Young mum suffers a heart attack and DIES after eating a dessert - leaving her three children orphaned - and her heartbroken family searching for answers 

• Hanna Scigala, 31,  from Newcastle suffered an anaphylactic attack on January 4
• She was at home with her kids when her nut allergy was triggered about 9.30pm 
• The single mother was rushed to hospital, but tragically died two days later   
• Her children , 12, nine, and three, will be taken in by their retired grandparents 
• Sister Stephanie has set up a GoFundMe to raise money for the kids upbringing 

A single mother has died after suffering a catastrophic anaphylactic attack from peanuts, leaving her three children orphaned.  

Hanna Scigala, 31, was at her Newcastle home with her sons, aged 12 and nine, and daughter, three, on January 4 when her peanut allergy was unexpectedly triggered around 9.30pm by a post-dinner treat. 

Helplessly watching the crisis unfold, her eldest son quickly texted his grandparents, who called emergency services before rushing over from their nearby home.

Hanna was raced to hospital in a critical condition and placed into intensive care after suffering a cardiac arrest in the ambulance. 

After scans on Friday revealed she had no brain activity, her family made the gut-wrenching decision to say their final goodbyes and turn off her life support. 

'It was absolutely heartbreaking,' her younger sister Stephanie, 21, told Daily Mail Australia. 

'I couldn't believe it.  I couldn't comprehend that I was looking at her and she was still breathing, but it was just the machine. 

'I just wanted to tell her to wake up.'

Wanting Hanna's selflessness to be her legacy, her mother decided to donate her organs to save the lives of others.   

Stephanie said her sister would be glad to know through her passing she could continue to make the world a better place. 

'She loved helping people.'

'That was just the type of person Hanna was.' 

Hanna, who operated her own small cleaning business, is described by loved ones as one of the 'most free-spirited people you would ever meet'.

She was 'incredibly funny', making it hard for loved ones to take her seriously, a dedicated worker - but above anything else - an adoring and dedicated mum. 

'She loved her children more than anything,' Stephanie said.

'Her favourite thing to do was to introduce them to new opportunities, from archery to art classes - she wanted to make sure that they could find their own interests and hobbies. They never went without.'  

Growing up with a severe peanut allergy, Stephanie said her sister always meticulously checked ingredients lists. 

The shocked family are still unsure what she ate the night of her anaphylactic attack, which will be investigated as part of a report for the coroner. 

Due to the time, her family believe she may have had something sweet after dinner. 

'She was that severely allergic that if you opened something around her [that contained peanuts] she didn't even have to touch it or taste it to flare up,' Stephanie said.

'She always checked packets. It's mind boggling.

'It feels like a bad dream. We are just ready to wake up.' 

Hanna's children are staying with her parents as the heartbroken family navigates the logistics of raising the trio without their mother. 

While arrangements are yet to be finalised, the two boys, whose father is not in the picture, will remain in the care of their maternal grandparents while their younger half sister will live with her dad.    

As Hanna's father, 67, is retired and her mother, 62, only works part-time, Stephanie has set up a GoFundMe  page to help support the pensioners as they bring up the children and to make funeral arrangements.  

Stephanie said the family has been overwhelmed with gratitude by the support they have received from those who loved Hanna. 

'I can't describe how thankful I am,' she said, 'I was really worried about how they would cope financially.'

As the family learns to live without their beloved mother, sister, and daughter, there focus is on making sure the children feel loved and supported as they adjust to their new lives. 

'We just hope with time they will be ok, and they will know they are loved and cared for,' she said. 

'My youngest nephew is very insightful.

'He said 'nothing will help except time'.'