Hello everyone,
My name is Barbara and I lost my big sister Diana on Oct 7, 2009. She was diagnosed on August 3 of the same year with neuroendocrine lung cancer. It had already spread to her brain and her treatment was palliative, but she never acknowledged that she might die soon. She was, as was so like her, optimistic until the day she became delusional and was admitted to the county hospital. Two weeks later she died without a chance for any of us to say goodbye, because she did not recognize us and then she fell into a coma. She was misdiagnosed with bronchitis and then pneumonia from Feb 2009 until her diagnosis. We were, and are still, so very shocked that she is gone. She was a single mom to my niece Alex who will turn 21 this month without her mom.
We are a very small family - my parents, my little sister and her husband, my niece, my partner and me. We feel so empty without her but she touched SO many people. She was a home caregiver herself and saw several of her elderly clients through their own battles with cancer and other illnesses. She was and is an angel, in everyone's eyes. This is not just something to say after someone dies. She touched more lives than any of us ever knew, and this was clear at the service which celebrated her life. Over 200 people came, some we didn't even know, and they shared their stories about Diana with us.
I just wanted to give and receive support by being a part of this community.
Thanks for "listening!"
