[xigency]

I'm coming to terms with the fact that if I want to leave any inheritance at all I will need to be voluntarily turning down medical care at some point in my life. I'm only 30 and I know for certain that lifespan is not the parameter I want to optimize. Rather, it is quality of life.

[saltcured]

That's definitely true, and I think it's good you realize it so young.

It's inherent because of the diminishing returns for aggressive healthcare intervention. We're all going to die. We could ramp up the costs of intervention to arbitrary levels in a final death spasm, but we will still die. So, we have to strike some kind of balance.

The harder part, I think, is thinking about the decades leading up to that final end game. How do you trade off quality of life in different decades by saving and time-shifting some of your spending power into the future. It's not just medical costs but all the other aspects of life which carry a mix of predictable and unpredictable costs.

[riku_iki]

I hope to solve it through the healthy lifestyle: diet, exercises, sleep, outdoor time, stress management, so I will be healthy and active for a long time until some organ suddenly fails, so I won't spend money on medical care which observes my slowly fading body while giving some not necessary helpful treatment.

[readthenotes1]

Turning down medical care at some point in your life maybe the right thing to do.

I bet if you were to ask most doctors, one of the most heartwrenching things they are required to do is keep people alive and in pain long past the point of compassion.

I am not advocating for euthanasia, but within the last 2 years I have observed such cruelty only once averted

[smileysteve]

> lifespan is not the parameter I want to optimize. Rather, it is quality of life.

Fortunately, the 2 are often correlated, the best ways to prepare for a long lifespan are the same as preparing for a long health span, and that includes a high quality of life.

[xigency]

True, and that's why I wish there was a greater focus on preventative care in the US. Takes a lot of motivation to get a physical when things are mostly fine.

I'm working on the habits I have most direct control over: healthy eating, cardio exercise and reducing stress.

[TaupeRanger]

Most people agree with you until the moment they actually have to decide between further treatment and likely death. Most people simply hold on until they have no choice but to die.