Author announces own death with heartbreaking post after dementia diagnosis
A much-loved author and sociologist has this week announced her own death in tear-jerking final blog post, 10 years after being diagnosed with early onset dementia.
Wendy Mitchell - renowned across the country for her campaign work for awareness of the heartbreaking disease - died at the age of 68.
Following her posthumously posted final blog entry, her daughters confirmed the sad news on social media on 22 February - a decade after their mother was first dealt the brutal health blow back in 2014 at 58.
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Sarah and Gemma Mitchell penned: "Our mum died peacefully early this morning. She wrote a blog post before she died so you can read about it from her perspective."
Following her diagnosis, Beverley-born Wendy - who previously worked in a non-medical NHS role for 20 years - published two books on the subject of dementia, which both sky-rocketed to become Sunday Times Bestsellers.
She also opted to document her ailing health journey online, so as to bring comfort to those who were - or had loved ones that were - going through the same thing.
Wendy - who has also told her story on the likes of Lorraine and This Morning - soon set up a blog titled Which Me Am I Today?, which accumulated millions of daily readers.
And in a final blog post - also released following her death yesterday - she bid one last goodbye to those who had followed her journey.
Titling this particular posthumous entry 'My final hug in a mug', she wrote: "If you’re reading this, it means this has probably been posted by my daughters as I’ve sadly died.
"Sorry to break the news to you this way, but if I hadn’t, my inbox would eventually have been full of emails asking if I’m OK, which would have been hard for my daughters to answer…"
Wendy went on to explain that she'd stopped eating and drinking, describing her illness as a 'cruel disease that plays tricks on your very existence'.
"I’ve always been a glass half full person, trying to turn the negatives of life around and creating positives, because that’s how I cope. Well I suppose dementia was the ultimate challenge.
"Yes, dementia is a bummer, but oh what a life I’ve had playing games with this adversary of mine to try and stay one step ahead.
"I’ve been resilient throughout my life, even from a young child, so resilience is inbuilt in me to cope with whatever life throws my way.
"Who would have thought, when diagnosed all those years ago, that my life would turn out quite as it did?"
Wendy - who throughout her life was fought for the right to assisted dying - used her platform to reiterate her stance once more.
"For those that have read my book, One Last Thing, you will understand why I feel so strongly about assisted dying.
"The only legal choice we shouldn’t have in life is when to be born; for everything else, we, as humans, should have a choice; a choice of how we live and a choice of how we die," she penned.
Defending her decision to end her life in the way she did, Wendy went on: "My girls have always been the two most important people in my life. I didn’t take this decision lightly, without countless conversations.
"They were the hardest conversations I’ve ever had to put them through. Some people may be angry at what I’ve done and that’s their prerogative – but don’t take that anger out on anyone other than me.
"This was all MY CHOICE, my decision. So please respect my daughters’ privacy, as they didn’t choose the life I chose, of standing up to and speaking out against dementia."
She concluded her blog by telling readers: "Thank you to all those who have supported me along the way…your support was invaluable."
Rest in peace, Wendy.
If you have experienced a bereavement and would like to speak with someone in confidence, contact Cruse Bereavement Care via their national helpline on 0808 808 1677.
Topics: Celebrity, Health, Social media, Books, UK News
Rhianna Benson