When Clare Duffy woke up one morning with a sore shoulder, she thought a hot bath and a good nap would be enough to ease her pain.
The mum lay down in bed and asked her husband Richard to wake her if she overslept. Tragically, she never woke up again.
When Richard went into their bedroom to check on her, Clare was unresponsive. He frantically dialled emergency services but it was already too late. Clare was pronounced dead on January 8, leaving behind two heartbroken children. She was just 41-years-old.
“I was emotionally distraught,” Richard, 38, told the Manchester Evening News. “I was screaming.
“I ran into my daughter’s bedroom and I was straight on the phone to emergency services. It doesn’t feel real but it all feels like a blur. It went by so quickly.”
It was later discovered that Clare, who lived in Little Hulton with Richard and children Harry, 16 and Alice, 15, had died from a pulmonary embolism.
A pulmonary embolism occurs when a clump of material, most often a blood clot, gets stuck in an artery in the lungs. It blocks the flow of blood and can be life-threatening if not treated quickly.
Symptoms of a pulmonary embolism include sharp or stabbing chest pains that starts suddenly or come on gradually. Shortness of breath, coughing up blood and feeling faint or dizzy are also common signs.
Sadly, Clare’s passing is not the only tragedy to have hit the family in recent times. Just three weeks before her death, Clare’s mum Catherine also died suddenly on December 19 – leaving Clare devastated.
"[Catherine’s death] is still under investigation,” Richard said. “It was a big shock. She had not been well for a while and was on a lot of painkillers. [Clare] spent a lot of time with her mum, she had to drive past her house to get to work so she saw her on a daily basis.”
Born and raised in Salford, Clare, who worked on the transport team at Kenny Waste Management, has been described as a “beautiful, wonderful and bubbly” person who “everybody liked”.
She was known to be extremely family-orientated and spent any spare time making memories with her loved ones.
Richard and Clare had been due to celebrate their 10-year wedding anniversary when Clare tragically passed away. “Everybody she met liked her,” he continued. “Her family was her main interest. Any spare time she spent with her daughter, son, nephews or neices. She was very family-orientated.”
Richard says teenagers Harry and Alice are still struggling to come to terms with their mum’s passing. “My son is still closed off. It was worse for my daughter,” he said.
“While I was on the phone to paramedics, her bedroom was right next door. She heard everything that was going on.”
The family have now been left with two funerals to pay for. A Gofundme appeal has been set up to help Richard, Harry and Alice raise some of the funds needed.
The description reads: “I am humbly asking for a little help so that I can give Clare and her mum the send off they deserve and I am in the process of trying to do this.
“I know Clare and Cath were both loved by so many of the people they met in their eventful lives and I am hoping to show that one more time.”
To donate, follow the link by clicking here.
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