Wheelchair-bound and unable to complete simple tasks such as feeding herself, reaching for a Kleenex or hugging her grandchildren, Elayne Shapray has one wish: she wants to die in a manner of her own choosing.
"I am losing hope," Shapray said. "I am feeling like if nothing changes soon, what are my choices?"
Shapray has multiple sclerosis and lives with intolerable pain, as she continues to fight for the legalization of doctor-assisted death in Canada.
Last February, Shapray thought the battle was over when the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the criminal prohibition on doctor-assisted death was unconstitutional, and that Canadians with unbearable and irremediable suffering could be eligible to end their lives with a doctor's aid.
However, with a federal election looming, Canada's top court stayed its final decision for a year to give the new Parliament a chance to replace the existing law.
But the government has yet to enact any legislation regulating doctor-assisted death, leaving people like Shapray in legal limbo.
"Nothing … has changed," she said.
Wanda Morris, CEO of Dying with Dignity Canada, says that the Conservative government under Stephen Harper's leadership "really did not act within that timeframe," and the task has been passed onto Prime Minister Justice Trudeau's Liberal government.
"They had a five-month delay, so the Liberals are essentially starting at square one," she said.
However, a panel appointed by the Conservative government also continues to explore legislative options to regulate doctor-assisted death. It received a one-month extension on Nov. 14 so it can complete its report.
With so much work to be done, there's talk the newly-elected government could request more time. But the Liberals have been mum on their plan.
"We are continuing to review our options and I will definitely have an update on that in the coming days and weeks," said Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould.
The health ministers for B.C. and Ontario have signaled that they would welcome an extension, and that crafting thorough assisted-death legislation takes time.
Quebec passed its own right-to-die laws last year, ruling that it is part of end-of-life care and a health issue, which would place it under provincial jurisdiction.
The rules are set to take effect on Dec. 10, which could result in the province's doctors operating in a legal grey zone.
But enduring a longer wait for federal legislation is an option that Canadians like Shapray say they can't endure.
"Sit in my wheelchair for 24 hours and see how you feel," she said. "I think that would make people realize this is a pressing and important issue."
Dying with Dignity Canada says if there is an extension, it will ask for a special dispensation allowing people like Shapray to make a request to be exempt.
With a report from CTV National News Bureau Chief Melanie Nagy in Vancouver.