Zoraya ter Beek is 28, physically healthy, and lives in the Netherlands, where euthanasia has been legal under strict conditions since 2002. Next month, she plans to undergo euthanasia due to years of psychiatric suffering she describes as “unbearable and without realistic hope of improvement.” Her case has drawn global attention because her suffering is caused by mental illness rather than a terminal physical disease.

Dutch law allows euthanasia if a patient’s suffering is unbearable, the request is voluntary and informed, and multiple doctors confirm that no reasonable alternatives remain. While most cases involve severe physical illness, a small number involve psychiatric conditions. Ter Beek’s request was reviewed over several years and ultimately approved under this framework.

Ter Beek has been diagnosed with treatment-resistant depression, autism spectrum disorder, and borderline personality disorder. She has said repeated therapies and medications failed, and that the cycle of hope and disappointment deepened her suffering. She describes her decision as “self-determination,” saying it brings calm after years of distress, even as she acknowledges fear about death’s finality.

Supporters argue her case respects autonomy and recognizes that psychological pain can be as severe as physical pain. Critics disagree, warning of a “slippery slope” and arguing that hopelessness can be a symptom of depression, raising doubts about whether such decisions can ever be fully autonomous. They fear euthanasia could become a response to mental illness rather than a last resort.

Ter Beek rejects claims she was pressured or abandoned by the system. She plans to die at home, on her sofa, and has chosen cremation to ease the burden on her partner. Her story has not settled the debate but has intensified it, forcing societies to confront difficult questions about suffering, dignity, and the limits of medicine.