<ul class="summary-list"><li>Munchausen syndrome by proxy is a form of child abuse where a parent or carer fabricates symptoms of illness in a child.</li><li>It is also known as fabricated or induced illness (FII), per the UK's National Health Service.</li></ul>"I really did think it was me and my mom against the world. I thought she was my best friend," Jordyn Hope, a Munchausen by proxy advocate who was medically abused by their mother, told Business Insider.Munchausen syndrome by proxy, also known as <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/fabricated-or-induced-illness/overview/">fabricated or induced illness (FII)</a>, is a form of child abuse that grabbed headlines late last year following the release of Gypsy Rose Blanchard from prison.Blanchard served eight years after being convicted for her role in the murder of her mother, Clauddine "Dee Dee" Blanchard."I just wanted out of my situation, and I thought that was the only way out," Gypsy Rose Blanchard said in an interview on <a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/GMA/status/1743252348409889018">Good Morning America</a> following her release.Following Blanchard's arrest, it came to light that Dee Dee had spent much of Gypsy Rose's life persuading her and others that her daughter was terminally ill and forcing her to undergo many unnecessary medical procedures.While Blanchard's story was an extraordinary tale of deceit and abuse, she is one of many to have suffered from the abuse.Business Insider spoke to several experts and one victim about who typically carries out the crime.<div type="image" title="Gypsy Rose Blanchard attends &quot;The Prison Confessions Of Gypsy Rose Blanchard&quot; Red Carpet Event on January 05, 2024 in New York City." height="683" width="1024" msid="107757639" hostid="261" sizebytes="33820"></div>Hope, whose pronouns are they/them, said their mother subjected them to numerous hospital visits and treatments for made-up illnesses."My mom claimed I had rare blood diseases, saying I had neutropenia which is a rare disease that affects white blood cells," they said.Hope now knows that they don't have neutropenia, but they were made to believe they did until the age of 22.They were even put through unnecessary major back surgery and a spinal fusion at 15, leaving them with four screws and two rods in their back, they added.Hope's story is reflective of a much wider pattern that shows that women are often behind the abuse.<h2>Studies suggest moms are often the perpetrators</h2>A study published by the <a target="_blank" href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28750264/">National Library of Medicine in 2017</a> found that in many cases of Munchausen by proxy, women were the perpetrators.The report, which looked at 796 cases of the abuse, found that 97.6% of the offenders were women and 95.6% were the victim's mother.Beatrice Yorker, a professor at the California State University, Los Angeles's College of Health, told BI that this was likely due to "women's roles in society.""This is their domain. This is where women have the utmost power and control over their children," she said.Marc Feldman, an expert in Munchausen by proxy, agreed, saying that as women are frequently the primary caregivers for children, "they simply have more access" — and it is often a "crime of opportunity."<a target="_blank" href="https://www.nobodyshouldbelieveme.com/">Andrea Dunlop, who created the podcast Nobody Should Believe Me</a>, a hit true crime show about Munchausen by proxy, said "abusers will look for places where they have power because abuse is an abuse of power.""One of the only places that we give women authority is over children. This arena of managing a child's medical care is the place where we cede full authority to the female parents," Dunlop added.Father figures are also often absent in cases of Munchausen by proxy, Hope added.This was the case for Blanchard, whose parents separated shortly before she was born.Rod Blanchard had been so in the dark about his daughter's true health that the first time he saw her walk was in a news report on her arraignment hearing following Dee Dee's murder, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/michelledean/dee-dee-wanted-her-daughter-to-be-sick-gypsy-wanted-her-mom">BuzzFeed News</a> reported.He said he was so confused that his first thought was how happy he was that she was walking, per the report.<h2></h2><div type="image" title="dee dee and gypsy rose in front of a home. gypsy rose is in a wheelchair in front of a wooden ramp and they're both smiling" height="1641" width="2560" msid="107757641" hostid="261" sizebytes="217530"></div><h2>Why Munchausen by proxy occurs</h2>There is no definite answer as to why this form of abuse occurs, but the UK's National Health Service (<a target="_blank" href="https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/fabricated-or-induced-illness/overview/">NHS</a>) says it may be influenced by the the parent or carer attempting to gain something, "such as attention, support or closeness to the child."It adds that it may also stem from having "anxiety or incorrect beliefs about their child's health, and they need these beliefs to be confirmed and acted upon."Perpetrators are usually seeking "attention, sympathy, and care," Feldman said, adding that this could become exasperated in women after giving birth, when their personalities can be "subsumed under the category of mother or superwoman.""They're defined by their children, not by their own achievements," he said.Emma Milne, an associate professor in criminal law and criminal justice from the University of Durham whose research interests include gender and crime, told BI that she believed fabricated illness as a form of abuse was "mostly a consequence of a psychiatric condition."The NHS notes that many of the perpetrators of the abuse have "borderline personality disorders characterised by emotional instability, impulsiveness and disturbed thinking."

