He describes how he must take a video of Craig drinking the last sip of the fatal drink for the Swiss officials to prove he drank it of his own free will. He drinks the medication and passes away with his wife crying in the room after bidding him farewell and wishing him a safe journey.
I was moved by this film and by the courage of Craig. Being a nursing student and working in the health care field, it really made me think of the oath we must take to do no harm. I think by letting a person suffer when death is inevitable is doing harm. Like Craig said in the film, it is “okay to play God” when we are saving premature infants but not to release someone from their suffering and let them end their life. Specific measures should be followed; it should not be unregulated. However, when the individual is terminal and unquestionably has less than six months to live or the quality of life is a severe issue, such as with ALS, medically assisted suicide should be an option. In Craig’s case, he could have lived up to, or even more than, five years with a swift and cognitive brain but with a completely paralyzed body and breathing with a ventilator. Like he said in the film, he could be suffering and in pain and not be able to voice his concern to anyone. This is a very scary thought to me. I would want to die also while I had the dignity to assist myself in doing so. I agree so much with Craig when he talks about living in the moment and enjoying life. I liked the parable of the monk and the strawberry and I will continue to think of this throughout my life and try to enjoy all the strawberries in my life.
