Windsor assisted dying advocate says his condition is getting worse

A Windsor man who has been fighting to get the federal government to include mentally ill people in its assisted dying bill says his own condition is getting worse.

Adam Maier-Clayton has battledanxiety, mood disorders and obsessive compulsivedisorder since he was a child.

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"The pain levels are increasing," he said. "I time myself when speaking to people day to day. I only give people a certain amount of time, and then I'll just state I can't talk anymore because I know what will follow if I continue to talk."

Maier-Clayton describes his debilitating pain as feeling as though parts of his body are being burned with acid, but so far doctors have been unable to find a physical cause.

After graduating with honours in business from AlgonquinCollege in Ottawa, Ont., the young manmoved home to Windsor to live with his dadbecause the pain was just too muchand he needed help.

Graham Clayton said he and his son will often use hand signals to communicate just to reduce the amount of time they have to spend talking as any cognitive activity can be difficult for the 27-year-old.

Not hopeful change will happen in his lifetime

Since CBC News first told the 27-year-old's story last fall he's tried cannabis oil and is waiting for the results of a Lyme disease test, but so far he has been unable to find relief from his agony.

"It's an exhausting ordeal to go through where you're trying all of these treatments and you desperately want to get better, because I obviously just want to go back to work and work 60-80 hour work weeks, but that's not happening," he said.

Maier-Clayton considers himself an advocate for assisted dying for the mentally ill and pushes for change through a YouTube channel and on social media, but said he's not hopeful the law will change in his lifetime.

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