Gypsy Rose Blanchard was a victim of Munchausen by proxy. Experts explain why moms are often behind the abuse.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Kelly Renee Turner was sentenced to 16 years of prison for child abuse leading to the death of her daughter.</li><li>Turner made her 7-year-old get unnecessary medical treatments and eventually signed a do-not-resuscitate order.</li></ul>A Colorado woman who pleaded guilty last month to charges of child abuse causing the death of her 7-year-old daughter was sentenced to 16 years of prison on Wednesday.Kelly Renee Turner, 43, put her daughter Olivia through years of unnecessary medical treatment that eventually led to her death in 2017, the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/10/us/kelly-turner-olivia-gant.html">New York Times</a> reported. In a 2019 indictment, prosecutors said Turner first requested treatments for constipation and developmental delays when Olivia was 2 years old. She continued approving "surgery after surgery" and eventually put her daughter in hospice care, where she insisted on a do-not-resuscitate order.Turner's stepfather believes that she had a mental disorder called <keyword id="13147345" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="munchausen-syndrome" source="Orion">Munchausen syndrome</keyword> by proxy, meaning she induced illness in her otherwise healthy child to get attention, the family's lawyers said in a statement reported by the Times."This is a despicable crime," John Kellner, the district attorney, said in the statement. "This defendant deserves to serve years behind bars."<h2>Prosecutors said Turner tried to do the same with another daughter</h2>Turner was arrested in 2018 after seeking unnecessary treatments for another daughter, prompting concern from doctors and welfare workers. Prosecutors said doctors connected the dots once they heard about Olivia's death from a "mysterious, untreatable illness."The other daughter's condition improved after she was removed from Turner's care, prosecutors said.The illness scam didn't stop at unnecessary treatments, <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/colorado-mom-fatally-abused-child-faked-illness-make-wish-gifts-gets-1-rcna15674">NBC</a> reported. Turner raised between $100,000 and $1 million in charity money and gifts, not to mention more than $500,000 from Medicaid to cover her daughter's care, prosecutors said.Turner also made sure the news cameras were rolling for many of Olivia's charity experiences, such as a <a href="https://ourcommunitynow.com/news-local/littleton-girl-transforms-into-bat-princess-thanks-to-make-a-wish-foundation">"bat princess" party</a> hosted by Make-A-Wish at a hotel that cost $11,000, NBC reported.Along with negligible child abuse, Turner pleaded guilty to charges of theft and charitable fraud. She was initially charged with first-degree murder as well, but the prosecution dropped the murder charges after Turner's plea.Olivia's cause of death, originally listed as intestinal failure, is still not clear. Doctors who testified said Turner's call to stop feeding her daughter likely contributed to her death.The Turner case echoes the story of <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/michelledean/dee-dee-wanted-her-daughter-to-be-sick-gypsy-wanted-her-mom">Dee Dee Blanchard</a>, who had her daughter Gypsy Rose medicated and using a wheelchair and a feeding tube for much of her life to make her appear ill. It turned out Gypsy was not actually sick, but many of the details of the case died with Dee Dee when Gypsy had her murdered in 2015.

