Growing up, Gypsy Rose Blanchard was raised to believe that she was physically and mentally disabled. Her mother, Clauddine “Dee Dee” Blanchard, claimed that she had many illnesses, such as leukemia and epilepsy. Even when Gypsy grew old enough to start questioning her mother’s claims, she was physically abused and forced to go along with the story.
Secluded from other people and the outside world, Gypsy relied on the internet to discover what she was missing out on. After talking to a boy online for a few days, they soon decided to begin dating.
After finding out about Gypsy’s situation, the couple devised a plan to kill her mother. Soon after the plan was executed, they were caught and sent to court. They confessed to the murder of Clauddine, and Gypsy was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
On Dec. 28, 2023 at 3:30 a.m., Gypsy was released on parole. After it was announced that she would be free from prison, her story regained a lot of attention on social media. Many people welcomed her back, excited to hear that she would soon be free.
After being released, she posted a picture on Instagram captioned “First selfie of freedom!” She quickly gained millions of followers, and her post got millions of likes and a lot of support. While some people were celebrating her freedom, others thought that her glorification was a bit odd.
Gypsy admitted that she never wanted to be famous, but she wants to use her platform to help others and spread awareness for mental health. Recently, she told her story on a show called The Prison Confessions of Gypsy Rose Blanchard, and she has done many interviews. On social media, she spreads awareness about Munchausen syndrome by proxy, the mental illness her mother experienced that lead her to lie about Gypsy’s illnesses.
Moving forward, Gypsy plans to continue to spread positivity. She wants to use her story to help others, and spread awareness about mental health issues.
