On the surface, 70-year-old psychiatrist Dr. Polak is every bit the Dutch bourgeois man. These days, he is busy with a patient named Mrs. L, a 73-year-old woman living alone with a severe anxiety disorder. For 15 years, Mrs. L has been asking Dr. Polak to help her die. It has taken him that long to feel absolutely sure. In three weeks, Dr. Polak will be assisting Mrs. L’s suicide. They spend their last sessions going over the practical aspects of the suicide. But these practicalities come with intense feelings. Mrs. L spends her remaining days alone, reflecting on a life full of family abuse and tragedy. While finalizing the details of Mrs. L’s suicide, Dr. Polak continues his other work as an activist for drugs liberation. For years, he has been fighting for people’s right to use drugs to end their suffering. Everything Dr. Polak does is about choice, even when the “liberal” Dutch society around him rejects those choices. But with Mrs. L, there is more at stake for him. This is the first time Dr. Polak saves someone by helping them die. I’m Not Afraid is a moving story about aging, loneliness and free will.
