You're going to die of...

[Draka]

If it's a genetic condition, then this implies it's hereditary. Wouldn't you want to know before you had kids whether you'd be passing an excruciating incurable debilitating disease on to them? Maybe it would convince you to have kids by in vitro with donor eggs. Maybe it would convince you not to have kids at all.

Even setting aside the potential for passing the disease on to my future kids, if I knew that I'd be dead or completely debilitated by the time they were 10 years old, say, I think I'd probably decide not to have children. And I think that if I had the opportunity to know whether this might be the case, I'd consider it my responsibility to find out.

Already have kids. That much is done. Do I want to know if I'm going to die horribly before them? Not really. Like I said, if was something possibly preventable that I could avoid by getting a double masectomy or hysterectomy or along those lines, then ok. I simply don't want to know about anything that will harshly debilitate and kill me. If it was something that couldn't be avoided and it would affect me greatly, I wouldn't want my life to become about that. I wouldn't want knowing to be in the back of my mind until such time as I do get whatever it is. I don't want my life to be about my death.

 

[dust1n]

Yeah, if you're lucky. My uncle, grandmother, and great-grandfather all died of cerebral hemorrhages, and the one who took the longest to die was gone in six hours. That's not how it works with cancer, emphysema, or lupus, though.

I think I saw that situation coming in advance, I would kill myself after the last point of enjoyability I had left.

 

[dust1n]

Already have kids. That much is done. Do I want to know if I'm going to die horribly before them? Not really. Like I said, if was something possibly preventable that I could avoid by getting a double masectomy or hysterectomy or along those lines, then ok. I simply don't want to know about anything that will harshly debilitate and kill me. If it was something that couldn't be avoided and it would affect me greatly, I wouldn't want my life to become about that. I wouldn't want knowing to be in the back of my mind until such time as I do get whatever it is. I don't want my life to be about my death.

He does have a point though. For someone like me to know.. would be more important. I haven't had kids, or got married, or anything, and if me knowing that I'm going to die from a disease when I'm 60, knowing wouldn't really be that troublesome.

 

[dawny0826]

I'd have to decline. I'm overly anxious as is.

 

[emmygirl62]

I'd rather not know. I'll take care of myself the best I can and not let my already high anxiety levels rise.

 

[MissAlice]

No because I've had visions of my death and they're pretty gruesome..

 

[Draka]

No because I've had visions of my death and they're pretty gruesome..

You say "no", but you voted "yes". I'm confused. Mistake in voting or am I not understanding your response?

 

[whereismynotecard]

I voted no. On some level, we all already know what bad genes we have. We can figure that out by looking at what diseases our parents and grandparents have, and what they died from (if they are dead.) I already know what things kill people in my gene pool, so I don't need to bother taking a test to make me any more worried than I already am. I don't even want to think about it.