Give Yourself a Gift

A woman cried in my arms when we finished her advanced care directive.

"You have no idea what this means to me. I have been trying to do this for ten years. Its been so emotional for me that I haven't been able to. This is a huge relief for me."

Most of the time, advance care directives (ACD) are not needed. They are there in case you cannot speak for yourself. 

They define your wishes. In what scenarios would you want life saving measures? When would you prefer to die peacefully without intervention? What do you want if you have cognitive decline? 

90% of us agree ACD's are very important. Only about 30% of us have them filled out. 

You can find an abundance of forms online or through your healthcare provider.

Who do you want to speak for you? Who do you trust to respect your wishes? Who do you trust to handle decisions for your care that you may not have anticipated?

Try giving yourself a reasonable time period to do it, perhaps a month to decide on a form and another month to fill it in, and a third month to review with the person you want to speak for you if you cannot speak for yourself (health care proxy).

If you find yourself having a difficult time facing it, talk to someone about it. But don't stop. Keep going.

The ACD is a living document. You can change it any time. 

You should review and update it every five years or so. 

The important thing is to get it done.