An aspiring writer lay dead in her home for four months while a letter from an editor accepting her first novel lay waiting unread on the doormat.
Former teacher Helen Gradwell was found dead at her home in Heaton, Manchester, last April when neighbors raised the alarm. Research conducted commented that the 39-year-old lonely woman was likely to died approximately 4 months before his body was discovered, since they found different Christmas decorations throughout the entire floor and their two dogs were found dead in the same room.
Accidental death from overdose
The deceased, Helen Gradwell, was found on the floor of her apartment face down and in an advanced state of decomposition. He was wearing pajamas and it is thought that he was sleeping on the sofa because there was a duvet and a pillow.
It seems that the woman suffered from severe migraines, migraines so severe that they could cause a temporary paralysis on one side of his body. Pathologist Jonathan Pearson stated that it was possible that the aspiring author accidentally overdosed on pain relievers against her painful migraines.
The pathologist also said that the advanced decomposition of the body made it difficult to be completely sure how he had died but he also comments that it appears that there was no evidence of an assault by someone else. Toxicology tests found high levels of pain reliever in her body, confirming the pathologist's suspicion.
“It is the only evidence we have of something abnormal that could explain sudden death. I accept that it is not conclusive but on the balance of probabilities it is the best evidence we have to explain death. "
He wrote his first novel in secret
Helen Gradwell had studied to be a teacher but was forced to abandon her career when she started suffering from migraines. Due to this change, she changed the classes in a school for personalized tutorials for different children and also he had been writing his novel in secret.
Helen was single and lived alone. Her family said that she had distanced herself from them so they had no knowledge that she had been writing.
After the investigation, her stepmother, Bronwen Gradwell, recounted that Gradwel had sent a synopsis and the first three chapters of his book - which his family believes he completed - to a London publisher.
“We know it must be somewhere. If we find it we would like to publish it and donate the proceeds to animal charities. "
"Donations from her funeral went to the animal shelter that meant so much to her, which was her world."
There was no evidence of suicide
Assistant Coroner Timothy Brennand entered an open verdict saying there was no evidence to suggest that the deceased had intended to take her own life. He also commented that he had recently bought new clothes and that he had not left any notes but what he actually did. to think that his death was accidental was his love for his two dogs.
"To my understanding, she would not have put the lives of her dogs in danger."
Poor thing, no one noticing her death. I was very young and it didn't have to be easy to live with those migraines. I hope they publish their work and thus, at least, it does not fall into oblivion.
Hi Lidia.
Shocking news. How is life cruel. It is not the first time I have heard or read that someone's body has been discovered after months of death without their neighbors noticing. It happens with some frequency. It is one of the bitter faces of our society.
Poor girl, I feel sorry for her and her dogs. A cultured, sensitive woman, with artistic concerns, a good person (this is the most important thing of all)… She didn't deserve to end like this.
What a pleasant surprise she would have been had she been alive when the editor's letter arrived. I wish I had enjoyed your success.
I wonder what would happen to her to be estranged from her family. Now that I think about it, the news makes for a story or a novel.
On the other hand, their relatives have it easy to locate the work: by writing to the address of the London publishing house that appears in the return address of the letter that appeared on the doormat or calling by phone, that's it.
A literary greeting. From Oviedo.
PS: at least, he had a happy death, without pain.