Three Reasons To Have A Living Will — Even When You're Young

A living will is a document that dictates what should and should not be done to your body should you end up in a situation where you need artificial means to support life. For example, if you are in a coma on a ventilator, your living wall might state to keep you on that ventilator, or it may state that those caring for you should remove the tube. Most people assume that if they are young, they don't need a living will yet. However, such a document is important even for young people. Here are three reasons why.

1. Living Wills Keep Families Together

If something happens to you and a decision needs to be made about your treatment, your family members may not all agree as to how to proceed. If you have no living will, arguments may ensue and can break apart a family for years. On the other hand, if you have a living will, the decisions about your treatment have already been made. Your family members won't have to discuss the decision or argue about it. Freeing your family from having to make a decision is one of the best things you can do for them when you're gone.

2. You Get to Make the Decision

You might not trust your family members to make the same decision you would regarding your health and medical care. For example, perhaps you have different religious beliefs than your family, and therefore you know they would not make the same decision you would about medical care. A living will lets you circumvent having your family make the decision and get to be treated the way you want. 

3. You Can Potentially Avoid Unwanted Medical Bills

If you do not have a living will, your doctors may have to administer certain treatments -- either legally or at the request of your family. If you would rather have avoided these treatments, you could have saved your family money on medical costs by having a living will stating you did not want these procedures. This could mean the difference between leaving your family an inheritance and having all of your funds eaten up by medical bills.

To learn more about the benefits of a living will, and to have one drawn up for yourself, talk to a law office like Wright Law Offices, PLLC in your area. It should only take a few hours to make your wishes known in this document. 

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