By Deborah Dillon

Youth is not wasted on the young as we once believed. They actually learn some very important lessons during their early years, but 18 is a magic number for your children. It’s the age that they legally become adults, and most will be going off to college and living on their own for the first time. You understand that after all these years of worrying and teaching your kids about life’s ups and downs, it’s finally time for them to leave and you feel pretty sure that you have given them all the smarts they need to spread their wings.

You spent much of their early years teaching them to avoid all things hot or sharp; not to wander away from you in crowds or into traffic; not to stick anything into their mouths that isn’t food; you get the picture. Once they became teenagers, the challenges became more daunting because at that age they think that they are going to live forever and nothing bad can ever happen to them. They also stop listening to you almost entirely – or so you think. A very good friend of mine used to tell me that ‘the teenage years are God’s way of preparing us for them to leave home because by the time they finish high school we are ready for some peace!’

You know how you worried every time they left the house clutching the keys to the car. You worried that they were making the right choices and if leading by example and building a healthy relationship with them was enough. After years of worry, you feel like you can finally take a deep breath, that you raised your kids to be responsible young adults who can now successfully function on their own. Although there will certainly be bumps in the road, you have made it clear to them that, whatever happens, you are just a phone call away if help is ever needed.

Unfortunately, the one thing we cannot give our children is the guarantee that nothing will ever go wrong. If you ever get that dreaded call for help after your child has turned 18, it is possible that there may be nothing you can do to help them in a crisis or emergency, if you don’t have the right tools in place to do so.

After your child turns 18, you are no longer allowed access to their medical records and doctors, hospitals and other health care professionals are prohibited from discussing their medical conditions with you without their written authorizations. The same holds true for banks, insurance companies, credit card and finance companies, colleges and universities and on and on. That’s why it is so important to have all the necessary legal and practical tools in place to continue to safeguard their lives once they leave the nest.

Before they leave for college, sit down and talk to them about what needs to be done in case of an emergency. Fill out the authorization forms you will need in this new era of patient privacy, talk to them about their wishes so that you can continue to be their best advocate. LivingSmartGuides.com gives you everything you need to put a plan of action into place; from written instructions as well as up-to-date information about everything that is needed, so that you both have the data you will need to handle things in the event of an accident, illness or during other unexpected occurrences where they cannot care for themselves.

Nothing is more important than preparing our children for the future. One of life’s most important lessons is that will we cannot control what happens to us at all times but we can do everything in our power to be prepared. So when you send your child out into the world, you must also make certain that they understand that it is now up to them (not just you) to prepare themselves for whatever comes their way.

Log on to our web site at LivingSmartGuides.com and find out how you can put everything in place to protect your child at a very affordable price.

About the Author: Deb Dillon is the founder and creator of LivingSmartguides.com She was diagnosed with a brain tumor and it changed her life completely and from this experience came LivingSmart, thorough legal guides to protect yourself and your family from life’s unexpected events by planning for them in advance. LivingSmart Guides address all important aspects of life – including medical, personal, household, financial, minor children, pets, small business, and estate matters.

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