Mom sentenced to 16 years for signing off on medical treatments that killed her healthy daughter

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Ohio authorities have accused a woman of faking her daughter's cancer diagnosis to raise money.</li><li>One local organization donated $8,000 to the child's purported medical expenses.</li></ul>Authorities in Ohio say a woman faked her daughter's cancer diagnosis and used it to raise thousands of dollars in online fundraisers for her treatment.The Noble County Sheriff's Office <a target="_blank" href="https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=681626940812388&amp;id=100068952648446&amp;mibextid=9R9pXO">said Wednesday</a> that deputies arrested Pamela Reed, 41, on January 4 and charged her with theft by deception, a fourth-degree felony. A judge set Reed's bond at $50,000, authorities said in their statement.The sheriff's office said it received a tip that a local child was being used to improperly raise money based on the public portrayal that they had cancer. Several local organizations donated money to the child, including one that made a donation of $8,000, the sheriff's office said.According to a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/24356846-preed-affidavit-of-facts">probable cause affidavit</a> obtained by <a target="_blank" href="https://lawandcrime.com/crime/mother-who-allegedly-faked-daughters-cancer-for-cash-grab-arrested/">Law &amp; Crime</a>, administrators at Reed's child's school contacted police after performing an eye exam showing that her daughter could see out of her right eye, which Reed previously claimed she was blind in.Authorities said in the document that school officials noted that Reed's child has already missed more than 280 hours of school this school year.According to the sheriff's statement, Reed admitted to exaggerating and fabricating her child's condition to solicit donations from the local organizations."Child abuse and neglect isn't always cut and dry, cookie cutter scenarios," the sheriff's department said. "If you as a professional or as a member of our community feel like something just isn't quite right, don't hesitate, make the report."Fundraising scams are not uncommon in the United States. In 2022, Kelly Turner of Colorado was sentenced to 16 years in prison after signing off on unnecessary medical treatments that killed her daughter, Olivia. Turner raised tens of thousands of dollars in donations for her daughter and received over $500,000 from Medicaid, according to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/10/us/kelly-turner-olivia-gant.html">The New York Times</a>.An attorney told The Times that Turner's family believed Turner had Munchausen syndrome by proxy, meaning she deliberately induced illness in her child to get attention.Another similar case is that of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/who-is-gypsy-rose-blanchard-convict-becoming-internet-top-influencer-2024-1">Gypsy Rose Blanchard</a>. Her mother, Clauddine "Dee Dee" Blanchard, falsely proclaimed her daughter suffered from leukemia and muscular dystrophy, among other diseases, for years, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-munchausen-by-proxy-2024-1&amp;post-bottom-piano-recommendations">soliciting donations and even a house from Habitat for Humanity</a> along the way.Gypsy Rose Blanchard and her boyfriend Nicholas Godejohn plotted to kill Clauddine Blanchard, and in June 2015, Godejohn stabbed her to death.Blanchard, 32, was released on parole in December after serving eight years for the second-degree murder of her mother. Godejohn was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison.

