What is VSED?
Recently I saw mention of a person diagnosed with FTD and she in preparation wants to create a VSED (Voluntary stop eating and drinking - End of Life). She wasn’t sure how long she would have mental capacity to make the decision and did not want to miss it.
I was curious about the definitions and here is what I found:
According to the National Institute of Health a person may choose VSED as long as they are mentally capable of making the decision.
Definition of “mentally capable” according to Cornell Law School -
Excerpt: Mental capacity means you can make your own decisions by being able to: understand all the information you need to make that decision, use or think about that information, remember that information, and. communicate your decision to someone else.
It is my understanding that a person with a terminal illness has the right to choose this option and depending on the illness and how it affects their mental capacity they would want to prepare one as soon as they are confident in their decision.
Has anyone heard of this option before this post?
Recently talking to a friend that works in Hospice care I inquired about this process and if she ever saw it used. She said she had but that she hadn’t witnessed anyone making it through the whole process. The person would give into thirst.
I have personally witnessed this process and it isn’t pretty. In the instance I witnessed the person was on Hospice and therefore had the option of pain relieving medications. I can see that this is a necessary process for someone wanting to come off a feeding tube (PEG) and allowed to die a “natural” death by not being force fed.
Credits: National Institute of Health -https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29532465/VSED
Cornell Law School-https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/mental_competence
