Brittney
My mom had an on-and-off battle with skin cancer (located in her jaw) for about 5 years. From the very beginning of her diagnosis she said she wanted MAID “if things get bad.” I never actually thought things would get bad, but in the summer of 2020, after 2 surgeries and radiation treatments, the cancer had returned for the 3rd time and there was nothing they could do.
Over the next year my mom lost her ability to eat and talk, was hooked up to a feeding tube and pain pump, and both she and her doctors had signed off on the paperwork for MAID. It was getting real and things were bad. During that time it was kind of a blur, trying to spend as much time with my mom while watching her dwindle away. While I was 100% on board with my mom’s decision, I just wanted her to get better. I didn’t want to lose her.
In July 2021 my mom decided that she was ready, so the very next day we went to the hospital where she peacefully went to sleep (this was after my family and I spent all morning in the hospice room, listening to music, dancing, crying and, more importantly, laughing). Her passing was exactly what she wanted. Pain free, peaceful, quick and surrounded by all the love.
It was the most surreal moment of my life. I was only 32 and I was now without a mother. My family and I were heartbroken. We all got tattoos in honour of my mom (and I know she’d be rolling her eyes about that!).
I started counselling almost immediately following the funeral, which I still continue to do this day, almost 2.5 years later.
I miss my mom every single day but I’m at peace knowing that she’s no longer in pain and suffering. She was one of the strongest and most stubborn people I know and there was no way cancer was going to take her. She was in control.
I live on beautiful Georgian Bay in southern Ontario, I work as an ophthalmologic technician and am also a registered reflexologist. In my spare time I like to travel, read, go to the beach (in the summer of course!), go to the gym and spend time with my 3 very spoiled rescue cats.
(You can read more about my story in The Many Faces of MAID book which you can find on Amazon.)