I have spent an eternity saying this.

[conuly]

Terri Schiavo is not on life support. She does not use a ventilator. I don't know where that story started, but here it ends. She is not hooked up to any machines. She uses a feeding tube. That is not life support. Taking her off the feeding tube will cause her to - slowly - starve or dehydrate.

There is evidence that she reacts to things around her. There is also evidence that her condition would be drastically improved if the money from the settlement had gone towards her treatment instead of her husband's court bills.

So please, base your opinions off of accurate information.

And now, I will let other people talk about being in situations where they were believed dead, and post those links (links I've posted before) about other people who nearly died because "after all, she's not going to recover, might as well pull the plug now" - and at the time, they were conscious.

Comments

[wodhaund.livejournal.com]

Don't forget that the moment he could, he married another woman.

Although...I think there may be a question of whether he did that legally or not (being married to two women at once) but I can't recall. That may have been thrown out.

Personally, if there is such a thing as "scum of the earth" I am inclinced to think that Mr. Schiavo is it.

[conuly]

No, he didn't marry her, I think. That's why he can't divorce his wife, because 1. he wants to be married in the church and 2. if he does, and marries somebody else, he won't inherit.

Now, it may be that he believes he is doing the right thing. However, I don't think the evidence points in that direction.

[l33tminion]

If he was scum of the earth, why would he not have taken the million dollars and fled. He's an unfortunate man who's wife died 15 years ago, and has since been in legal limbo because her body kept on living.

[maladaptive.livejournal.com]

God, thankyou, thankyou!

I'm really torn on if she's there or not. It's always conflicting information on both sides (but I lean toward the fact that she's responsive). Supposedly, he became an in home nurse for her according to one timeline, but he never seemed to bring it up before, so I don't know. That's not what really bothers me about the debate.

What always horrifies me is that they're to starve her to death. Not even a humane end. Because euthanasia's wrong. Talk about the irony....

[l33tminion]

Agreed. Euthanasia would be better than starvation.

[leora.livejournal.com]

It's dehydration really, not starvation. The dehydration will kill first. It's relevant as death by dehydration is said to be even more painful than death by starvation. Apparently, when starving, your body can somewhat shut down the systems that complain about it. Whereas with dehydration, it creates massive pain throughout the body. Hangovers are generally caused by mild dehydration. Imagine an incredibly bad constantly intensifying hangover.

I am not pleased that this method is allowed to be used in any cases. I don't really want to argue this particular case, as I feel I know less about it than many who have taken positions. But I feel if we consider it acceptable to dehydrate someone to death, we should instead use a lethal injection or other more humane method. It takes days to die from dehydration... painful, painful days.

It's possible she won't feel it, of course. But if there's any chance that any part of her would...

[gingembre.livejournal.com]

What always horrifies me is that they're to starve her to death. Not even a humane end. Because euthanasia's wrong. Talk about the irony...

I wholeheartedly agree. I think it's sad, and a bit sick, that we will give a convicted serial killer on death row a more comfortable death than an innocent woman will get.

[eofs.livejournal.com]

Last Friday I had a workshop with a cameraman. One of his pieces he showed us was a section from a programme about being buried alive. A woman in the 60s (I think) who collapsed in the cinema and showed all signs of being dead. She was prepared and put in the morgue and stuff and woke up in there.

(frozen)

[lizziey.livejournal.com]

actually, connie, the feeding tube, in a way is still life support. her life is supported only by being on the feeding tube. without it, she will die, thus, it is a form a life support.

(frozen)

[conuly]

...

And if she were a diabetic, and had to take a shot of insulin every day, would you say she was on life support?

[theshiversbaby.livejournal.com]

In the same vein as what the user above wrote - what, exactly, is the definition of "life support" if not (more or less) a piece of equipment or machinery that keeps you alive when in a comatose or brain dead state? I suppose that's a bit rough and I'm sure you'll find it's full of holes, but you see what I'm getting at.

A feeding tube is a machine. Were she taken off of that machine, she would die. How, then, is this not life support? Can the phrase "life support" only be used in reference to a ventilator?

[conuly]

I don't make the definition, I just use it. Probably, though, because you can survive quite a long time without food and water... and she could, with effort, most likely be fed another way.

