Planning for PEACE MIND of Put a life care plan in place so you and your family are prepared for whatever happens- then go enjoy life BY STEPHANIE THURROTT ILLUSTRATIONS BY SARAH WILKINS L eonard D. Reeves, MD, knows firsthand how important it is to have a plan in place so your loved ones can make decisions for you if you can't. "I lost my wife about six years ago. She was not old-she was 53-but she had liver failure," he says. "We had talked about what she wanted. She did not want to be put on any mechanical assistance. So we were able to do what she wished, and it was so much easier when we gathered the family to know that this was her wish, and not necessarily any one of us wanting our wish imposed on her." Reeves, a member of the board of directors of the American Academy of Family Physicians, encourages his own patients to share their wishes with their loved ones and to get the proper paperwork in place so loved ones can voice those wishes in case of illness or death. It's not always easy to talk about, but it's important. Would you want life support in the form of a feeding tube or ventilator? Or would you prefer to die a natural death? "Talk with family members and let them know what you want and what you don't want," Reeves says. WINTE R 2017 23