Entscheidungen am Lebensende

The article begins with a reflection on the intertwined nature of life and death; this reflection should also serve to sensitize us to the proactive and reactive expressions of a person’s life at the end of life. It will be shown that attachment to life can also manifest itself in the case of depression, fear and exhaustion: One must not lose sight of their potential existence. The existing commitment to life allows us to better understand why the remaining time of life may be perceived as something precious; this may be in contrast to statements made in the living will. A distinction is made between subjectively, objectively and socially defined criteria for a good life in the borderline situation of a serious illness leading to death; their comparison is central to the end-of-life decision-making process. In addition to physical and neurocognitive illnesses, suicidality is at the centre of the article.