How to Write a Living Will: A Step-by-Step Guide

Putting a living will in place can ease the mind of everyone around you, because it spells out exactly what kind of medical treatment you want if you're ever unable to speak for yourself. In some states, this document is bundled together with a health care power of attorney, which lets you name someone to carry out your wishes and make other treatment decisions on your behalf. For more on how these two documents work together, see Living Wills and Powers of Attorney for Health Care: An Overview.

What this guide covers

Below, you'll find what a living will actually does, what to think about putting in yours, how to make it legally valid, and what to do once it's signed.

Jump to a section:

• What counts as a living will
• What to include in yours
• How to actually make one
• What to do once it's signed
• Terms you'll run into

What counts as a living will?

Start with what it isn't. A living will has nothing to do with leaving property to the people you love, naming an executor, or naming a guardian for your kids — that's the job of a traditional will, sometimes called a last will and testament. A living will is also different from a living trust, which is another alternative to a traditional will.

A living will — sometimes called a health care declaration — spells out the medical treatment you want if you become incapacitated and can't speak for yourself. It's often paired with a power of attorney for health care, which names someone to make medical decisions on your behalf. Some states fold both documents into one, calling it an "advance directive." To add to the confusion, states use a range of different terms for these papers. The chart near the end of this guide sorts out some of that terminology, and you can also check what your own state calls its health care documents.

What to include in your living will

You can spell out almost any wish you have about your care. You can ask for certain treatments, or rule them out entirely. For instance, you might say you want to be placed on a ventilator if it comes to that, or you might say the opposite. Questions like this took on new weight during the COVID-19 pandemic, when some patients with severe cases needed a ventilator just to get enough oxygen. If you feel strongly about being — or not being — put on a ventilator, or you'd rather die at home than in a hospital, say so clearly. That way your family isn't left guessing.

Most state forms will ask you to weigh in on things like:

• Life-prolonging medical care. This includes blood transfusions, CPR, diagnostic testing, dialysis, medication, ventilator use, and surgery.
• Food and water. A person who is permanently unconscious can sometimes be kept alive for a long time with intravenous nutrition and fluids. Some people want this. Others don't.
• Palliative care. This is comfort care aimed at easing pain once someone has chosen to forgo treatments meant to extend life.

None of these choices are easy to make. Most people weigh not just their own wishes, but how those choices will land on the people they love. Sometimes there's no clean answer. Your child, for example, may struggle with the idea that you don't want food or water if you're permanently unconscious — they may want to hold onto every possible day. Thinking through what matters most to you can help you decide what belongs in your own living will and power of attorney for health care.

How to actually make one

You don't need a lawyer to put a living will together, though you're free to hire one if you'd rather. Every state sets its own rules for what makes a living will valid, so if you're filling one out yourself, make sure the form matches your state's requirements. Free forms are often available through:

• local senior centers
• local hospitals
• your regular doctor's office
• your state medical association, and
• the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization

Once you've filled it out, you'll need to sign it, and depending on your state, have it witnessed, notarized, or both. Exactly what's required to make it legally binding depends on the laws where you live, so check your state's specific rules before you sign.

You might also want to look into other medical orders — a do-not-resuscitate order, for instance, if you don't want CPR used to keep you alive. Or ask your doctor about a Physician Order for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST), a signed medical order that spells out the emergency treatment you want at the end of life.

What to do once it's signed

Once your living will is signed, hand out copies to:

• your family members
• your health care agent
• your doctor or doctors, and
• your hospital or care facility

If you're ever incapacitated, this document speaks for you — but only if the people treating you actually know it exists. It might feel uncomfortable to bring this up with the people you love or your doctors, but it's worth pushing through that discomfort so everyone knows what you want.

Terms you'll run into

Documents that lay out your health care wishes go by a lot of different names, which can get confusing fast. The chart below breaks down some of the most common terms and what they mean. Since wording varies so much by state, it's worth checking what your own state calls each document.

Because the rules for signing, witnessing, and naming an agent vary from state to state, it's worth double-checking your own state's requirements before you finalize any of these documents.