A woman in Canada says she can't go on living with long Covid-19 symptoms and has applied for medically assisted suicide.
Tracey Thompson has been out of work for a little more than two years after being struck down with the coronavirus at the start of the pandemic.
According to 7News, the former chef from Toronto said she has suffered from a range of symptoms ever since she got over her initial infectious period.
Those symptoms include 'blurred vision, difficulty digesting food, difficulty breathing, an altered sense of taste and smell, and scars on her heart from swelling due to myocarditis'.
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There's still a lot that is unknown about long Covid-19, but the Mayo Clinic says there is research that suggests one in five people aged 18 to 64 will have at least one medical condition that might be due to Covid-19 between one month and one year after having the virus.
For Tracey, it's so debilitating that she's decided to end her own life on her terms.
“From being able-bodied and employed to basically bed-bound,” she explained to CTV.
“I can’t get up on average for 20-plus hours. I have very little capacity to expend the energy physically, mentally and emotionally, so I try to stay home all the time.”
She's hit out at the lack of financial support for people in her situation.
Tracey admits that she doesn't actually want to die, however she has come to terms with the idea that if she doesn't get the support she desperately needs then she feels she's left with no other choice.
“I still enjoy life," she told the Canadian broadcaster. "Birds chirping, small things that make up a day are still pleasant to me, they’re still enjoyable.
"I still enjoy my friends. There’s a lot to enjoy in life, even if it’s small.
“But I don’t relish the idea of suffering for months to come to the same conclusion.
“When support is not coming, things aren’t going to change. It seems irrational to put myself through that just to die in the end.”
She said the current disability allowance would only just cover her rent and not leave her with any money to pay for food, bills or her lifestyle.
Tracey said she's perfectly within her rights in Canada to request medically assisted suicide.
“I’m very ill. There is no treatment. There is no cure. You don’t have to be terminally ill," she said.
She added: “My choices are basically to die slowly and painfully, or quickly. Those are the options that are left.”
Tracey has already sought one doctor's approval for the assisted suicide and needs one more to make it legal.
Topics: News, Coronavirus
Stewart Perrie