blog

Out of context: Reply #76635

  • Started
  • Last post
  • 76,753 Responses
  • Salarrue9

    Thinking about the death of an aunt in San Francisco. She was almost 90 years old.

    The hospital had a protocol called “comfort”. Basically, it consists of putting the person in a larger room, where they slowly die in front of their family and friends. No water, no food.

    When we put some damp cotton swabs on her lips, my aunt grabbed them and squeezed them to get the water out, in obvious desperation...

    In my opinion, it was a cruel scene; nothing about that experience was comforting.

    Is this a common practice? I would prefer assisted death, but who knows...

    This also leads me to question all the bitterness and pointless conflicts in which I sometimes find myself entangled.

    At the ends we all vanish like dust.

    Salarrue 9Permalink
    UpvoteDownvote
    Flag
    • I’m so sorry you had to go through this. It’s heartbreaking. Was this different from palliative care?monospaced
    • Apparently that was palliative careSalarrue
    • I went through similar less than two years ago. This is as close to assistance as they go.monospaced
    • Months ago, visiting my mother, The patient in the next bed wasn't progressing well, so before moving her to palliative care, they changed her room...OBBTKN
    • and there she came back to life!
      She'd listen to something the nurses said. We call the palliative care unit "El secadero."      OBBTKN
    • yeah it's pretty sad to see and go through, a tank full of piranha would be more dignified...or at least quicker_niko
    • <3PonyBoy
    • I lost 2 uncles in SF over the holidayYakuZoku
    • man that's toughcanoe
    Show [[ numHiddenNotes ]] more notesAdd Note
    SaveCancel

View thread