he couple met in 2007 and tied the knot in 2010. |
A mother-of-three has urged couples to not 'go to bed angry' after banishing her husband to the sofa in a row over him working long shifts - only to wake up and find him dead.
Ashley Murrell, 33, had a heated argument with her husband Mikey, 36, when he returned home late from a 16 hour shift as she was worried he was running himself into the ground.
The couple failed to resolve the argument before bed and Mrs Murrell told her husband to sleep on the sofa.
However, when the beauty therapist woke up the next morning, she discovered her husband had died.
She later learned her husband, who worked as a carpet cleaner, had been working extra hours to save money to take her to Prague for their anniversary on July 3.
Mrs Murrell said the post-mortem revealed he had choked in his sleep but the cause behind it was 'inconclusive'.
Paying tribute to her husband Mrs Murrell, who lives in Wellington in Somerset, said: 'Mikey was so caring, if he walked into a room and saw someone unhappy he would be the first person there trying to cheer them up.
'He absolutely loved his family. He wanted his kids to have all the things in life that he didn't and he worked so hard to make that happen.
'But the hours he was working were just getting too much. He was so exhausted all the time and he was running himself into the ground and his health was going downhill fast.
'When he came home that night he was a mess, I have never seen him so exhausted. I couldn't stand seeing him like that and I got angry. I was sick of it.
'I had a go at him and told him to sleep on the sofa which was stupid because I really just wanted him around more.'
However the following morning she woke to find her husband had died 'exactly where she left him' on May 16.
She said: 'When I came out of the bedroom and saw him the next morning I knew something was wrong straight away. He was lying exactly where I left him and his face was all discoloured - he looked grey.
'I walked over and touched him but he was cold and I jumped back and ran out the room. I started screaming 'your dad's dead' to my 14-year-old and ran into the street screaming 'Mikey's dead'.
'I blacked out and had to be carried back into the house by neighbours. It felt so surreal, I couldn't process it. I didn't feel like he was dead, I felt like he had left me.
'When the ambulance came and they confirmed he was dead I collapsed onto the floor and I was sick. Nothing made sense.
'I felt so guilty. I was so angry with myself for making him sleep on the sofa. I still find it so hard to think that my last words to him were out of anger.
'When I found out he'd been saving to take us on an anniversary holiday it was awful - heartbreaking doesn't begin to cover it.
'Losing Mikey has changed my entire perspective on life. Life is too short to go to bed angry and not to spend every moment you can with your family.'
The couple met in 2007 and tied the knot in 2010.
After they married Mr Murrell adopted Ashley's daughter Morgan, 14, and the couple had twins Mikey Junior and Lisa in 2013.
She said the doting father worked long hours to ensure his children were happy.
But after injuring his back lifting weights and discovering he was suffering from spinal arthritis in 2014 his dedication to work started to take its toll.
'After his injury Mikey never properly healed', she said.
'Even when he was at his worst he would push himself with work and any time he had off he'd be doing everything with the kids.
'I knew something like this was going to happen, I knew he was doing too much but you can never prepare yourself for this.
'Explaining it to the kids has been one of the hardest parts. I didn't at first but they kept asking when daddy was coming home. Now my little boy always asks if we can visit daddy in heaven - it's really hard.
'Some days are easier than others and I think I'm doing OK but then a day comes along where every little thing is a reminder.
'The other day I was driving along and the kids were singing in the back and it was all so happy but then I just started having flashbacks about finding him. It's going to be like that for a while.
'It's going to be tough doing all the firsts without him. I already had our first anniversary alone. All I know is that my feelings for him will never go away. He was too amazing to even describe him in words.'
In her eulogy at her husband's funeral on June 8, Mrs Murrell said: 'Go kiss your loved ones and tell them you care. Let them know you love them as they may not always be there.
'Say goodnight at bedtime and always kiss goodbye because one day, you never know, they may grow wings and fly.
'Live everyday as if it's your last and let go of bad things in the past. Our lives are too short and they go fast.'
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