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Virginia Low |
Assisted suicide shows lack of respect, says charity boss
Warning that rush to end a life might ignore possibility of learning to cope
VIRGINIA Low, founder of one of Islington’s leading mental health charities, this week criticised Britain’s growing “right to assisted suicide” campaign.
Ms Low’s 27-year-old son Stuart committed suicide 12 years ago after being unable to get help for acute depression.
She later launched the Stuart Low Trust, which helps people with conditions such as schizophrenia and depression. It has more than 1,000 supporters in London.
Ms Low, who lives at the Angel, joined the debate over assisted suicide with a letter in Sunday’s Observer newspaper. She wrote that to “agree to assist a suicide is to agree a person should die. To me, that shows not respect but, rather, its lack.” The debate has raged since the parents of Worcester rugby star, Dan James, 23, paralysed from the neck down in a scrum accident, reportedly admitted supporting and justifying their son’s decision to travel to Switzerland to die by assisted suicide. He said that he could not live with the condition.
Ms Low told the Tribune: “I could understand Daniel’s despair. I just felt that at 23 there was still time for him to learn to live with this condition and hopefully eventually improve the quality of his life.” She fears that people with mental illness might consider ending their lives without exploring the possibilities of treatment or counselling.
“Suicide is no answer to being unhappy or uncomfortable or in pain,” Ms Low said. “To say to someone you’ve got all these problems and I could help you to die is ignoring the possibility of learning to cope.”
The trust, which runs evening drop-in centres at Hargrave Park School, in Archway, maintains that many people who may have considered suicide have thanked the organisation for saving their lives.
“Coming to an event, talking and socialising with people changed their minds,” Ms Low said. “One man I met said that before coming to our group he’d lain in bed and stared at the wall for five years. He’s now a very active volunteer.”
While appreciating there are many people in “unbearable pain” who want to end their lives, she believes that money should be invested in ways of reducing pain and helping people live comfortable lives.
She is concerned that there might be knock-on pressure on the elderly to end their lives earlier than necessary.
“An old person may feel a desire to have a nice funeral and leave cash, saved from what would have been spent on care, to the grandkids,” she said.
The Stuart Low Well-Being Centre runs activities, from cooking to exercises and music, from 6.30pm to 10pm, Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays.
The trust can be contacted at 24-27 White Lion Street N1 9PD or by calling 7713 9304. |
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