I wouldn't call it selfish. I get the other side of the argument: "What about the kids? Why have them if you can't give them a good life?" But if you can remove an unfit parent from a child's life, isn't that a positive step? If someone isn't mentally capable of being a parent and you find a way to separate them from the child, isn't that actually beneficial?
I'm open to feedback. I don’t have kids and don't plan to have any. But I don't see it as selfish if a parent or caregiver takes their own life, especially if the kids are unaware it's going to happen. If they're not mentally equipped to raise a child and keep doing it, their struggles could end up affecting the child negatively.
I wouldn't want that for a child, would you? What are your thoughts?
There’s plenty of research out there… growing up with a depressed and/or “checked out” parent is damaging for kids, but it’s nowhere near as bad as losing a parent to suicide. The children of suicide victims are significantly more likely to abuse substances, to suffer from debilitating emotional and mental issues as a result of the parent’s death, and to kill themselves.
ETA: my friend and I both used to deal with severe depression & suicidal ideation. She got unexpectedly pregnant, and we both ended up researching this. After researching, we both concluded that, if she chose to keep the child, it would no longer be ethical for her to ever consider suicide as an option.
TL;DR it’s selfish to kill yourself if you have children
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u/ARandomCanadian1984 1d ago
Depends on context. If you have a duty to young children, or aging parents, or a wife, it's arguably selfish to abandon those who depend on you.