Why should I have a living will?

Young or old, none of us want to think about death. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic is forcing many, if not most of us to contemplate our mortality. While we cannot decide when our time has come, we can have a very definitive voice in how we die by completing a Living Will. If you are like me, quality-of-life is far more important than simple longevity. When my time finally comes, I hope that I will die quickly and painlessly. But if that’s not the case, I want my wishes to be known to my family and healthcare providers and that they will abide by them.

My mom called me at 8 in the morning on July 12, 2016. She told me my father had just stopped talking during breakfast and seemed to be breathing but was totally irresponsive. I knew then and there that my dad had suffered a massive stroke. Being educated on the signs and symptoms of stroke, my mom immediately called 911. It was a mere 15 minutes from the estimated time of stroke to admission to the hospital and subsequent administration of clot busting drugs. A neurologist friend was so impressed, he felt that the medical response team should have made it into the Guinness Book of Records. Unfortunately, the clot was massive, and even with the extremely rapid therapy my dad was paralyzed, barely able to speak, and his blood pressure was dropping rapidly. His chances for recovery at the age of 92 were close to zero.

In the early 1980s’ my parents decided that quality-of-life was far more important to them than how long they actually lived. They had both helped take care of friends and relatives that had slow and painful deaths, and this is not what they wanted for themselves. They made this very clear to my brother Jamie and myself. And, they undertook extensive research in how they might be able to control their own destinies. They were some of the earlier individuals to learn about and execute for themselves Living Wills, often referred to in medical and legal literature as “Alternative Healthcare Directive”.

My mom let the attending neurologist and the emergency department staff know of the existence of my father’s Living Will and what his wishes were. The medical staff made him as comfortable as possible, and he was placed in hospice to receive palliative care. My dad died in his sleep less than 48 hours later. His Living Will ensured that his last wishes were carried out, and in doing so there was little anxiety and no guilt on behalf of our family.

A Living Will, also referred to as an Advanced Health Care Directive allows you to make predetermined choices in regard to your future medical care when you may not be able to due to significant incapacitation caused by old age, serious illness, accident, or mental incapacity. It provides you with a legal means of making future end-of-life decisions and ensuring as much as possible that they are adhered to by your healthcare providers and family. A Living Will allows you to stipulate if you would like not to be placed on life support or receive other heroic medical interventions when your chances for recovery are negligible. It also allows you to make other choices, such as pain management and whether you wish to receive hospice care.

Along with a Living Will, many individuals chose to execute a Healthcare Power Attorney at the same time. This allows you to assign someone to act (and a successor to that person if your first choice is unable or unwilling to act as your agent) on your behalf if you are unable, because of incapacity or mental illness, to make healthcare decisions that might be outside the scope of your Living Will.

We at Forevermore.co are pleased to offer completely free of charge a Living Will Kit. Please download it today. The kit includes easy-to-follow instructions. Gain some peace of mind knowing that you can master some of your fate.