Mum went home from work unwell with the common cold, and never woke again. Her husband shares his heartbreak.

Rachel Richardson, 34, was found lifeless in her bed by her husband Gareth at the couple’s Gold Cost home on July 13.

‘She went home [from work], made herself a cup of tea, put a pie in the oven, got out of her work clothes and lay down,’ Gareth told Daily Mail Australia.

‘But she never resurfaced.’

Rachel’s death was a mystery for two months – only now doctors have confirmed that her death was caused by bacteria from her cold entering her bloodstream.

Gareth said his wife had a runny nose and sore throat – but nothing to suggest she was suffering from anything more than a ‘normal middle of winter cold’.

After the tragic death of his wife, Gareth was left a widower and sole parent to the couple’s two young daughters Kate, 4, and Anna, 18 months.

Gareth told Daily Mail Australia of his desperate search for answers after discovering his late wife’s body on July 13.

‘There were a lot of unanswered questions, not just from myself but everyone,’ he said.

Gareth said the heartbreak of losing his wife was made worse because of how sudden and unexpected it was.

‘The shock of that tragedy kind of hits you in the face, and leaves you pretty hollow,’ he said.

But what followed was even worse, said the Gold Coast man.

He had to explain to his two daughters what had happened, and then make the heart wrenching call to Rachel’s parents in England.

‘I explained to Kate that mummy’s heart stopped working and it was just the three of us now,’ he said.

‘But it wasn’t as hard as the conversation with Rachel’s parents, that was a much tougher conversation.

‘They were shattered, like any parent who loses a child. It was heart-wrenching for them.

‘They felt a long way away and helpless.’

Eight weeks after the tragic discovery, Gareth said his family finally had answers.

Confirmed streptococcus bacterium had released fatal toxins into her bloodstream, Gareth said his family could now properly grieve.

And while two months had passed, Gareth said no time would heal his pain.

‘You learn to live with it, but you never get over anything like that,’ he said.

“The shock of the tragedy kind of hits you in the face and leaves you pretty hollow,” Mr Richardson told Daily Mail Australia.

“The most comforting part is knowing it’s not a genetic thing and the girls don’t have to live life wondering what may happen to them,” Gareth said.

“Even if I had been there and rushed her to hospital, we still would have lost her”.

Our thoughts are with Gareth and his family.

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