Will a GP accept a DNR request from a healthy person in their 30s

[Frogfog]

Will the gp take a dnr seriously from someone who is currently in good health in their 30s? I’ve come to decision about my life and want a dnr and I plan on declining life saving treatment if I should ever need it. I have no desire to stay living any longer than necessary. I’m in survival mode barely living. I’ve always struggled to get any pleasure out of life.

You need to set up an advanced directive

I’m sorry to hear you feel this way OP.

Would you feel able to talk your GP about why you want the DNR? Perhaps they can help with some support to make life feel a bit better.

My life will get no better. Living shouldn’t feel like I’m in survival mode but that is how I feel. I’ve tried and done what everyone does and continue on. If the time comes I want the freedom to choose.

Thankyou I’ll look into setting one up

sorry to hear this, no a GP won’t agree to this as there are no medical grounds. They will be willing to support and help you, please ask for help.

I’ve written an Advanced Refusal of Treatment asking for palliative care only if I lose mental capacity for decisions on treatment and once my son is 25. It’s in my GP notes. You could do the same. I’d definitely talk it through with your GP.

Ive tried before to get it into my hospital notes but no success yet. In some areas the connection between community and hospital notes is better. It’s a gamble tbh.

I’ve done an advanced directive but it’s more in case I am diagnosed with dementia or a massive brain injury. The GP was fine with it

I don’t ever wish to take my own life. I plan on functioning on trying to find an ounce of pleasure if possible. I only wish to have control over my own life. If the worst happened I do not want keeping here any longer.

If you have mental capacity you have every right to refuse to be resuscitated if your heart should stop. You don’t need an advance directive - you need a Doctor to complete a DNACPR form. In our clinical commissioning group it is called a RESPECT form. They will assess your capacity and then they will complete the form. They won’t refuse, they can’t!

@Slugtamer is not correct. You do not need medical grounds to refuse to be resuscitated.
you have a choice (I work in resuscitation medicine).

Thankyou

If you have capacity then you can decline any treatment you want. However, in the event of an accident/sudden emergency the GP may not be involved in your care and the likely assumption from any initial responder would be that a 30yr old would be a candidate for resuscitation unless the document describing your decision were very obviously available. Advanced directives are often not as helpful as people imagine. A ReSpect form may be more useful.

I will look into this as well. Thank you.

Probably would also imagine that any doctor involved with this might want to take advice/refer for a second opinion to be crystal clear re capacity given how unusual a decision it would be outside of the context of life-limiting conditions.

In my area they use a RESPECT form rather than a dnar. It’s not as black and white as the old dnar forms. For instance you can say you will be admitted to hospital for reversible causes, ward level care only which is not itu or hdu or to be cared for only in community.
Whether the gp would do one for a fit and healthy young person im not sure, ive only seen them in the elderly or palliative patients.
Theres a lot to think about though rather than just not wanting to be resuscitated. If you was in a car accident tomorrow would you want them to do everything they could to save you? Eg life saving surgery? Would you want to be intubated to allow your body to recover?

If I was in serious accident this evening I would not want any form of life saving treatment. Ive wanted this for 3 years now. I do not want any form of life saving treatment.

Surely if someone has got to the point of needing resuscitation, that necessarily means that there’s a medical issue? Thank you for the clarification.

You would need to let your next of kin know too. I've done an informal advance directive (it was during covid so no chance to do it formally, but I must update it) and my sister has it as they would call her bc I always put her as my nok.

She's pretty useless so it's important she has my wishes in writing.

I must get a lawyer to draw it up properly and find someone to be poa for me.

@HoppityBun i think you’ve misunderstood. Can you clarify what you’ve understood from what I’ve said? What @Slugtamer said is that a GP won’t consent to writing a DNAR unless there is a medical reason not to resuscitate.

The thing with a dnar is you need to have it with you at all times otherwise it’s invalid, even if you have a bracelet or something to make people aware, if you were in a situation where you needed cpr you wouldn’t be alert to inform them and show them you have one

Bless you, this is not the issue you need to be addressing. The odds of a healthy 30 year old being in a situation where DNR might apply are so tiny, this is not an answer to anything you might be feeling.

You are probably depressed and sound borderline suicidal. Honestly, you would be better talking to your GP about how you are feeling than about DNR. It is a feature of depression that it tells you everything is hopeless, nothing will help and there is no point in trying anything. But many, many people have been where you are and managed to find a way through. It's not easy, but there are answers out there. Please talk to your GP about getting help.

You said that there doesn’t need to be a medical reason not to resuscitate

yes @HoppityBun

The odds may be slim but I wish to have control over my own life. If I don’t want it prolonged I should be able to choose that. I have tried to embrace life and its quirks. I don’t enjoy life to the point I would like to prolong it.