Tina Turner admitted she considered assisted suicide in 2016 before her husband Erwin Bach donated his kidney after she battled cancer more than a decade ago
- Tina revealed in her book that at the end of 2016, she signed up to an assisted suicide organization as she mentally prepared herself for the possibility of dying
- The singer’s unmanaged high blood pressure had accelerated her kidney damage – so she joined Exit ‘just in case’
Tina Turner admitted that she considered assisted suicide in 2016 before her husband Erwin Bach donated his kidney to her.
The beloved star died at the age of 83 at her home in Küsnach near Zurich, Switzerland, after battling with health troubles for years.
She revealed in her memoir that at the end of 2016, she signed up to an assisted suicide organization as she mentally prepared herself for the possibility of dying.
Turner had found out that her unmanaged high blood pressure had accelerated her kidney damage – and if her body was going to shut down, she started making peace with the idea of death.
Her husband Bach ended up offering her a kidney in 2017.
Tina Turner and her husband Erwin Bach. Turner revealed that she considered assisted suicide when she realized her kidneys were failing due to her high blood pressure. Her husband ended up offering to give her an organ
She wrote in her book: ‘I think that’s when the idea of my death became a reality for Erwin. He was very emotional about not wanting to lose me, not wanting me to leave’
In an excerpt of her book published by DailyMail.com, Turner wrote: ‘By December 2016, my kidneys were at a new low of 20 per cent and plunging rapidly. And I faced two choices: either regular dialysis or a kidney transplant.
‘It wasn’t my idea of life. But the toxins in my body had started taking over. I couldn’t eat. I was surviving, but not living.
‘I began to think about death. If my kidneys were going, and it was time for me to die, I could accept that. It was OK. When it’s time, it’s really time. I didn’t mind the thought of dying, but I was concerned about how I would go.
‘One of the benefits of living in Switzerland is that assisted suicide is legal, though the patient has to inject the lethal drug herself.
‘There are several organizations that facilitate the process, including Exit and Dignitas. I signed up to be a member of Exit, just in case.
‘I think that’s when the idea of my death became a reality for Erwin. He was very emotional about not wanting to lose me, not wanting me to leave.’
Tina Turner revealed that it was in that moment that her husband offered her a kidney.
She recalled: ‘He said he didn’t want another woman, or another life; we were happy and he’d do anything to keep us together.
Oprah Winfrey and Tina Turner attend opening night of ‘Tina – The Tina Turner Musical’ at Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on November 7, 2019
Tina Turner performs onstage at the World Music Theater, Tinley Park, Illinois, June 28, 1997
‘Then he shocked me. He said that he wanted to give me one of his kidneys.
‘I was overwhelmed by the enormity of his offer. But because I love him, my first response was to try to talk him out of taking such a serious and irreversible step.’
Tina Turner died on May 24.
On April 9, in what are believed to be her final public remarks, she told The Guardian how she hoped the world would remember her – and how she did not fear death.
‘How would you like to be remembered?’ the Guardian asked.
‘As the Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll. As a woman who showed other women that it is OK to strive for success on their own terms.’
Asked what frightens her about getting older, she replied: ‘Nothing. This is life’s full adventure and I embrace and accept every day with what it brings.’
Turner is survived by two of her four sons – two preceded her in death – and her 67-year-old husband, Erwin Bach.
The pair married in 2013 after dating for nearly 30 years.
