Family heartbreak at ‘sudden’ death of beloved Leeds mum who went to bed with headache

A heartbroken Leeds woman has paid tribute to her mum who died suddenly.

Debbie Graham died suddenly on May 3 at the age of 50 after feeling unwell the day before. Her daughter Amy Graham told LeedsLive that Debbie, 50, from Seacroft, had a headache and pain in her jaw but when she last saw her she was “laughing and joking” and “she’s back to her usual self.”

Amy. The 26-year-old said the family had already been through heartache as she lost her father in 2020 and then her sister Laura, who died in 2022. At the time of Laura’s death, Debbie spoke to LeedsLive about her grief from the heart when Laura’s body was found in Box. Day. Laura took her own life after leaving her daughter Elsie with her mother.

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Elsie was living with Debbie at the time of her death but did not stay home that night.

Amy said: “It’s so unexpected. We are awaiting an autopsy. She was a bit sick on Thursday – I thought she had the flu as all her symptoms pointed to it. He slept in the morning and woke up. she awoke in the afternoon and was back to her normal state, saying only a headache and a pain in her jaw.

“My niece stayed at Grandma’s that night to rest my mom and get enough sleep to be fine the next day. She was laughing and joking ‘with us that night, back to her usual self.

“Friday morning I texted her to see what time I was picking up my niece from my grandparents but she didn’t reply so I asked my brother who lives with my mum to see if it was awake Then he called me. to ask me to go home because he couldn’t wake her up and she was cold. It had passed during the night.

Amy described her mum as ‘amazing’ and said she was ‘the best mum I could ever ask for’.

She added: “She was always there for anyone. Making sure everyone else was happy and putting everyone else first. She wasn’t just my mom, she was my best friend. I saw her in every day and always planned for us all to do something every weekend.

“One of her favorite places to go was Blackpool. She loved taking care of my niece and nephew, she loved being a babysitter, always pampering them.

“It’s like never ending torture, I lost my father in 2020, a day after my mother and father got married. Then my sister committed suicide in 2021 and now in 2024 my mother. It doesn’t seem real to me, I expect to see it. I go to send message and call her but then she starts. My niece is a great distraction, she’s always on the go so it really helps take my mind off things.”

The family are now raising money to help with funeral costs for Debbie’s funeral.

The fundraiser has, at the time of writing, raised £220 and Amy thanked those who have donated so far, saying it “means more than the world”.

She said: “He deserves the best send-off. She gave me and my family so much during her life and we just want to give something back to her, but obviously because it was so unexpected we don’t have that kind of funds at the moment. … It means so much to us as a family and we are eternally grateful.”

You can donate to the fundraiser here.