Posted on 03/18/2005 10:41:59 AM PST by My Favorite Headache
Greer gives order
Pinging my Florida list here as well.Feeding Tube Being Removed: Greer Gives Order
Order states Congress can not override the ruling...looks like it's over .....
Wow. I'm speechless. That was fast. :^(
Please let me know if you want ON or OFF my General Interest ping list!. . .don't be shy.
I would NEVER starve my mother to death. I would never deny her water. And yes, I've worked in Nursing Homes as a Director of Activities for several years.
In that time, in 2 states, have I have never seen people in Terri's condition starved to death. I have seen loving families take care of their loved ones and never saw anyone even suggest starving someone to death.
......be careful what you ask for...
Thank you for sharing that with us..
I am so glad you survived!
Yours is the most powerful message posted today...
God Bless you!
Ms.B
Hello - did not know if you wanted opine on if Congress is overreaching and what the options are in this matter. I thank you.
I wouldn't let my mother live like that for fifteen years. I'd give her the best care and rehab possible, and I'd never say "When is that bitch going to die?" either. I wouldn't put her in hospice when she only needs rehab and normal medical care. I wouldn't lock her in a curtained room alone, bar her from going outside, prevent videotaping of her condition, or try to have her starved to death based on a CAT scan that's ten years old.
Of course, I wouldn't strangle my mom and not call 911 either.
Sorry I don't have time to read the whole thread, so this may already be under discussion. If you aren't tuned into Rush, he's been giving nearly minute-by-minute updates all morning. As you said, latest report is that lawyers for the House of Representatives are on their way to Florida. This is ridiculous! If "Judge" Greer isn't impeached after thumbing his nose at a congressional subpoena, I don't know what it would take.
I appreciate your posting your own personal experience. This is exactly what people overlook--that it may look like a person is "brain dead" or in a "permanent coma" but that is not often the case. Doctors as God. I thought those days were over.
Wow. Just wow. Bump to the Top.
I'm glad someone stood up for you.
Ohioan from Florida,I am a little mixed up.Was the feeding tube removed?
Irrelevant. I still wouldn't starve her to death, whether she asked me or not.
I would starve the little Down's kid at school either.
YEah, go sing Christmas Carols at a Nursing home sometime. Even the most out of it patients, you can see them remembering their favorite Christmasses, and smiling and... dreaming. It's the most amazing experience.
And when my Mom went to the group home and they started treating her like a girl again, it was a similar transformation to what you describe, though she was mentally with it. But... she started having fun again.
I hope you're holding up okay !
PAX
Your emotions are running rough shod over your intellect.
Yeah, death by dehydration is sooooo peaceful...as the quotes from this article I excerpted from another thread detail.
Here is what you "let her die" people want to make her go through.
Doctor Describes Process of Dehydration
"What will probably kill Terri is dehydration because it's much quicker than starvation," Stevens said. "To starve to death takes eight to 12 weeks. You can die of dehydration in anywhere from three to five days to two weeks."
Stevens said the amount of fluids in Terri's system when her gastrostomy or "feeding tube" was removed and whether she receives any fluids by mouth will determine how long she lives.
Initial effects of the lack of hydration will include:
Extreme thirst
Nausea and cramping
Dry skin, becoming wrinkled as fluids are drawn from the skin to hydrate the organs.
"She's likely to become dizzy and begin to have cramping in her arms and legs. That's because her electrolytes – her sodium, potassium, and other electrolytes in her blood – start getting out of whack because of lack of fluids."
Terri's body will experience other effects due to the forced dehydration that many might not have been considered. "She'll see decreased secretions. If she tries to cry, she won't be able to make tears very well, if at all," Stevens said. "Her mouth will become dry and saliva thick. You can have cracking of the (mucous membranes) of the mouth and lips as they dry out."
Those external symptoms of dehydration are accompanied by internal effects, as well. "People often get headaches, then (become) lethargic and finally go into coma," Stevens continued. "It actually can cause seizures.
"As it progressively gets worse, what happens (are) the physical signs. Her blood pressure will drop, her heart rate will pick up. She'll actually, ultimately go into shock," Stevens explained. "You just don't have enough fluid to keep your blood pressure up, and it drops so low, and that sometimes can be a terminal event, or an arrhythmia of her heart.
"Her blood will get thicker," Stevens continued. "Sometimes, people who are severely dehydrated will actually have strokes just because the blood gets so thick that it clots. It's not a pretty picture."
Which of these symptoms Terri experiences and to what degree will depend on whether the hospice staff makes any attempt to hydrate her by mouth and whether she is offered any pain medication.
"If they sedate her, she could be semi-conscious or unconscious while this is going on," Stevens said. "It's not a very pleasant experience, unlike what the Hemlock Society and other groups try to make you believe."
Stevens explained that he had "had a little bit of experience" in this particular field "since I worked in Africa for 11 years with severely dehydrated people, especially kids."
Starvation, Stevens said, is not really an issue for Terri. "It's a long process that, depending on what condition people are in when it begins, determines how long it's going to take," Stevens said. "But if you're not getting fluids, it's academic interest. Before you starve to death, you'll die of dehydration."
Terri Schindler Schiavo's feeding tube was removed at 2 p.m. EDT Wednesday. Based on Stevens' estimates, she could die from dehydration as early as midday Saturday.
Greer should immediately be charged with attempted first degree murder under color of authority.
Oh my! I've been away for an hour or so, and just saw this. I never would have predicted that Greer would do this. Unbelievable.
Terri has not given up the fight and neither should we. The fact that she is alive and communicates is evidence enough of her will to live.
People in situations such as Terri's die only when they lose the will to live.
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