A tribute to my sister

Losing a sibling is incredibly hard as they have had such an impact on one’s life.

When it became very apparent in the spring of 2017 that there was something majorly wrong Valerie was still able to make herself understood. She told me that she was quite happy with her life and was unafraid of death. After the very late diagnosis of bulbar motor neurone disease there were no bucket lists (she would have been unable to cope), no regrets and a straightforward, dignified and brave acceptance of what was to come. But from now on she only wanted to read books with happy endings. Probably what may have distressed her, as she loved good food, was how very difficult and messy eating had become. Her speech was by then hard to understand, especially on the phone, but she could write until almost the end and was able to walk. Nevertheless she became very frail. She was lucky that Derby hospital had a unit that fully understands and specialises in MND cases.

The last social event she attended was a 78^th birthday party, a quiet gathering of her friends that was hosted by Fiona and her partner Ian. It was a wonderful parting gift as her health then deteriorated so rapidly.

Valerie was the fourth person my husband and I have known who have died because of MND. All four were bright, intelligent and well educated. Of the three males one was interested in astronomy and a gifted musician who, like Val, had lived in Matlock Bath. A second was a chartered accountant and the last of the three was a contemporary at university with my husband; he went on to be awarded a Nobel Prize for chemistry.

Ann Andrews