Woman’s Day is saddened to report that courageous Auckland mum Rebecca Hyndman lost her battle with cancer early Tuesday morning, passing away with her beloved husband Jeff by her side.
The young mum was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer just weeks after giving birth to baby Ben, the couple’s long-awaited first child after two heartbreaking miscarriages.
A social media page set up for Rebecca announced the news yesterday.
“To Rebecca’s whanau, our thoughts are with you all at this hard time,” the Facebook post read.
“Her strength and positivity in even the darkest moments were inspiring. Moe mai ra e te Rangatira. Shine bright our darling angel, gone but never forgotten.”
In her interview with Woman’s Day earlier this year, Rebecca told us how she was writing her newborn son letters so that she would still be in his life after she was gone.
“I would like to think I would manage one for each year until he’s 18, then one for his 21st. I want him to always remember his mum,” she told us at the time.
Welcoming Ben into the world was a moment of triumph for Jeff and Rebecca, who always felt that she was “put on this planet to be a mum”.
The pair had already endured two miscarriages before Rebecca became pregnant again with the help of a fertility treatment.
However, after bringing Ben home from the hospital, it was clear all was not right with Rebecca, who suffered from severe vomiting and diarrhoea and was in and out of hospital.
Four weeks later, she was diagnosed with a gastric tumour and began undergoing chemotherapy treatment.
Rebecca, pictured here with her husband Jeff, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer just weeks after giving birth to Ben.
“I started facing my own mortality and what I was going to leave behind – that was the hardest part. I had a huge amount of guilt as I never would have brought a child into the world if I knew I wouldn’t be around to do my job, but I realised I couldn’t think like that because Ben has been the biggest blessing I’ve ever had,” she told us.
Poignantly, the brave mum told us that while there were days when she was “in a puddle on the floor”, she took comfort in knowing her son was in the best hands with Jeff.
“I couldn’t trust my child to anybody who I love, respect and value more than Jeff. If Ben turns out anything like his father, I will be a very happy lady.”
A Givealittle page has been set up to help provide financial support for the Hyndman family – if you would like to donate, you can do so here.
