Brave mum Emma Bray's final days after deciding to starve herself to death for sake of her kids
A courageous mother has shared a heartbreaking message from beyond the grave after making a difficult decision.
Emma Bray, who lived with Motor Neurone Disease (MND), previously spoke with the Mirror about her plans to voluntarily stop eating and drinking after moving into a hospice.
The Dignity in Dying campaigner explained that she wanted to shield her 'amazing' children, aged 15 and 14, from the 'brutal' and "terrible" death she faced, in what she regarded as her "last bit of parenting".
Now, an Instagram post has revealed that the 42-year-old has sadly died, just one month after she opened up about her wishes for her final days.
The pre-written message was accompanied by a photograph of Emma lying in her hospice bed in Devon, looking out over a tranquil tree-lined view.
Expressing gratitude for her time on this earth, Emma, from Barnstaple in North Devon, wrote: "If you are reading this, then I've finished my final spin round the sun.
"I've lived a very good life, surrounded by love, music and laughter, and I want this to continue in my memory. Rather than shed a tear (or whilst you do), please plant a tree or call a friend, do a random act of kindness or take time to watch a sunset.
"For moments of doubt, please ask, 'What would Emma do?' and run with that probably inappropriate answer. Hug everyone a little tighter and love openly. "Please surround those who were closest to me with love, time and patience. And to quote Frank Turner - Remember you get to dance another day, but now you have to dance for one more of us. Love you, bye."
Back in June, Emma, who helped hundreds of domestic abuse victims and homeless people through her career as a charity worker, reflected on how she'd like to spend her final days.
She shared her longing for a 'calm and peaceful death', and revealed that she'd already planned her funeral and written her eulogy.
Emma continued: 'VSED is not an easy death, but with the current law in England, this is the only way I can have control over my death.
'I want to protect my children from seeing me choke and struggle to breathe. I don't want to die, but I am going to and have come to terms with my impending death, and I know I want to die surrounded by loved ones, music and laughter, not in an emergency way after further decline.'
"My end-of-life wish is to be at the hospice surrounded by my friends and family. I want to have music playing, to hear people laugh and watch them playing card games over me.'
As per Compassion In Dying, VSED is a process whereby an adult 'with mental capacity to decide to do so and in the absence of control or coercion, makes a decision to hasten their death by completely stopping the oral intake of all food and fluids'. Death can take between 10 to 14 days.
Emma was first diagnosed with MND two years ago. She told us: 'I've had four different health professionals tell me I've got the worst disease possible."
MND is a terminal neurological condition that affects a person's brain and spinal cord, resulting in muscle weakness and wasting. As her condition progressed, Emma was left unable to hug her two children or wipe away their tears, and she was left fearing the possibility of choking to death in front of loved ones.
The devoted mum, who spoke with the Mirror using her eye gazing machine, discussed the severe difficulties she was facing day to day, stating: 'I now feel I am at the stage where my quality of life is very affected, I can no longer use any of my limbs. My talking is severely affected, and I struggle to eat, and it's getting harder to breathe. I am only really comfortable in bed, and social visits are exhausting.
'I have carers multiple times a day, can't be left alone overnight and can no longer do any basic tasks. I can't scratch an itch, push up my glasses, or move a bed sheet if I am too hot or cold. I feel like I am losing the essence of me. I am still so loved, but I can't be myself, and I see that grief on everyone's faces."
Expressing her support for the Assisted Dying Bill, Emma said: 'This bill will have offered me protection for those I love who have already spent two years living with anticipatory grief and watching me suffer.
'Imagine seeing your children crying and upset and not be able to hug them or curl up in bed and wipe their tears away. This is hands down the thing I hate the most about motor neurone disease. It's taken my children's mum from them little by little…
'I urge MPs to realise that this bill will not end my life, motor neurone disease is doing that, but they can help me and others with less than six months to live to die with peace. '
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