Now I’ve always thought that the Canadian government did more for its citizens but I don’t think the right to die law was meant for this
s the housing situation that fucked for someone like her? Or is there more not being reported on?
because damn…
More information from CTV News:
There are questions being raised about whether this is what the medically-assisted suicide law was really meant to accomplish. From the item:
id think the Trudeau government would step in at some point for humanitarian reasons cause this cant make them look good
She had “multiple chemical sensitivities”. Finding a place to be, where you can avoid multiple chemicals, can be a mighty challenge, apart from how much money you do or don’t have.
My brother lived for years with multiple chemical sensitivities. It means being deathly allergic to almost everything. He was very stoic and didn’t complain much, but his wife told of the horror stories. His diet consisted largely of rice cakes and (I suspect) very little else. He could only drink distilled water that came in glass jugs. When the providers of distilled drinking water (Sparkletts, etc.) announced that they were phasing out glass jugs, that was going to be a problem. (I think what saved him from that was that he died first.)
He could only brush his teeth with baking soda. He couldn’t wear, or even live in the same house with new clothing, with its “new clothing” scent – they had to buy all their clothes well-used at thrift shops, and then wash it multiple times before he could wear it. He could travel, some, but could only sleep in their car because of all the cleaning fluids that hotels used.
He had an understanding with this doctor that if he ever needed surgery, it would have to be done outdoors in the parking lot (which I doubt was ever really possible). One breath of indoor hospital air, full of disinfectants, could have killed him.
The point of all this: Multiple chemical sensitivities really makes the whole world toxic to you, and this Canadian woman would really have had a hard time finding a suitable place, regardless of the financing.
so you’d probably have to be the “boy in the bubble” type of thing …
What do you propose that Mr. Trudeau and his government do?
Yeah, I’m not certain that this is a federal government issue. Changing the medically assistance in death law to exclude cases like this would almost certainly result in a lawsuit and would be very bad PR. Offering direct support is also probably not possible - healthcare in Canada is governed by the provinces, not the federal government. Maybe they could do something about housing? I’m not sure if that’s in their wheelhouse or the provinces/municipalities. Really, this seems more like a failure on a provincial/local level than a federal one.
Both linked accounts uncritically accept the idea that multiple chemical sensitivity is a recognized medical disorder relating to physiologic triggers to common low-level exposures, and do not take into account the possibility of symptoms due to anxiety or depression. Someone in a wheelchair due to a spinal injury and with other, unnamed chronic disorders seems like a setup for depression.
A report out of Canada (which, oddly enough, suggests that MCS is a significantly more common phenomenon in Canada) points to anxiety as a likely cause.
If something like that is going on here, the issue then becomes how far the Canadian government should go and what steps it should take in alleviating major anxiety and/or depression.
For chemical sensitivities, yes. Think about it - the ‘new car smell’ or ‘new furniture smell’ or ‘new house smell’ are there because chemicals are gassing off of the materials used in manufacture [some drywall panels will gas off formaldehyde]
Back when I was 12, after a long series of run ins with an annual cold rolled into bronchitis rolled into pneumonia we too me to a series of doctors involving an allergist. After getting my body covered with tic tac toe scratchings, I ended up allergic to 135 different substances - the upshot of which was to live in a sterile room, no carpets, drapes, strip and wash the bedding every morning, vacuum and wash down the floors, walls and ceiling every couple days. To which my mom and I said ‘screw that for a game of buggers’ and determined exactly what I was willing to deal with which was having drapes, carpets and a cat. Can’t say as my post nasal drip was any better or worse, it really only got controlled when the 24 hour meds became available. I still roll into pneumonia, but at least it isn’t every single year. [We decided I really was not going to be running into camels or goats - I avoid goat by products - the milk meat and cheese all smell like goat piss when I try to get it near my face to eat, so I simply don’t. Haven’t found camel so I don’t know if it gives me the same problem. Some other random allergens I really don’t come into contact with or manage to avoid like bivalves and oriental fish sauce, which tends to be made of bivalves.]
I don’t know, source a dwelling made of something she isn’t sensitive to/include building or furnishing materials she isn’t sensitive to. I think perhaps poured concrete structure, furniture made back far enough that the materials are thoroughly gassed off. Have it on the grounds of a managed care facility that will deliver meals so she doesn’t have to cook [avoiding brand new appliances?] and filter all the water going into the house for all systems [sinks and shower] tiles, glass, stainless steel wherever possible. To be honest, I would have to see the allergist’s report to decide what materials could be used.
