A MUM-of-six died just eight days after becoming extremely tired and falling asleep on the sofa.
Eileen Azzopardi fell ill without warning on Easter Sunday (March 31).
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The parent, known to loved ones as Iyeiye, had been spending time with her family when she suddenly felt incredibly lethargic.
She struggled to remember the password to her phone and conked out on the couch.
Relatives grew concerned and called 999, and Eileen was rushed to hospital.
She received a blood transfusion but her condition quickly deteriorated and the mum was placed in an induced coma.
Doctors carried out an endoscopy – where a camera is passed through the body – and discovered part of her bowel had died.
Eileen underwent surgery to reattach it, but medics at Manchester Royal Infirmary deemed that her body had “given up” six hours later.
Eileen, from Audenshaw, Greater Manchester, passed away on April 8, Manchester Evening News reports.
Her sister Susan described her as “the family comedian” who would “go out of her way to make everyone happy”.
She added: “She was always cracking jokes and making everyone smile.
“I will never be the same again without her. She is truly irreplaceable; we are heartbroken.”
Susan also said Eileen’s daughters, aged 12, 13, 14, 15, 17 and 18, are having a hard time coming to terms with the loss of their mother.
The mum-of-five, 30, who lives in Moston, said: “We have a group chat where we try to comfort them by sharing pictures to keep her memory alive.
“It’s really been awful. I can’t even look at her pictures now without getting upset.
“It was so hard to watch her daughters break down emotionally.”
It is still unclear exactly what caused Eileen’s death but it is hoped a post-mortem will help provide some answers.
Susan, who is raising money for her sister’s funeral on GoFundMe, said: “When she went into hospital she was awake.
“She was struggling to talk but told me she needed a hairbrush.
“That was the last time I ever spoke to her. Within hours, she was put into an induced coma [and then she was gone].”
Why am I always tired?
Feeling tired or low in energy often – without obvious cause, such as sleep deprivation – could signal a health issue. See your GP if you have any of the symptoms below.
Sleep apnoea
Feeling tired during the day because you keep waking up at night could be a sign you have sleep apnoea.
Symptoms in the night include breathing stopping and starting, making gasping, snorting or choking noises and loud snoring.
Iron deficiency
Low energy during the day with noticeable heart palpitations could mean you are suffering anaemia, which is caused by low iron levels.
Symptoms of iron deficiency anaemia can also include pale skin and shortness of breath.
Diabetes
If you feel very tired and also have a constant thirst and need to pee, you may be suffering from diabetes.
Other symptoms can include sudden weight loss, thrush and blurred vision.
Overactive thyroid
Feeling tired all the time while also struggling to stay still, feeling anxious, nervous or irritable could mean you have an overactive thyroid.
It means the small butterfly-shaped gland in the neck is producing too many hormones, which may also cause swelling in your neck, muscle weakness, twitching or trembling and weight loss.
ME or chronic fatigue syndrome
Suffering extreme tiredness for more than three months is a warning sign you have ME or chronic fatigue syndrome.
It can also cause problems with thinking, memory or concentration and flu-like symptoms.
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