Bristol University student cared for her terminally-ill mum

A woman who had a full-time job and cared for her terminally-ill mum while studying says her experience shows others can survive hard times.

Michelle Mounsdon started her Master's degree in Neuroscience at the University of Bristol in 2017, pursuing a dream of being a child psychologist.

Michelle's mum Sheila then developed lung cancer so she became her carer.

Sheila passed away in May 2019 and Michelle said she had wanted to "make her proud".

Former elite gymnastic coach Michelle continued to run a gymnastics club, hold down a full-time job and work on her degree alongside caring for her mum.

She said: "It meant sleepless nights, endless trips to hospital and all the other support and care that my mum needed - I lived with her so it was a full-time job in itself."

Despite the pressure, Michelle continued with her degree and says it became a driving force and focus to get through the harder days.

"For me it was the goal of achieving my Master's [and] initially as a positive incentive for my mum to keep fighting," she said.

Michelle said she would often work long days leading a team supporting children with complex needs before coming home to look after her mother.

She would then study late into the evening and finish her university work in the early hours of the morning.

When Shelia passed away in May 2019, Michelle said she continued her studies to "make mum proud".

She said when her results arrived in January this year it took her hours to pluck up the courage to open them.

"The very first thing I thought of was, 'Oh I have got to text mum'", she said.

"I turned briefly to get my phone to text Mum and then suddenly it just hit me like a wave and I just burst into tears."

"I looked up to the sky and just said ,'I did it Mum'."

Michelle hopes sharing her "unimaginable life experiences" will show others that it is possible to survive - and even thrive - through the hardest of times.

"You don't know how you do it but you just find a way," she said. "It's amazing what a human can do when push comes to shove - and some juggle far more than I have."

Michelle now plans to take a year off from studying before starting her PhD.