Depending on how you view the issue, Oregon's Death with Dignity Act – has helped Brittany, a 29 year old woman, end her life by taking a fatal dose of barbiturates, prescribed to her by a doctor, when her suffering became too great.
She was diagnosed with a likely stage 4 glioblastoma and surgery to remove it did not help as it came back even larger. She moved to Oregon, from California, to seek the help of Death with Dignity Act, with her family. It is not an easy decision to make and she wanted to live but the stakes of suffering was high and she chose what is best for her.
"For people to argue against this choice for sick people really seems evil to me,They try to mix it up with suicide and that's really unfair, because there's not a single part of me that wants to die. But I am dying." she told PEOPLE.
"My glioblastoma is going to kill me and that's out of my control, I've discussed with many experts how I would die from it and it's a terrible, terrible way to die. So being able to choose to go with dignity is less terrifying."
She launched a video campaign with Compassion & Choices, an end-of-life choice advocacy organization, to support and expand death with dignity laws nationwide.
Brittany graduated from UC Berkeley as an undergrad, and received a Masters in Education from UC Irvine. She believed in compassion, equity, and that people would remember most how you made them feel in life. As Faulkner said, "Never be afraid to raise your voice for honesty and truth and compassion against injustice and lying and greed. If more people all over the world would do this, the world would change."
Good Bye Brittany
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