Mom Dies of a ‘Broken Heart’ After Finding Her Son, 34, Dead

A mother passed away supposedly of ‘broken heart syndrome’ just three days after she found her son dead in their house.

Elizabeth Ilich, a local resident of Coober Pedy, passed away tragically due to ‘broken heart syndrome’ after her 34-year-old son, Goran Ilich, died because of an unknown reason.

Both the mother and son belonged to a tight-knit community where Goran was popular among all age groups and ‘had a natural charm and was well-mannered and polite’. The locals of the remote South Australian town call the incidents a ‘double tragedy’.

Her son, Goran, breathed his last on 12th November and was found dead by his mom in his room. Whereas, the mother called her friends after having chest pains. Although an ambulance could reach for assistance quickly, the mother passed away before they could reach the hospital.

The Coober Pedy Regional Times revealed that Elizabeth’s death was caused by immense ‘grief’ from the death of her child. When enquired about Elizabeth’s health condition, friends revealed that she had a ‘heart condition’ and believe that Goran’s death triggered a heart attack.

But ‘broken heart syndrome’ and ‘heart attack’ aren’t the same. While a heart attack is caused by a blood clot in the coronary artery, ‘broken heart syndrome’ occurs when a part of the heart swells, disrupting its functioning. In fact, the latter is seen more in women and is believed to be triggered by grief.

But according to some medical experts ‘broken heart syndrome’ isn’t a legitimate cause of death.