Ohio woman charged after police say she faked her daughter's cancer diagnosis to raise thousands of dollars

It was December 28, 2023. <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/who-is-gypsy-rose-blanchard-convict-becoming-internet-top-influencer-2024-1">Gypsy Rose Blanchard-Anderson had just been released from a Missouri prison</a>. Mere hours later, she was <a target="_blank" href="https://www.etonline.com/gypsy-rose-blanchard-spotted-for-the-first-time-since-being-released-from-prison-pic-217036">photographed by paparazzi</a> with her husband Ryan Anderson, whom she married while in prison, carting suitcases from a hotel as she began to live her life for the first time as a free woman.Getting photographed by the paparazzi is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Blanchard-Anderson's still-novel status as a cultural icon. Her release from prison coincided with not only the premiere of a Lifetime docuseries, "The Prison Confessions of Gypsy Rose Blanchard," but an ebook titled "Released: Conversations on the Eve of Freedom," containing interview transcripts with her co-authors from her time in prison. Between premiere events, appearances on shows like "The View," and a<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/who-is-gypsy-rose-blanchard-convict-becoming-internet-top-influencer-2024-1"> social media following now tallied in the millions</a>, Blanchard-Anderson is more in the spotlight now than she's ever been.With newfound visibility has come a wave of support, turning Blanchard-Anderson into a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/jan/26/abc-interview-gypsy-rose-blanchard-viral-fame">social media star</a> of sorts. It's a surprise for the 32-year-old, who was released in the final days of 2023 after serving 85% of her original 10-year sentence for second-degree murder in relation to the killing of her mother, Dee Dee Blanchard.The story of Blanchard, who is now believed to have had <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-munchausen-by-proxy-2024-1">Munchausen by proxy</a> and subjected her daughter to numerous unnecessary medical procedures as a child, has been told on screen numerous times, most notably in the HBO documentary "Mommy Dead and Dearest" and the fictionalized Hulu series "The Act," while Blanchard-Anderson sat in prison.In "The Prison Confessions," Blanchard-Anderson finally gets to tell her own story. It's an opportunity that executive producer Melissa Moore, who also co-authored Blanchard-Anderson's ebook, wanted to give her after first meeting Blanchard-Anderson in 2017. But according to Moore, Blanchard-Anderson didn't anticipate — nevermind engineer — the media storm that followed her release.The two also share something in common: Both of their lives in the public sphere have been tied to a crime — one that they've had to see reinterpreted and imagined in both documentary and fictional properties. Moore has written and spoken extensively about being the<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/melissa-moore-daughter-happy-face-killer-experience-2022-10"> daughter of Keith Jesperson, also known as the "Happy Face Killer."</a>Moore spoke with Business Insider about how she ended up working in true crime, setting boundaries with her documentary subjects, and how Blanchard-Anderson's shocking post-prison popularity wasn't something she intended.<div type="image" title="gypsy rose blanchard in prison, wearing a beige uniform and a necklace with a silver pendant. her hair is long, brown, and curly, and she's smiling" height="1295" width="1726" msid="107189365" hostid="261" sizebytes="54008"></div>How did you initially get in contact with Gypsy seven years ago?I was working for "The Dr. Oz Show" at the time as a true-crime correspondent, and "<a target="_blank" class="" href="https://affiliate.insider.com?h=eae40ddfac34e50265e18d3cce767591d56f3aac5972573ebe3aaba1f85df1c6&amp;postID=65b43959cf59bc3d9e76ba7d&amp;postSlug=gypsy-rose-blanchard-tiktok-instagram-fame-producer-interview-2024-1&amp;site=bi&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.max.com%2F%3Futm_id%3Dsa%257C71700000110368789%257C58700008644046090%257Cp79114953845%26gclid%3DCj0KCQiAh8OtBhCQARIsAIkWb68WMqLPUkVL1NB6epAVKNIsZ89wWwv_jHebjx7i6ts6rJqQeKakSt0aArHgEALw_wcB%26gclsrc%3Daw.ds">Mommy Dead and Dearest</a>" by Erin Carr had just been released. They wanted to invite Gypsy on to talk about the doc, so the show actually flew me to Chillicothe Prison. I made the request for her to meet with me and she agreed.I flew in and met her in the general population meeting room. When you go to a prison, it's a very different environment than just visiting someone for coffee at Starbucks. I handed her the coins for the vending machine. She's like, "Oh, no, no, no." She shoved my hand away. "I can't take it." And I had to go to the vending machine and pick what she wanted because she can't touch any coins. When she started to cry at one point in the conversation, I touched her arm and she's like, "Oh no, you can't touch me." It's kind of jarring.I asked her if she'd be interested in talking more about the doc, and she said no. At that point, this was a lot for her to just even talk. And I said, "Well, let's stay in touch." And then we started to talk about guys. She wanted advice about boys and relationship advice. And the conversation went off that.I felt immediately that this is a girl; this was a young lady who was becoming a woman. And that's instantly what I felt when I met her, is that she's a woman becoming.You've written