My mother was my role model. Even as she got older, she was so spirited and continued to try new things. At 60, she passed her driving test and became a regular gym-goer. Even after losing her sight, she knitted an heirloom bedspread and a scarf for my daughter. When she died at the start of 2018, aged 80, I felt completely broken.
For weeks, I barely moved from the sofa, getting up only to find whatever food I could bear to eat. I stopped caring about my health and had no energy to exercise. Aged 49, I was also entering perimenopause, which compounded my brain fog and fatigue.