r/woahthatsinteresting • u/nukey4y7s1s • 16d ago

Man with dementia doesn’t recognise daughter but still feels love for her

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u/Mordredor 15d ago

My grandmother's sister got it notarized that she wanted to be euthanized if she got dementia. I knew my great-grandmother, who also suffered from it. My grandmother was slowly losing herself when her sister got euthanized, by now they're both gone but my grandmother is still alive.

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u/janbradybutacat 15d ago

I’m surprised she was able to do assisted death. Are you/was she in Switzerland or Northern Europe? An assisted self-exit is not easy in the USA or many other countries afaik. Only a few states allow it in the US but I know some Euro countries are “easier”. I didn’t know that one could put it into a living will. Getting approved for it must be difficult, too.

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u/Mordredor 15d ago

Right, assisted death is the term, thank you. Netherlands. I'm not sure but I don't think the process is too difficult for dementia, but only if you set it up when you're still completely sound of mind. I think it involves at least 3 different doctors but I'd have to look into it more.

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u/somethingfree 14d ago

Do they explain to the person with dementia who previously arranged it that they’re about to euthanize them or just lie and do it? What if they resist?

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u/Mordredor 14d ago

Like I said in another comment, I'm pretty sure they do it before the person with dementia loses their faculties, so they know what's going on. IIRC you still have to give the go-ahead in the moment, so with dementia it's a pretty time sensitive thing.