Living Will

[ericadawn16]

Please, PLEASE, PLEASE do a living will as soon as you are legally able. If you are under 18, you may have to make one with your parents.

BUT IT IS VERY IMPORTANT!

I know we're young and it's not like anything's going to happen to us, right?
Well, Terri Schiavo and Marlise Munoz thought the same way and their families paid the price for it.
Living Wills are legal documents that can be used in court to assure you are treated exactly how you want no matter what the current laws stipulate. They also state EXACTLY who you want making decisions for you and a back-up if that person is unavailable.

Don't leave anything to chance!

Living wills can be found at just about any health facility; hospitals, clinics, doctor's office, public health services.

They are not required to be notarized in order to be legal. They are legal as soon as you sign it.

Comments

[ragnarok-08.livejournal.com]

I already have, so thank you :)

[paragraphs.livejournal.com]

True that. And also regular ol' wills too.

I work at a lawfirm in which probate and estate planning is a huge part - not my attorney but his wife's practice (the OTHER side of the office).

Having a will is so important - the legal mess that one leaves behind when dying intestate is horrendous. And even if there is a will, please to be specific, super specific, about those treasures you suspect will divide a family - we have quite the case here in which a priceless, and now very illegal, rhinocerous horn is sitting in a bank vault because of the mess of a will left behind - given it is worth mega bucks, it is truly ugly.

The saddest things happen - one I remember well is the five kids who argued over where Mum should be buried. Mummy verbally told some of the kids she wanted to be buried in a veteran's cemetery as she was former military, the others thought she wanted to be buried next to their dad... MONTHS of negotiations went on and finally, finally her wishes were followed. MONTHS of expensive negotiations.

Also? Tossing this out there for those of us who live in states that still do not allow same-sex marriage - there ARE documents you can file with your partner to preserve each partner's wishes. It is a lot of documents, but it CAN be done. It needs to be done well ahead though, of any trouble. And I do know there are instances that even with these documents, hospitals have denied rights to partners... but still. Many couples might not be aware that same-sex couples CAN be each others' beneficiaries, be guardians, etc. Takes about six documents, but it can be done.

So very important, all this. I know first-hand too - when my spouse died my kids were 12 and 15 and thank the stars we had a simple, but legal will.

[eloriekam.livejournal.com]

I've been thinking about a living will for a long time--been aware of it since before I turned 18, I think. I don't know why I put it off for a long time, but one thing that's bothering me now is that I don't know if I want my parents making decisions, and of the people I think I'd trust to decide.... I'm reluctant to ask. They're not related to me, and it's potentially a horrible burden, and geographically, they're not close to me. I know I'm griping a bit, but it just feels like a frustrating impasse.

[ericadawn16.livejournal.com]

A Living Will doesn't have to be forever. You can always change it as you meet new people, but if you don't want your parents making decisions for you about whether you should be kept on a ventilator or have extraordinary measures done to keep you alive...you NEED to name someone else or your parents WILL be making those decisions for you.

As long as they can be reached by phone and able to send/receive faxes, I think they can be in a different geographic location.

(hugs)

[i-llbedammned.livejournal.com]

I write notes periodically for the future people, mostly aout how if I am a vegetable they should kill me and how I will never committ suicide so if my death looks like a suicide I was murdered. You can't be too careful.