A mother's love : how my beautiful daughter fought to live - and die - on her own terms

__Every muscle in my body ached. I told myself to grieve, get it out of my system, so that I could be the mother my daughter needed me to be. The agony of knowing what was coming...endless.__ Just married, vivacious and thrill-seeking, Brittany Maynard was in the prime of her life at the age of twenty nine. Then she was delivered devastating news. She had unknowingly been living with a terminal brain tumour for the past ten years that would slowly and painfully kill her. Desperate to take control of the situation, she asked her mother to help her die with dignity. In this heart-breaking and powerful book, Brittany's mum opens up about her experiences, offering hope and inspiration to anyone facing the loss of a loved one. On 6 October 2014, a video of Brittany Maynard was posted to YouTube. The first words she utters, "The thoughts that go through your mind when you find out you have so little time is everything you need to say to everyone that you love." Wearing a simple black sweater, face rounded and puffy from the prescribed steroids to alleviate the pain, Brittany explains why she has chosen to end her life by her own hand, rather than waiting for the brain tumour to rob her of everything that defines who she is. Less than a month later, Brittany died in her bed surrounded by close family and friends, having taken the lethal drugs provided to her by the State of Ohio in accordance with their 'Death with Dignity' laws. Wild and Precious Life is Brittany's incredibly moving and heart-breaking true story as told by her mother, who travelled with her on the painful journey towards accepting and embracing mortality. Interspersed and paralleled with memories from Brittany's childhood, this book examines and highlights the complex relationships between mother and daughter, life and death, and holding on or letting go. On 6 October 2014, a video of Brittany Maynard was posted to YouTube. The first words she utters in the film are, The thoughts that go through your mind when you find out you have so little time is everything you need to say to everyone that you love. Wearing a simple black sweater, face rounded and puffy from the prescribed steroids to alleviate the pain, Brittany explains why she has chosen to end her life by her own hand, rather than waiting for the brain tumour to rob her of everything that defines who she is "Written by Deborah Ziegler, the mother of Brittany Maynard--a twenty-nine-year-old woman with a terminal brain tumor--this touching and beautiful memoir captures and celebrates her daughter's spirit and the mostly untold story of Brittany's last year of life as she chose her right to die with dignity, a journey that inspired millions."--Amazon.com