and spoken pretty extensively about your own story. What made you decide to work in true-crime media after that?Well, one thing that Gypsy and I had in common was that we both had pain in our life. And I think we both related to each other in the sense that people think they know us based on a crime. I know there was more to me in relation to my father than what was told in the media, so I also understood that aspect for Gypsy. We both were connected to people that I would say were narcissistic, or they had mental health issues, and so I could relate to Gypsy on that level too. Outsiders are telling our story, and we don't have a say in it.That's what got me into creating documentaries: wanting to give the microphone to the people that need to have it, the people whose stories are being talked about. They should have a say in how their story is perceived, and not just perceived, but the truth. Because there's a lot of misconceptions when there's dramatizations or movies based on your life or your parents' crimes, and people take it as nonfiction.I saw that happening with, in particular, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/the-act-hulu-cast-vs-real-people-gypsy-rose-blanchard-2019-3">"The Act,"</a> for Gypsy. While it got a lot of things correct, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gypsy-rose-blanchard-the-act-not-involved-affected-prison-life-2024-1">Gypsy was not a part of "The Act."</a> That's a misconception that people have, that she participated in that. She was in prison while people were playing her as a character in Hollywood.Getting <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/2019-emmys-nominees-winners-2019-7">Emmy nominations</a> for playing her, too.Yeah. She was a janitor sweeping the floors while actresses are getting awards being her. I don't think people understand how it can skew your identity. What am I, then? Am I a character? Am I a real person?<div type="image" title="joey king gypsy rose blanchard the act" height="4912" width="6549" msid="107189366" hostid="261" sizebytes="2886802"></div>To me, documentaries are very empowering because you get to give the floor to the subject to say what they need to say. And Gypsy had multiple years working with me to say everything she wanted to say, and I felt really good about having that premiere, knowing that people thought they knew her, but they were going to see her in a different way.The media buzz around Gypsy's release has been really intriguing, between the Lifetime series and "Released," plus how vocal she's been on social media and during her press tour. What has it been like to see her take ownership of her narrative like that, both as a producer and as a friend?Well, as a friend — I have adult children and they graduated from high school — it feels kind of like a graduation day, in the sense that she served her sentence of eight-and-a-half years in prison. She became what we saw at the beginning of the doc, which is a frail, fragile, undernourished, shaven-head Gypsy, to this person who is in her 30s now. She's 32. And walking out in such a bold, public way is very surreal.But I'm proud of her because I know she's ready to take on what she has to take on because she has the help of a therapist. She has people, she has her family, which gives me so much comfort.It's been stunning to see the wave of support for her and there are lots of people rooting for her. But obviously, some people are critical of how visible she's become after her release.That's not her fault. That's my fault. It's my fault for airing a documentary at her release.I was curious about your thoughts on that.She genuinely did not know what she was walking into when she left. I actually recall when she was released, I had to tell her there was paparazzi. And she was shocked. She was like, "Why are they here?"She was so surprised. I mean, she wasn't expecting this level of attention, and she didn't plan this to be the case.I also think, genuinely, people were rooting for her to be released, and the fascination and the excitement for her release just compounded. It was bigger than her.You said in the docuseries press conference that from here on out, your role is to support Gypsy as she lives her life and makes her own choices. I'm curious what that means to you now that the documentary is released, and what hopes you have for her.With Gypsy, it was always about what she wants. I had to realign because my vision for her wasn't her vision for her.Her choice to get married in prison was one that I really grappled with. Actually, we didn't talk for about 30 days. When she broke the news to me that she was getting married, I was taken aback, and I told her that I honestly felt that she was making a mistake, and it felt like I couldn't protect her from herself. But as I got to know her intentions, and that she's a strong 32-year-old woman, she reminded me that she knows what's best for her.Her family felt the same way. We were all nervous about that choice for her, but she made that choice for her. Ultimately, that's what we have to do, is let people make their own choices. And that's what the 30-day pause was — for me, it was not about us being upset with each other. We were not. It was more about that I had to take a step back because I got too close.