Gypsy Rose Blanchard, was born to Claudine (better known as Dee Dee) and Rob, in 1991. When Gypsy was born, Dee-Dee claimed that Gypsy suffered from sleep apnea. At 8, Dee-Dee reported that Gypsy suffered from leukemia and muscular dystrophy. Gypsy was portrayed as a girl who could not walk or eat half of the treats kids her age could. Dee-Dee went on about how Gypsy suffered many dangerous issues such as seizures, asthma, and the list goes on. Additionally, Gypsy went through many painful surgical procedures. She spent years in a wheelchair and ate from a feeding tube. People felt sympathy and pity for them as a single mother and a disabled child could not “afford” the care they required. Hospitals, NGOs, government individuals, celebrities, you name it; they all showered them with love, affection, and most importantly, money.
Unfortunately, all of those donations were superfluous. Gypsy could walk. She didn’t have cancer; her mother just shaved her head every day. She did not require a feeding tube. She did not require hearing and visual aids and she did not require the medicines she was consuming on a daily basis! She was a perfectly healthy child. When they lived with her father, Rob, their family members could notice that she did not require a wheelchair; so Dee-Dee packed her bags and took Gypsy with her.
The problem lies with the mother. Dee-Dee was allegedly believed to suffer from a mental illness known as Munchausen Syndrome by proxy which led her to execute all of her horrid actions. The worst part was that Gypsy did not know that her mother was manipulating millions as well as herself. She appeared to be a charming, loving, and ‘everything for her child’ type of mother but her actions, uncovered later on, say otherwise. She forced Gypsy to unintentionally commit multiple crimes such as pathological lying about being a Hurricane Katrina victim that required medical and financial assistance right after they left her father’s house.
Now, the turning point. Gypsy was not allowed to have friends because Dee-Dee worried she would tell them her truth; if she found out. Well, eventually she did. She found out that she was not a sick child. Dee-Dee stopped her from talking to the neighbours, friends, and family. If she did, Dee-Dee would physically abuse her and not give her food. However, Gypsy signed up on a Christian dating website that Dee-Dee was not aware of and found herself a boyfriend, Nicholas Godejohn, in no time. Dee-Dee eventually did find out and forbade it, but Gypsy was still talking to him. A few months later, Gypsy told him the truth and convinced him to kill her. They were both convicted of 1st and 2nd degree murder for stabbing her multiple times all over her body.