The Day I Die: The Untold Story of Assisted Dying in America

“One thing is true: an assisted death is not the easy way out. Hastening the end of your life is an act of will that demands improbable courage. It means accepting the hard truth of your mortality and walking toward death with clear, open eyes.” This gives an intimate look at assisted dying in America and what it means to decide what day you will die. Drawing on five years of research and multiple personal interviews, Hannig unearths the personal reasons why people chose assisted death and how hard it is to actually be approved for the process. I have known for a while that some states in the USA have assisted dying programs, unfortunately my state is not one, but I didn’t realize until this book how limiting the programs are. The program has a lot of hoops you have to jump through to determine if you are eligible, and it has a very narrow set of rules for those who can use the program. As we see in this book, many people want the use of assisted dying to make their end to be what they choose, not what their disease dictates of them, but the regulations prevent most people from adequately being able to utilize this program. The regulations around being able to self medicate for these patients is especially ridiculous in my opinion because it means people with physical disabilities are automatically excluded, like we see in the case of the man with ALS. Another issue is the medication used to assist with dying is not consistent across the board and discontinuation of some medication has made it harder for doctors to prescribe the right cocktail to quickly and painlessly help these people, like Hannig discovered during her interviews. This was a very eye opening book for me because it really showcased how hard it is to get the care and dignified death people want out of our health care system. But it also showcased how much assisted dying needs to evolve by becoming more inclusive, more accessible for patients with incurable diseases like ALS, and having a standard medication (and backup medication) that can be used for these patients. TW: death, grief, suicide, miscarriage, failed assisted death; PTSD;

What an absolutely beautiful look at dying and an honest examination of how the current system pigeonholes individuals who want more choice over their death. Honestly, the quality of the writing and research and the well-told stories are a 10/10. I gave the book a 9 simply because of how emotional it is and how difficult it was for me to get through. Highly recommend for anyone interested in learning about assisted dying!

This book captures the beauty and pain associated with dying - a topic many Americans shy away from. The author does a great job immersing herself in the lives of her subjects and presents a well-rounded inside view of the laws surrounding assisted dying and how far we have come…and how far we still have to go. Heartbreaking, informative, and beautiful. 10/10.

This beautiful book is about a subject that everyone should discuss: death, and how we die. While each of us wants to be the exception to the rule and not have to face our own death, it doesn’t work that way. The author gives the background to the right to die / assisted dying movement - it’s over a century old. She interviews doctors, hospice volunteers, advocates, and patients and their family members. It’s clear the author is in favor of assisted dying but she doesn’t browbeat the reader. There are far more problems to assisted dying than I realized. Not only are there lots of restrictions that can prevent patients from qualifying, but the most effective drugs are no longer available (the European manufacturers pulled them because they were being used for executions). That means doctors are trying to find what works best, and there are no guidelines. There’s a horrifying story of a patient who not only didn’t die, but who woke up confused and desperate. When an assisted death is successful, it’s beautiful - the patient, embracing the end to pain and suffering, surrounded by family and friends, and dying peacefully. What we need to achieve that is a federal law allowing assisted dying, a change in the requirements (people with neurodegenerative diseases and dementia don’t qualify), and more helpful timelines. This is a book that everyone should absolutely read. It’s important to every person.

Such a great book! Well written and full of information about the loaded topic of assisted dying. Having lived most of my life in states that don’t have laws like Oregon’s Death with Dignity, I didn’t really know much about the topic. Now, having read this book I feel like I’m in a much better place to advocate for those that are suffering and might benefit from laws like these.