When it comes to planning your future, thinking about the possibility of having a terminal illness like cancer or Alzheimer's disease is not pleasant or desirable. However, it is these possible futures that you need will need to be prepared for the most. One of the preparation steps that you will want to take is to draft a living will. If you are like most people, though, you do not know much about what a living will entails or what you should include in it. Get to know some of these important facts about living wills. Then, you can get together with a lawyer and have one drawn up as soon as possible. 

You Should Have One Even If You Are in Perfect Health

Many people choose to avoid or put off putting together a living will because they are in perfect health at the time they think about doing so. However, even if you are in the best shape of your life, you could still benefit from having a living will just in case. While most of the time living wills are associated with people with terminal illnesses or conditions that affect the memory, there are other situations in which they will come in handy. 

Accidents are one such example. If you are in a car accident and are knocked unconscious and remain unconscious for a prolonged period of time or you have more serious injuries to deal with, having a living will can ensure that you receive the treatment you want. Other similar issues like a sudden heart attack, stroke, or ruptured aneurysm are also examples of health crises where having a living will would be beneficial. 

Your Living Will Should Be Detailed

It is often assumed that a living will gives a general directive for medical care in the event that you are incapacitated, meaning it tells your family and doctors whether you want to be put on life support or not. However, there is a great deal more to a living will than just a yes or no to life support. 

If you become ill or otherwise unable to make decisions for yourself, would you want to be given a feeding tube to provide you nutrients, for example? If your kidneys fail, do you want dialysis? Other issues to also consider are the aforementioned life support (breathing tubes), whether you want CPR to revive you, or if you want doctors to use a defibrillator if your heart stops. 

The more details you include in your living will, the more certain you can be that your wishes will be followed if it ever needs to be used. You will also want to ensure that once your living will is in place, that you tell a person or a few people that you trust implicitly where to find your will as well as what you have put in it. That way, they can get the living will to your healthcare providers if and when necessary. 

With these facts about living wills in mind, you can go into your meeting with a lawyer ready to discuss putting together your living will. Visit a site like http://wrightlawidaho.com/ for more direction.