A Cautionary Tale of the Intersection Between Cryonics and Other People
As a followup to de Wolf's post on the self-sabotaging misconceptions that lead people away from successfully arranging cryopreservation upon death, you'll find an unfortunate and cautionary tale over at Depressed Metabolism. Even with the best of intentions and good preparation, life - and especially the actions of other people who think they know best - can still sabotage your efforts to take advantage of cryonics and thereby ensure a chance at future restoration:
I have been informed that Marcelon (Marce) Johnson died on 01/21/2009, was cremated, and not cryopreserved.I understand this information may come as a surprise and as a disturbing shock to many people, especially those who loved and knew Marce, as I did. I thus feel an obligation to explain how this happened and to provide some closure to this story for the many people who helped, or tried to help, avert this catastrophe.
While Marce was alive I was unable to share the full story of what was happening. Now that she is dead and gone I believe it important and the responsible thing to do to relate the story as best I know it.
Read the whole thing, learn from it, and amend your own plans as appropriate.
That is indeed a deeply heartbreaking and frightening story. It's a chilling reminder of how chronic illness saps a person's freedom, infantilizing him/her and dissolving his/her interpersonal boundaries.
It's especially poignant because it's much more far reaching than the cryonics issue. Members of the study cohort for my treatment have faced similar resistance in their efforts to implement the cure (which, although not costly, is difficult, demanding and counterintuitive). I got a taste of it while I was getting my degree at the University--working hard to get good grades stressed me out too much, according to my concerned loved one.
My hunch that it was the spouse turned out to be right, too. It's shocking that someone as close and trustworthy as a spouse would refuse to honor what are clearly your wishes and disrespect your judgement to that degree. It's a wakeup call to come to terms with how and why we arrange our relationships the way we do.