[leora.livejournal.com]

Life support has to take over a function that the body normally does on its own, like breathing or pumping the heart. Everyone needs to be fed and given something to drink, she just needs to use an alternate method for doing so. It's not life support, because it's the basics that all humans require, not anything special or unusual. She also needs air in order to keep living, but we don't call that life support. However, take it away and she'll die pretty fast (I believe roughly a few minutes). And I've read, although have no idea where the info comes from and find it suspicious that you can live about 3 seconds with no blood, so remove all her blood and she'll die really quickly.

[meryls-corner.livejournal.com]

Thank you for posting this. Removing the feeding tube is something I'm very against. As for people who think she died 15 years ago, terrisfight.org shows pictures of her responding to things around her and following people with her eyes.

[wispfox.livejournal.com]

Link that you might be interested in, relating to this:

http://www.livejournal.com/users/kightp/465838.html?thread=2654894&style=mine#t2654894

Or, (which is pointed to in the above link):

http://respectfulofotters.blogspot.com/2005_03_01_respectfulofotters_archive.html#111120735448873570

[rainbow-goddess.livejournal.com]

Hey, conuly, do you have any links you can point me to that will prove she's aware of her surroundings and of what is happening to her? I posted something in my journal on this subject and I've been asked for proof that isn't provided by either her parents or members of the religious right.

[conuly]

Not on me, no. I've been so pissed lately I just deleted most of my links on everything.

[wodhaund.livejournal.com]

Don't forget that the moment he could, he married another woman.

Although...I think there may be a question of whether he did that legally or not (being married to two women at once) but I can't recall. That may have been thrown out.

Personally, if there is such a thing as "scum of the earth" I am inclinced to think that Mr. Schiavo is it.

[conuly]

No, he didn't marry her, I think. That's why he can't divorce his wife, because 1. he wants to be married in the church and 2. if he does, and marries somebody else, he won't inherit.

Now, it may be that he believes he is doing the right thing. However, I don't think the evidence points in that direction.

[maladaptive.livejournal.com]

God, thankyou, thankyou!

I'm really torn on if she's there or not. It's always conflicting information on both sides (but I lean toward the fact that she's responsive). Supposedly, he became an in home nurse for her according to one timeline, but he never seemed to bring it up before, so I don't know. That's not what really bothers me about the debate.

What always horrifies me is that they're to starve her to death. Not even a humane end. Because euthanasia's wrong. Talk about the irony....

[l33tminion]

Agreed. Euthanasia would be better than starvation.

[eofs.livejournal.com]

Last Friday I had a workshop with a cameraman. One of his pieces he showed us was a section from a programme about being buried alive. A woman in the 60s (I think) who collapsed in the cinema and showed all signs of being dead. She was prepared and put in the morgue and stuff and woke up in there.

(frozen)

[lizziey.livejournal.com]

actually, connie, the feeding tube, in a way is still life support. her life is supported only by being on the feeding tube. without it, she will die, thus, it is a form a life support.

(frozen)

[conuly]

...

And if she were a diabetic, and had to take a shot of insulin every day, would you say she was on life support?

[theshiversbaby.livejournal.com]

In the same vein as what the user above wrote - what, exactly, is the definition of "life support" if not (more or less) a piece of equipment or machinery that keeps you alive when in a comatose or brain dead state? I suppose that's a bit rough and I'm sure you'll find it's full of holes, but you see what I'm getting at.

A feeding tube is a machine. Were she taken off of that machine, she would die. How, then, is this not life support? Can the phrase "life support" only be used in reference to a ventilator?

[conuly]

I don't make the definition, I just use it. Probably, though, because you can survive quite a long time without food and water... and she could, with effort, most likely be fed another way.

[meryls-corner.livejournal.com]

Thank you for posting this. Removing the feeding tube is something I'm very against. As for people who think she died 15 years ago, terrisfight.org shows pictures of her responding to things around her and following people with her eyes.

[wispfox.livejournal.com]

Link that you might be interested in, relating to this:

http://www.livejournal.com/users/kightp/465838.html?thread=2654894&style=mine#t2654894

Or, (which is pointed to in the above link):

http://respectfulofotters.blogspot.com/2005_03_01_respectfulofotters_archive.html#111120735448873570

[rainbow-goddess.livejournal.com]

Hey, conuly, do you have any links you can point me to that will prove she's aware of her surroundings and of what is happening to her? I posted something in my journal on this subject and I've been asked for proof that isn't provided by either her parents or members of the religious right.

[conuly]

Not on me, no. I've been so pissed lately I just deleted most of my links on everything.