"Cutting Desire" response

I have heard of BIID before reading this article but never really understood it or really thought much about it. I now know that BIID is a very serious disease and we, as society, need to help the people who are suffering. The first time I heard of BIID was while watching one of my favorite TV shows- Grey’s Anatomy. The episode was about an Iraqi veteran with a mysterious leg pain, he asked Dr. Torres and Dr. Hunt to remove his perfectly good leg and to fit him with a prosthetic so that he can return to the ar. The episode concluded with the doctor’s completing the surgery. A major issue with BIID is there aren’t many cases, which makes it harder for there to be any coverage or discussion regarding this issue. This is similar to the topic of transgender individuals since neither feels comfortable with them; “it took years for people who felt they were born into the wrong gender to convince the medical and psychiatric professions to recognize their plight.” If people can accept others for not being comfortable with their gender then why cant people accept that fact that some don’t feel comfortable with their limbs?

I do believe the only true treatment for BIID is the removal of the limb. There should be an intense screening process before the surgery to make sure that this is truly something that the person wants. I don’t consider these people to be choosing to be disabled. They are choosing to do something that makes them happier and more accepting. Being happy with your body and who you are as an individual is crucial. If the removal of a limb is the difference between their happiness who are we as society to tell them they can’t amputate? They struggle everyday with having a limb that doesn’t feel like it belongs to them.

I agree with Dr. Smith, “Dr. Smith argued that by preventing his patients from pursuing more life-threatening alternatives, he was following the Hippocratic oath to do no harm.” This relates to the conversation we had in class about how it is safer for a medical professional to preform these procedures rather than some random sketchy guy in the basement. The opening paragraph put into perspective how dangerous and how willing people are to remove these limbs, “he had tried to cut it off before—once putting it underneath a truck and trying to crush it (the jack didn’t collapse right); once attempting to saw it off with a table saw (he lost his nerve).” The risk of infections and even death sky rockets when someone does this, in the article they mention a man who traveled to Mexico paid 10,000 dollars to have an illegal operation and he died of gangrene.  We have the doctors and the technology in this country to help these people accept themselves. If there is intense screening and the individual still wants the limb removed it should be removed, no more questions asked.