Living will. Conceptual image of a bottle of pills and syringes lying across a page from a living will, possibly representing euthanasia. A living will is a document that sets out a person's wishes regarding their health care and treatment should they become seriously ill and unable to make or communicate their own choices. Some individuals see living wills as documents that legalise euthanasia. Euthanasia is the ending of a person's life for humanitarian reasons, mostly to relieve the pain of terminal illnesses. However, living wills can specify that medical staff continue treatment until the patient is dead, regardless of pain or suffering.