MS Activist John Hicklenton Ends Life at Euthanasia Clinic

Make no mistake about it. John Hicklenton triumphed over multiple sclerosis. I say this in spite of the fact that he ended his own life because of it.

Mr. Hicklenton, a graphic artist known for his illustrations, most notably, Judge Dredd comics, struggled with the ravages of MS for a decade. A resident of Brighton, East Sussex, U.K., he passed away in a Swiss assisted suicide clinic on March 19 at the age of 42.

His 2008 award-winning documentary, Here’s Johnny, chronicled his life with MS and how he turned to drawing for respite. The Telegraph U.K. quotes Mr. Hicklenton as saying “Drawing is my walking now, I run with it, I fly with it. It’s keeping me alive. I have a thing with it. I can’t wait to get a piece of paper with a pen because it’s what I can control. I haven’t got MS when I’m looking at my pictures and I haven’t got it when I’m drawing them either. It gives me an ability to express that fear.”

His was not a mild course of the disease. Johnny lived with a particularly brutal progressive form of MS, referring to it as “this terrorist illness,” yet refusing to yield to bitterness. Feeling somewhat abandoned by the medical establishment, he struggled to bring attention to the misunderstood neurological condition. He boldly used his fame to invite the world to observe the bleak realities of his life.

This quote speaks volumes, and is something most of us with MS can relate to, at least to a certain extent: “Yes, I could walk 500 yards and I could fake a normal walk, but it was just agony. You could never take the tension out of my face. To you, that is a few cobbles, a bit of uneven surface and a couple of gates. To me that is the ninth circle of f***ing Hades and pain.”

Euthanasia was something he planned on long ago in anticipation of the worst. It was the only escape from what he called torture. His plan was to persevere until he could no longer and then take control, to “go” his way. Knowing that he had this final plan actually gave him the strength to go on longer.

“I don’t like the term ‘committing suicide,’” he said. “It makes it sound like a crime. I think taking your own life is a very brave thing to do.” His death was described as a peaceful one.

However you feel about assisted suicide, Mr. Hicklenton was a brave man, one who lived life to its fullest potential and faced death with dignity. I don’t toss around the word hero lightly, but Johnny Hicklenton qualifies. May he rest in peace.

Writer Ann Pietrangelo embraces the concept of personal responsibility for health and wellness. As a person living with multiple sclerosis, she combines a healthy lifestyle and education with modern medicine, and seeks to provide information and support to others. She is a regular contributor to Care2 Causes. Follow on Twitter @AnnPietrangelo

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

KS G.

6:41AM PDT on Apr 7, 2011

Thanks for the article.

send a green star

Julia P.

1:16PM PDT on Apr 6, 2011

From whay I have seen of Dignitas over here in the UK they do have strict critera, I think they used to video,don't know if they still do, what your wishes are and taking the medication, but that is all,you are then left with your family in a private apartment, the video is handed over to the Swiss police afterwards with the paper work who also show great dignity. I sympathise with Johnny's family as it must have been so hard on them

Joanne D.

2:01AM PDT on Oct 27, 2010

I to suffer from this horrible disease i am in my 7th year, I am a 36y.o mother of 4, been in denial i suppose to a degree and kept pushing myself now my bodys giving up, i watched johnnys doco for the first time yesterday i felt winded i cried every word he spoke i felt , the way he described the horrible nerve pain the unpredictability on a day to day basis, some ok some very bad, i googled his name and ended here i will say i cried again when i read about the euthanasia but i completely understand, once i am "a head on a stick" i say i want to be Euthanased my family are aware of this i have also donated my brain and spinal cord to the MS Brain Bank in Australia, one day hopefully nobody will have to suffer such a degrading, selfish disease that eats away at you til theres nothing left, I used to be so energetic now its hard to get out of bed, my brain wants to but the body refuses

Teresa P.

11:03PM PDT on Sep 7, 2010

He had allot of courage. I too believe that people should have the right to end their suffering through euthanasia.

pj d.

9:09PM PDT on Apr 16, 2010

I am sorry to hear how Mr. Hicklenton's struggled. It's such a hard desease to treat since it affects each patient differently. When I was 10 my mother woke up one day paralized from the waist down. She was one of the lucky ones. She had access to the best Dr.s the CIA could afford. This was 50 yrs. ago though and the desease barely had a name let alone any semblence of a treatment plan and there's still so much that they just don't know about it. One of her Dr.s tried putting her on mega-doses of vitamin B-12 injections on a "hunch". She responded well, over time, and has been in remission for 40 some years now. She is now 71 yrs. old and my hero. Besides the B-12, which she still takes to this day, she says the most valuable "treatment" has been a good attitude coupled with plenty of laughter and friends.

Chaplain A.

5:58PM PDT on Apr 6, 2010

I am truly saddened by this report. How such clinics exist in the 1st place is beyond me. I wish someone could have reached him with more hope.
Don't think me cruel--I am a hospital chaplain; I see people die in peace & I see people suffer incredibly. There is a simple fact that we do not create life, & it is not ours to take, regardless of situation.

Eco M.

1:07AM PDT on Apr 6, 2010

thank you for this important postie

1:06AM PDT on Apr 6, 2010

i dont believe in killing, if there is other choices. if faced with kill or be killed, one will instinctively make own choices anyway. in regards to killing places, we kill other species and others probabaly on the whole many per second. when it comes to the above when sick, the individual must decide.

Michelle N.

9:30AM PDT on Apr 4, 2010

M.S. is a dreadful I have watched it firsthand and I too, would make the same decision there comes a point when living is just too much both physically and mentally I believe that this gentleman and any other person reaching this point in their life has the right to make the choice of ending their life with what ever remains left of their dignity. The same applies to those who know that their disease will rob them of mental choices or a life of pain, we are not judges but we should be compassionate and I know that if I were diagnosed with such a disease or Alzheimers my choice would be the same voluntary euthanasia let my organs be used if they could. My family know of my wishes and accept them this is MY CHOICE I do not want to be judged by mere mortals

Claire B.

7:07PM PDT on Apr 3, 2010

Thanks Anne. I fully appreciate that everyone's experience is different. Johnny always said that he would never sit down for MS. But when the time came for him to use a wheelchair he capitulated because he realised that there was still life to be lived. But he would never lie down for it. He was approaching the land of hoists, appliances and outside care. Some people are able to live with that, he just couldn't. He lived for his art and drew with numb hands for years. But when his sight and dexterity also began to diminish it was simply time to go. He loved life and wrung the very last drop out of it; gentle, brave and wise to the very last. His path is not the right one for everyone, but for those that choose that path it is important for me to help them to know that it can be achieved in a dignified and loving way.

Signing off now.

Big love and the best of luck to all of you, you are truly warriors.