The last five-word plea of the 56-year-old woman who traveled to Switzerland to die by assisted suicide has been revealed.
Wendy Duffy’s decision has divided opinion online over the last few days; her tragic story has left people united in communal grief.
As we reported earlier this week, Duffy travelled to controversial Swiss clinic Pegasos, known for helping people end their lives on their own terms. As per the Manchester Evening News, many Swiss clinics refuse psychiatric-only cases, where there is no physical illness. Pegasos, however, do accept them, provided that applicants meet a set of strict criteria.
Wendy paid $13,500 US to take advantage of that distinction, having been unable to recover following the death of her son Marcus, 23, four years ago.
In an interview conducted with Daily Mail journalist Jenny Johnson days before her planned death, Wendy explained that she was steadfast in her decision.
“I won’t change my mind. I know it’s hard for you,” she said. “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.”
She added: “I can’t wait.”
Wendy had planned every detail of her final hours in detail, as well as what will come after. This includes letters written to her loved ones, the outfit she was to wear on the day of her death, and the music that would be playing.
A new report from the Daily Mail reported today that Duffy had died following what Ruedi Habegger, founder of Pegasos, described as a “sane suicide”.
“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,” Habegger said.
“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.’”
Previously claiming that she would have a smile on her face as she self-administered medication with medical professionals watching over her – as required by Swiss law – Duffy urged: “Please be happy for me.”
In her interview with the Daily Mail, Duffy revealed how her son had passed away under traumatic circumstances four years ago. He had fallen asleep on the sofa while eating a sandwich, and when Wendy returned to the living room, she was met with a sight every parent dreads.
“He was purple,” she said. “I thought, ‘It’s his heart.’”
Medically trained, Wendy began CPR. Paramedics arrived and rushed the 23-year-old Marcus to hospital, where the cause of the issue was discovered. Half a cherry tomato was found lodged in his windpipe; it took specialist equipment to remove it.
“They think he must have fallen asleep when he still had food in his mouth. That’s the only comfort, that there was no struggle,” Wendy said.
With his brain starved of oxygen for too long, Marcus was left brain dead. Wendy sat with him in hospital for five days before his life support machine was turned off.
“In the funeral home, I went in every day, and just sat with him, playing through his Spotify list,” she recalled. “I broke when I saw him in there. My boy, on a metal table. You can’t come back from that, you know.”
Rest in peace, Wendy Duffy.