Wendy Duffy died in Switzerland having never been able to get over the death of her son, Marcus
Wendy Duffy died in Switzerland having never been able to get over the death of her son, Marcus
A healthy mum has ended her life after the tragic death of her son. Wendy Duffy, 56, was approved for assisted dying at the Pegasos clinic after saying she was unable to cope with the grief of losing her son Marcus, 23.
Wendy paid £10,000 to the clinic. Over the course of the last year, she also wrote letters to her loved ones, chose a deathbed outfit and picked the last music she would hear, The Mirror reports. Marcus died four years ago and Wendy said her life has been “agony” without him.
She told the Daily Mail: “I don’t care about anything any more. I exist. I don’t live. When Marcus died, I died too, inside. On my deathbed I’ll wear his T-shirt, which still smells of him.”
Before travelling to the clinic, Wendy said: “I won’t change my mind. It will be hard for everyone. But I want to die, and that’s what I’m going to do. And I’ll have a smile on my face when I do, so please be happy for me. My life; my choice.”
Pegasos is a Swiss assisted dying clinic that accepts psychiatric-only cases – where there is no physical illness – provided they meet strict criteria. The condition must be severe, long-lasting and treatment-resistant. Many Swiss clinics, including the better-known Dignitas, refuse such cases entirely.
A panel of experts including psychiatrists assessed Wendy’s case and approved it after more than a year of back-and-forth – interviews, forms and the submission of her full medical records and therapy history – conducted almost entirely remotely via email and WhatsApp.
Wendy will be cremated in Switzerland and her ashes sent back to her family which she wants scattered by her son’s bench. Her four sisters and two brothers know that she applied to Pegasos but she has been unable to tell them timescale to protect them and planned to call them when she arrived in Switzerland.
If anyone had travelled with her, or was deemed to have assisted her suicide in any way, they would risk a police investigation.
In the UK the assisted dying bill would not allow such cases, as it would only be accessible to those who are terminally ill with six months to live and in sound mind. The more famous assisted dying clinic Dignitas, in Switzerland, would also have rejected Wendy.
Speaking about her final moments she said: “My only stipulation is that I’ve asked if they can make sure the big windows are open, so my spirit can be free.”
The former care worker, from West Midlands, says she never got over her son’s death. She tried to save her only son after he fell asleep and choked on a sandwich, but it was too late.
Wendy previously said how she tried antidepressants and therapy to help her come to terms with the loss and her overwhelming grief.
“I wish this was available in the UK, then I wouldn’t have to go to Switzerland at all,” she told the publication, revealing she had tried to take her own life before but it had failed and left her on a ventilator.
“I could step off a motorway bridge or a tower block but that would leave anyone finding me dealing with that for the rest of their lives,” she added.
“I’m going to go out to Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars singing Die With A Smile.”
Her death comes on the day the UK’s proposed Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill is expected to fall through, as the House of Lords will run out of time to debate the proposed legislation.
Pegasos is a non-profit organisation since it is prohibited to profit from assisted death in Swiss law. This means clients cover the costs of the medication, doctors’ fees and funeral expenses while a portion goes towards the Swiss state.
The clinic also insists that applications to pass away there is rigorous, with a panel of experts, including psychiatrists, tasked with assessing each client.
Ruedi Habegger, Pegasos founder, said on Friday: “I can confirm that Wendy Duffy, at her own request, was assisted to die on April 24 and that the procedure was completed without incident and in full compliance with her wishes.
“I can also confirm that neither we nor any of the professional staff assessing her mental capacity had any doubt as to her intention, understanding and independence of both thought and action. In historical terms at English law, hers was a case of “sane suicide”.”
