Some years ago, Dutch political party D66 raised the worrisome idea of euthanasia for people who are old and fed up.

It infuriates me because the feeling that life is no longer worth living is too often the direct result of being treated as if your life is no longer worth living and you no longer hold any value.

• I too am over 55 these days and soon I will be over 75, which is the age limit in that proposal.
• Yes, I often really feel like giving up on life too.
• This happens when I am being (mis)treated as if I am no more than trash that is in the way, when my life is rendered devoid of meaning and substance when I am marginalized, shoved away, as if I am no more than trash that is in people’s way! It’s atrocious!
• Heck, I was in my 30s when Dutch people already started telling me that it was time to make way for younger folks, professionally. Up to that point, I often got overlooked (dismissed) because I looked so much younger than I actually was.

Wijngaarden, Els van, Leget, Carlo and Goossensen, Anne (2015) Ready to give up on life: The lived experience of elderly people who feel life is completed and no longer worth living. Social Science & Medicine 138, 257-264. Available at https://ac.els-cdn.com/S0277953615002889/1-s2.0-S0277953615002889-main.pdf?_tid=80f432e0-edcd-11e7-993c-00000aab0f26&acdnat=1514685434_0b38f23b28ec70c2cd53776218c61c43