Health-Care Directive

Rochelle Coloma
Blog Post #9

        Four years ago, my grandpa suddenly fell ill and caught Pneumonia. He was already placed in a long-term care facility long before I was born but we all knew being with him at this critical time was our first priority. Nurses and doctors would constantly come and go and we all grew weary with each passing day. For some days, his condition improved and in others, it would worsen and create new problems. It seemed like a never-ending cycle and I was left feeling uncertain of the future. A week had past and my grandpa’s condition had taken a turn for the worse. His body was declining the medications and needed a tube to help with his breathing. I could see the effect it had on my family and I withheld a lot of my emotions in fear of making the situation worse. One day, my mom had picked me up from school and she started talking about how much suffering and pain my grandpa was going through and what they thought was best to do next. My mom did not necessary put it into words but regardless, I knew they would want the suffering to stop and end everything. I was completely shocked and once I regained the ability to speak again, I started to panic and question her. I felt as if I was the only one left with hope and my entire family just gave up. Within that same day, plans did not necessarily go through since my grandpa had already passed away.

         When I now think of death, two words always seem to enter my mind—immediate and permanence. Since it was our first time as a family to experience a close family member’s death, his quick passing impacted us greatly. Therefore, out of all the options in the Hawai’i Advance Health-Care Directive, I would choose to create a living will. I think my own family and children will somehow find closure much more easier knowing I made all the decisions in terms of my death and care. Also, I find it hard to put the entire burden on a person I love and make the difficult choice of whether or not to continue my life.