<div type="image" title="ryan anderson and gypsy rose blanchard-anderson together on the red carpet for her docuseries, smiling and looking at each other while standing closely together" height="3438" width="4585" msid="107189475" hostid="261" sizebytes="364274"></div>How do you manage that kind of deep investment in your subjects as a producer or writer?That was my first fall, and my mistake was that I did get too invested in seeing a vision for her. Because I did: I pictured her being released from prison, and I saw her living this independent female life and dating on the outside. I had a whole vision for her. And then I came to realize that she has a different vision for her. But that was the learning lesson, is that I need to go back to being the observer. And there have to be boundaries.After that 30-day pause, we reduced the amount of time that we were actually talking. We were talking weekly at that point, and I was doing recordings with her every Tuesday. And so then, I made it so we were just doing recordings once a month or every couple of weeks, and taking a step back and being more of the observer and not giving any advice. Because that's what friends do, but producers don't give advice.I imagine that's a difficult boundary to set.Right now, I'm really happy that she has a therapist and she has her family, because now what I can say to her is, "Hey, what does your therapist think?" I can hear her tell her story. I can listen and not have a response of, "Hey, I think you should do this, or that."Now my response is, "Oh, have you talked to your mom about this?" She calls her stepmom, Kristy, mom. "Have you talked to your mom about this? What does your dad think about this? How do you feel about this?" And just deflect back onto her own intuition and her own guidance, what she feels is best for her.<div type="image" title="rod, gypsy, and kristy blanchard posing together in prison. gypsy is in a prison uniform in the center and they're all smiling" height="1175" width="1567" msid="107189476" hostid="261" sizebytes="67672"></div>One of the most shocking bits in "Released" was that Gypsy said that she was considered "too well" to be able to see a therapist in prison. It's good to hear that she has one now. Is there anything else that you think people should know that we haven't touched on?I feel that people probably are concerned about the people that are in her life. She was isolated by a master manipulator and they wonder, is she safe now as a free woman? I can attest that she has a strong support system. Her father is protective, her mother is protective, her half-sister, Mia — I love Mia. I can always trust that Mia's going to say what I'm thinking, so I don't have to say it. Now I just say, "Gypsy, have you talked to Mia?"I'm excited for her future because there's a lot of life for her to live, and everything is new. I think Gypsy is getting her footing to become a very strong advocate in the medical community about health, and Munchausen by proxy. I think she's going to bring a lot of change in that area, and I'm excited to watch her do that.<blockquote class="tiktok-embed" cite="https://www.tiktok.com/@gypsyroseblanchard727/video/7324829597093219615" data-video-id="7324829597093219615" style="max-width: 605px;min-width: 325px;"> <section> <a target="_blank" title="@gypsyroseblanchard727" href="https://www.tiktok.com/@gypsyroseblanchard727?refer=embed">@gypsyroseblanchard727</a> Introduction into a discussion about Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy. This video is a discussion piece about mental health awareness, Please stay on topic. <a title="munchausenbyproxy" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/munchausenbyproxy?refer=embed">#munchausenbyproxy</a> <a title="mentalhealthawarenes" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/mentalhealthawarenes?refer=embed">#mentalhealthawarenes</a> <a title="gypsyroseblanchard" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/gypsyroseblanchard?refer=embed">#gypsyroseblanchard</a> <a target="_blank" title="♬ original sound - Gypsy Rose Blanchard" href="https://www.tiktok.com/music/original-sound-7324830324562250526?refer=embed">♬ original sound - Gypsy Rose Blanchard</a> </section> </blockquote> I saw Gypsy <a target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/@gypsyroseblanchard727/video/7324829597093219615?is_from_webapp=1&amp;sender_device=pc&amp;web_id=7192678209945847338">posted a TikTok</a> the other day starting to do that work, and explaining what Munchausen by proxy is. And I can imagine the comfort, in her position, to be able to actually see your medical chart.Can you imagine her fear when a doctor brings out a notepad and starts making notes? It's just probably going to bring back, "Well, what is he writing in that chart, and how does that affect me? Does he have more control over my body than I do?" And I think that's going to be something new that she's going to be exploring for herself, just how much more empowered she is with doctor's visits.It seems like people are really invested in her and her well-being. Though I can imagine the publicity, and social media attention, becoming overwhelming.That's one thing that I did notice while we were in public, is that people recognized her. When we go out to lunch and stuff, people's sentiment when they walk up to her is that they're wishing her well, and success in her life. And that's amazing to see, and I hope that it continues. I think she deserves those sentiments.This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity and length."The Prison Confessions of Gypsy Rose Blanchard" is available to stream in the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.mylifetime.com/shows/the-prison-confessions-of-gypsy-rose-blanchard/articles/where-to-watch">Lifetime app</a>.

