A terminally ill 42-year-old English woman who refused food or water to hasten her passing has, in fact, passed.
Emma Bray from Barnstaple, England, was diagnosed with motor neuron disease two years ago.
She had been actively campaigning for Dignity in Dy*ng, and said that her decision to take control over her passing by voluntarily stopping eating and drinking, or VSED , would be her final act of parenting.
- Emma Bray, 42, with motor neuron disease, chose to voluntarily stop eating and drinking (VSED) to control her passing and protect her children.
- Bray’s peaceful passing reignited the debate on legalizing assisted dying, coinciding with Britain’s recent parliamentary vote on the issue.
- Voluntarily stopping eating and drinking (VSED) allowed Bray to have control over her passing process, lasting 10 to 14 days without coercion.
- Bray campaigned for dignity in d*ing, emphasizing her final act was to spare her loved ones trauma from her disease’s physical decline.
Her story has reopened the debate on the implications of medically assisted s**cide.
“Hug everyone a little tighter”: Emma Bray’s final Instagram message is one of hope
Smiling woman wearing glasses and dinosaur skeleton print shirt, sitting indoors in a cozy room.
Woman with glasses smiling while sitting on a gray sofa, illustrating a mom ends her life by starving story.
According to a post on Bray’s Instagram account from July 14th, Bray passed peacefully at a hospice center in Devon. In a photo, we see her in a hospice bed overlooking green treetops and fluffy white clouds.
“If you are reading this then I’ve finished my final spin round the sun,” the caption read.
It continued: “I’ve lived a very good life, surrounded by love, music and laughter and I want this to continue in my memory.”
Woman lying in hospital bed, smiling, surrounded by medical equipment in a clinical room setting.
She urged friends to ask themselves “what would Emma do” in times of doubt and encouraged people to “hug everyone a little tighter.”
She ended her post with a quote from a 2012 Frank Turner song called “Long Live The Queen”, a tune about losing a terminally ill friend.
“Remember you get to dance another day but now you have to dance for one more of us,” Bray’s post said.
MND, also called ALS or Lou Gehrig’s, causes rapid muscle loss, leading to passing
Woman lying in bed on balcony overlooking trees and cloudy sky, symbolizing mom ends life by starving to protect kids.
Instagram post showing a heartfelt final message from a mom who ended her life to protect kids from suffering.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis—Lou Gehrig’s disease—is the most common motor neuron disease (MND) and the terms are used interchangeably.
The clinic’s website says: “ALS causes rapid loss of muscle control leading to disability and eventually de*th. There’s no cure for MND.”
Patient lying in bed with floral blanket and laptop, illustrating mom ends her life by starving to protect kids.
When she received the diagnosis two years ago, Bray said in interviews, she was extraordinarily distraught.
“I remember howling like an animal when I realised the impact it would have on the children. My best friend was with me and, as we left, I said I wished it was cancer because there would be potential surgery or treatment, with MND there is nothing,” she said in an interview with The Mirror
Bray’s case has reopened the debate about whether assisted passing should be legalized
Woman in a wheelchair wearing glasses and leopard print skirt, symbolizing mom struggles and protecting kids from breathing issues.
Comment on Instagram expressing condolences and respect for a mom who starved herself to protect kids from struggling to breathe.
Emma had said that she was determined to live a full life because doctors told her the end would be very hard.
Roughly one month ago, Britain’s parliament voted in favor of the “Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life)” law, which would legalize assisted dy*ng, by a vote of 314 to 291.
Reuters reports that the bill “now proceeds to Britain’s upper chamber, the House of Lords, where it will undergo months of scrutiny.”
Woman sitting in a wheelchair on a sandy path, wearing sunglasses and a floral dress, smiling in sunlight.
“The vote puts Britain on course to follow Australia, Canada and other countries, as well as some U.S. states, in permitting assisted dy*ng,” the article continued.
One of the most talked about cases of medically assisting su*cide happened in the forests of Switzerland with a device called a Sarco pod.
A criminal investigation is ongoing after an American woman in her 60s became the first person to use the device.
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