Debby, Part II
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
As promised, here is Part II of my blog entries on my sister-in-law's final day on earth. The specific purpose of this entry is to communicate some of the personal and theological questions I encountered as I contemplated Debby's decision to go off of the ventilator.
From a human standpoint, I wholeheartedly supported Debby's decision. Many, many years ago, when there were no trach vents, Debby wouldn't have even had a decision to make. But now, the medical advances that we've seen, are actually forcing humans to play God with their own lives. So, from a Christian viewpoint, are we required by God to utilize every medical means available to prolong our lives as long as possible? Theoretically, Debby could have lived forever on a trach vent. I believe that our bodies are holy temples and that we are to take as good of care of them as is possible on this earth. But, does that mean living indefinitely hooked up to a machine?
As I struggled with these theological questions, I kept coming back to one thing--Why keep suffering on this earth when you can be in Heaven, in the presence of Jesus? However, my husband was of the viewpoint that, if it were him, and if being in a nursing home and on a ventilator indefinitely would eventually help bring his entire family to Christ, he would do it. And trust me, the 2+ months that Debby spent in a hospital bed were crucial for the cause of Christ, and all she had to do was lay in bed. By her being there, Tim was able to minister to countless patients, visitors, and hospital staff members that he would talk to while he was visiting Debby. And, I have no doubt, that if she had stayed on the ventilator and gone to a nursing home, that countless others would have been ministered to because Tim was there visiting Debby.
So, is there a right or wrong answer? Or, is it different for each person depending on what God's will is for that person? I came to the personal conviction that trach vents are great if they will enable a person to recover enough to be able to come off of the ventilator. With that said, there are patients with MD who live active lives on a trach vent. And, I praise God that we have this technology that enables them to do that. If Debby had gone on a trach vent years earlier, she would have been one of those people. But, at this point in her life, her body was way too sick to be able to live an active life with the trach vent.
The day after Debby's daughters shared her wishes to the family, I went to visit Debby. While I was there, she spoke with her case manager and the hospital pyschologist about her decision. Both of them noted that, while she had stated these same wishes before, her attitude had changed completely. There was joy and peace where there was once anger and depression. Debby asked me what I thought about her decision, and I told her that I supported her 100%. She said, "But . . . .?", and I said, "No but's, I support you 100%".
