Back in 2014, I wrote a post titled, Facing Your Parents Mortality. At the time, I didn’t know my dad had just 4 more years to live and mom had 8 years left. Dad died at age 78. Mom died at age 82. I think they were in their 50s when they were diagnosed with congestive heart failure. This week, I discovered I’m having some health issues myself.

Judging by their life, I’ve still got 25 years left. But I’ve had more doctor appointments in the past 10 days than I’ve ever had in my life. I don’t like it. Most tests are coming back normal, which is good, but also bad. If it was something simple, they could give me some antibiotics or something and I’d be done. Instead, they keep running tests to try to figure out what’s wrong.

So, it’s given me a reason to start exercising. I’m trying intermittent fasting to lose weight, which so far no doctor has told me I need to do, but of course I’m not the weight I used to weigh in high school when I ran cross country and played basketball all the time.

I was listening to a Freakonomics episode this week that discussed Ozempic as an almost miracle drug. It lowers weight, appetite, diabetes, improves heart function. Side effects include diarhea, constipation, and other intestinal distress. Other than that, it almost sounds too good to be true. Then I learned that there is another drug called Zepbound with even greater weight loss.

Stephen Dubner interviewed Ezekiel Emmanuel, an oncologist and medical ethecist about Ozempic, but about other health issues as well. Emmanuel had some interesting things to say. Back in 2014, Zeke wrote an article titled, Why I Hope to Die at 75. In 2024, Zeke is now 67 years old. One of the controversial things he said was he did not want to take life-prolonging treatment after age 75. At the time, this included flu shots, antibiotics, and vaccines. With COVID coming out in 2019, he has softened his stance on vaccines, and he said he would take a COVID vaccine now. On the other hand, he said that if he broke his hip, he would get it repaired.

Why age 75? Zeke said that 30% of people have a cognitive decline at age 80 and he wasn’t interested in finding out if he’s in that 30%. The rate of Alzheimers is going down, but the raw numbers of people are going up due to baby boomers aging. He said far too many people say that they want good quality of life, but then when they get to that age, opt for quantity of life instead of quality of life by taking so many medications to prolong life.

The Nixon administration started a War on Cancer. Many argue it hasn’t succeeded. However, there is an argument that cardiovascular care has improved so much since Nixon that people are living longer with cardiac problems and dying of cancer instead.

It should be noted that Ezekiel Emmanuel is the brother of former Obama Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel. Zeke was involved in both crafting Obamacare and advising Pres Trump in his first term about health care. So it seems he has a very solid grasp of the issues of end of life care.

So it brings up several questions. Do you agree with Ezekiel Emmanuel with regards to end of life? Would you like to die at age 75? Are these questions that Mormon leaders have weighed in on? Is it a personal decision? Have you put a living will together? To be honest, I have a form to fill out for a living will, but I have not filled it out.

It does remind me of my parents once again. Dad basically died of stubbornness. He had some kidney problems that would have been easily solved with medication that he refused to take. He was 78, not 75. He was in cognitive decline. It’s not the choice I would have made, but it was his choice.

Mom was also slowing down. She had 1 COVID shot but never got a booster. When the hospital frantically called and asked if we should put her on a ventilator, we were pretty sure she wouldn’t want that. (We were right, but unsure at the time.) She pulled through and told us she didn’t want a ventilator, so we were happy we picked correctly. She did choose to forego life-prolonging treatment, and died about 2 weeks later.

I miss them both. I doubt they read Ezekiel Emmanuel’s article, but they basically followed his advice. It was hard for me to watch as a son.

I also was asked to give the prayer and pass the sacrament at a nursing home on Sunday. (Surprisingly it was half-hour church! They made an announcement that Sunday School was on Wednesday. Isn’t that Wednesday School? 😉 )

Looking around the room, and considering the doctor visits I had that week, I looked around the room and wondered if I would choose to stay in a place like that if I couldn’t take care of myself. I definitely wouldn’t want to be there. I also know that my parents were having problems taking care of themselves. It makes me understand their decisions better. But I do miss them too.

So, I’ll pose the questions again. I’m feeling quite contemplative today.

Do you agree with Ezekiel Emmanuel with regards to end of life? Would you like to die at age 75? Are these questions that Mormon leaders have weighed in on? Is it a personal decision? Have you put a living will together?