An Alzheimer’s diagnosis can be devastating. You might be worried about what you’re going to experience as you condition worsens, and you may be concerned about how your loved ones are going to be able to get by while still caring for you.
First, we’re sorry to hear about your diagnosis and hope that you’re able to find the love and support that you need through this trying time in your life. Second, take comfort knowing that the concerns identified above are legitimate, but are ones that you can alleviate, at least to a certain extent, through sound estate planning. Here are just a few of the tools that you can use to help address your estate plan in light of an Alzheimer’s diagnosis:
- Power of attorney: In the event that you become incapacitated, you’ll want someone you trust to manage your finances. A power of attorney can ensure that named individual will take control if and when the time comes.
- Healthcare directive: You’ll also want one someone on deck to cover your medical decisions if you become unable to make those decisions on your own. Have a conversation with this individual so that they understand what you want out of your healthcare in the event that he or she has to make those decisions for you.
- Long-term care planning: Even if you have loved ones who are willing to care for you long-term, you should have a backup plan for your long-term care needs. This care can be costly, though, which is why you need to start planning for it now.
- Wills and trusts: These are typically a part of any standard estate plan, but you’ll want to make sure that you get these in place now before your condition worsens and people start arguing over whether you had the proper mental capacity to create them.
Get help with your estate plan so that you can focus on more important things
Don’t’ get us wrong. Estate planning is crucially important. But when you receive an Alzheimer’s diagnosis, creating estate planning documents might not seem that important. So, consider letting a law firm like ours help you address this issue so that you can get back to spending time with your family and living your life. If you’d like to learn more, then please continue to read our website to determine what our firm has to offer.
