I had no idea Shelley had posted something on this site... I am just finding this out many years later. I lost contact with her family years ago, not long after her death. To this day, I still do not know why she passed away and since I cannot locate her family, I may never know.
Just prior to her passing, she had started eating solid foods again. However, she had also been in and out of the hospital with various ailments. Whether or not they were related to the surgery... I don't know. She had been given a bottle of medicine that was Codeine-based, and it was almost full the night prior. In the morning, she had asked me to run a bath, which I did, but she did not feel like getting up to go take her bath. About an hour passed, and she asked me if I could warm it up again, which I did. She still didn't get up to take her bath, so I figured she was just sleepy. I was working from home that day, and she was resting on the couch. Lunchtime came around, and I asked her if she wanted something to eat, but got no response. That's when I found her motionless on the couch. We later discovered that the medicine bottle was almost empty, so it seemed as if it was an accidental overdose. She was probably in so much pain that she just kept taking her medicine, hoping it would work. But since I have never been able to contact her family, I can't confirm this... only they would be able to tell me what happened since they would have the autopsy report.
Her son, Todd, should be about 16 years old now. I just hope he is doing well... it really has to suck growing up without your mother. :(