Speaking as someone who has spent the last 6 years being dicked around by a couple different forms of cancer, financial issues [yay Tri-Care who suddenly unenrolled me mid year, that took some dicking around with but leaves me with $77 grand that I theoretically have to come up with out of an empty bank account] and spending more and more time in a wheelchair as my body degrades I can understand that. I do end up with bouts of depression, but thanks to previous use of therapists have some tools to work with as well as a very understanding husband. While I do have multiple allergies, they are all recognized by everybody [for the most part they are all common, to the point where they already had the little vials of allergen to do the scratch testing] so I don’t have to try and tell the world that I am allergic to it.
I can not speak to this persons mind, other than to comment that MCS may or may not be considered real, however crap gets discovered every day and it really wasn’t that long ago in the course of human events that microbes were imaginary. I think that the provincial government should make an effort at getting her a livable space - even if it does end up being boy in bubble level room.
While MCS may be real, every one of the several medical case files I’ve reviewed with that diagnosis included significant mental impairments - and heath care providers well out on the fringe of accepted practice.
I’ve always been under the impression, rightly or wrongly, that MCS isn’t a real condition.
It sure sounds like bullshit. Like those people who claim to be “allergic” to electricity.
Sweden recognizes “electromagnetic hypersensitivity”, while Health Canada does not.*
While MCS and EH are highly dubious diagnoses, the symptoms in most cases are real and affected people deserve compassionate and proper care, which doesn’t encompass quack remedies or having them built state-of-the-art bubble homes or Faraday cages to live in.
I haven’t heard of a double-blind clinical trial in which “clean” environments were simulated but retained purported triggers. Might not be deemed ethical, or even feasible.
The human mind is a strange thing, as in that case of a new cell tower that got complaints from people who said it was causing them deleterious symptoms, but hadn’t been turned on yet.
*The Canadian Civil Rights Commission has recognized multiple chemical sensitivity as a disability; curiously, I can’t find a Health Canada position statement on the matter.
The McGill article is interesting, but I’m finding it hard to get my mind around the “anxiety” conclusion. For one thing, it doesn’t explain why these people seem to get relief when put into a sufficiently clean environment (i.e.- one that is toxin-free from their perspective). Also, I would think that anxiety as an underlying cause is something that could be treated with medication, or a combination of medication and psychotherapy.
The other thing I find odd is that this woman was allegedly approved for MAiD (Medical Assistance in Dying), or at least is well along in the process. There are a whole bunch of stringent conditions for eligibility, not the least of which is having “a grievous and irremediable medical condition”, defined as below. Taken at face value, the media stories make it seem like she definitely does NOT meet the last two conditions.
To be considered as having a grievous and irremediable medical condition, you must meet all of the following criteria. You must:
- have a serious illness, disease or disability (excluding a mental illness until March 17, 2023)
- be in an advanced state of decline that cannot be reversed
- experience unbearable physical or mental suffering from your illness, disease, disability or state of decline that cannot be relieved under conditions that you consider acceptable
You do not need to have a fatal or terminal condition to be eligible for medical assistance in dying.
McGill? As in Chuck McGill from Better Call Saul? 
Somatoform disorder is generally accepted as a legitimate diagnosis.
“McGill” as in one of Canada’s foremost universities and #1 medical school. Named after James McGill, a wealthy merchant whose bequest established in 1821 what was then known as McGill College.
Jimmy McGill, aka Saul Goodman?
(Yes, I know it’s a real person, not a fictional one, I’m just being a smartass.)
The character Chuck McGill - Saul’s brother - thought he had electromagnetic sensitivity or some such.
He claimed to be allergic to electricity, until Saul (well, Jimmy at the time) got an associate to slip a battery into his pocket just before he went on the witness stand during a trial. Chuck wasn’t able to tell the battery was there, which showed the court that his illness was not physical.
A messed up thing to do to his brother, but they had an extremely fucked up relationship on that show.
Man, I love Better Call Saul (and Breaking Bad). Really enjoying this last season. I wonder if they’ll have another spin-off sometime. I’d watch a show that follows Jesse Pinkman after BB.
Hmm. A log cabin in the wilderness? Canada has plenty of undeveloped land.
~Max