Gypsy Rose Blanchard is everywhere. The woman behind her documentary says 'it's my fault.'

<ul class="summary-list"><li>"Take Care of Maya" follows the true story of Maya Kowalski and her family.</li><li>The state took Kowalski into custody after doctors said her mom made up a complex-pain diagnosis.</li></ul>Netflix's new documentary "Take Care of Maya" follows the story of Maya Kowalski's diagnosis of complex regional-pain syndrome, or CRPS, as a child and the family tragedy and court battle that followed. Maya first began exhibiting muscle weakness and burning sensations after a severe asthma attack in 2015 when she was 9, <a href="https://www.thecut.com/article/child-abuse-munchausen-syndrome-by-proxy.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Cut first reported in 2022.</a> After months of trying to figure out what was causing her symptoms, Maya's parents, Jack and Beata Kowalski, <a href="https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/local/venice/2019/01/27/doctors-suspicion-tears-apart-venice-family/986798007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">took their daughter to Anthony Kirkpatrick</a>, an anesthesiologist and CRPS expert in Tampa, Florida, and obtained a CRPS diagnosis later that year. Two other doctors later confirmed the same diagnosis, <a href="https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/local/venice/2019/01/27/doctors-suspicion-tears-apart-venice-family/986798007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Sarasota Herald-Tribune</a> reported.<a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/crps-complex-regional-pain-syndrome/symptoms-causes/syc-20371151" target="_blank" rel="noopener">According to Mayo Clinic</a>, CRPS is a rare form of chronic pain that usually develops after an injury or a medical event such as a stroke or a heart attack. A person with CRPS begins to feel pain "out of proportion to the severity of the initial injury."<a href="https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/local/venice/2019/01/27/doctors-suspicion-tears-apart-venice-family/986798007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kirkpatrick first put Maya on low doses of ketamine</a> to treat her pain, and when that didn't work, he recommended the family go to another country where Maya would be able to have a procedure that put her in a five-day ketamine-induced coma. The family then traveled to Mexico for the procedure, and after some recovery time, the treatment appeared to put Maya in remission from her CRPS symptoms.But <a href="https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/local/venice/2019/01/27/doctors-suspicion-tears-apart-venice-family/986798007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in October 2016</a>, the then-10-year-old girl expressed a relapse of symptoms, complaining of a severe stomach ache, and her family took her to Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital near the family's home in St. Petersburg, Florida. However, according to a <a href="https://ccmspa.pinellascounty.org/PublicAccess/ViewDocumentFragment.aspx?DocumentFragmentID=67139151&amp;CheckDocumentGroups=0">lawsuit</a> Jack Kowalski brought against the hospital, when the family informed doctors that Maya's CRPS had successfully been treated with ketamine and asked the medical team to up her dosages of the drug, doctors initially ignored their request. "It seemed like they didn't want to listen to what we were trying to tell them," Jack Kowalski <a href="https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/local/venice/2019/01/27/doctors-suspicion-tears-apart-venice-family/986798007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told the Herald-Tribune</a> in 2019.The medical team subsequently reported Beata for child abuse over Beata's insistence that Maya receive more ketamine to alleviate her pain, the <a href="https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/local/venice/2019/01/27/doctors-suspicion-tears-apart-venice-family/986798007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Herald-Tribune reported.</a> That report was quickly dismissed after child-welfare officials confirmed Maya's CRPS diagnosis.But then Sally Smith, a physician with over 30 years of child-abuse pediatrics experience who was also the medical director of the child-protection team for Pinellas County at the time, began looking into Maya's health history. After reviewing Maya's medical records and speaking to Kirkpatrick, Smith diagnosed Beata with <a href="https://www.insider.com/mother-accused-injuring-son-munchausen-by-proxy-2017-12">Munchausen syndrome by proxy</a>, a mental illness and form of child abuse in which a child's primary caretaker fakes the child's illness to gain attention for themselves. Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital refused to discharge Maya into the custody of her parents, and the state of Florida was awarded temporary custody of Maya.Smith's determination that Beata was abusing her daughter and the events that followed changed the lives of the Kowalski family forever — and helped expose alarming deficiencies in court systems and hospital care. Here's everything we know about where Maya, her family, and other key players in the story are now.<h2>Beata Kowalski died by suicide after being separated from her daughter for months</h2><div type="image" title="Maya and her mother, Beata Kowalski." height="1828" width="2437" msid="101418142" hostid="261"></div>Beata Kowalski was <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/registered-nurses-worst-part-being-nurse-jobs-2019-5">trained as a registered nurse</a> at the time Maya was admitted to All Children's Hospital with her CRPS relapse in 2016. Less than a week after Maya's admission, doctors accused Beata of child abuse, and Smith diagnosed Beata with Munchausen syndrome by proxy, with Maya being put into state care shortly after. Maya was only allowed supervised phone calls with her parents. In June 2023, Beata's husband <a href="https://people.com/take-care-of-maya-munchausen-by-proxy-accusation-maya-kowalski-mom-death-by-suicide-7509016" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told People</a> that his wife had begun "deteriorating" due to the limited contact with their daughter. <a href="https://people.com/take-care-of-maya-munchausen-by-proxy-accusation-maya-kowalski-mom-death-by-suicide-7509016" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Beata died by suicide in January 2017</a> at age 43, after spending months separated from Maya.According to court documents seen by Insider, Beata voiced that she felt "depression, fatigue, and an overwhelming sense of hopelessness" in the months before her death."I'm sorry, but I no longer can take the pain being away from Maya and being treated like a criminal. I cannot watch my daughter suffer in pain and keep getting worse," Beata wrote in an email discovered after her death, <a href="https://people.com/take-care-of-maya-munchausen-by-proxy-accusation-maya-kowalski-mom-death-by-suicide-7509016" target="_blank" rel="noopener">People</a> reported.Less than a month after Beata's death, an independent court-appointed psychologist, Tashawna Duncan, <a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5695842-Duncan-Report.html%20">filed her evaluation</a>, which found there was "no evidence" to support the idea that Beata had faked her daughter's condition, with the courts. Dr. Marc Feldman, an expert on Munchausen syndrome by proxy and other factitious diseases, told the <a href="https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/local/venice/2019/01/27/doctors-suspicion-tears-apart-venice-family/986798007/">Herald-Tribune</a> that if Beata had the condition, he would have expected Maya to show "evidence for improvement sooner" than the three-and-a-½ months that she was in the hospital — but she kept getting worse.<h2>Maya Kowalski now lives with her brother and father in Florida</h2><h2><div type="image" title="Maya Kowalski." height="1828" width="2437" msid="101418144" hostid="261"></div></h2>Maya was released into her father's custody five days after her mother's death, <a href="https://people.com/take-care-of-maya-munchausen-by-proxy-accusation-maya-kowalski-mom-death-by-suicide-7509016" target="_blank" rel="noopener">People reported</a>. She eventually recovered from her CRPS flare-up, but a court order prevented doctors from using ketamine to treat it. Her family told People that she used alternative methods, such as water therapy, and her recovery was "slower and more painful than it needed to be."The now-17-year-old lives with her father and brother in Florida and has full use of her arms and legs, but her CRPS hasn't completely subsided, and Maya Kowalski said the condition still keeps her up some nights in pain. "I've already missed a lot, so I want to make the most of life now," she told People. Maya uses daily intense exercise to manage her pain and has placed first in a figure-skating tournament, The Cut reported.<h2>The Kowalskis are fighting the medical system in court </h2><div type="image" title="From left: Kyle Kowalski, Maya Kowalski, and Jack Kowalski in court." height="1828" width="3840" msid="101418147" hostid="261"></div>The Kowalski family filed a <a href="https://ccmspa.pinellascounty.org/PublicAccess/ViewDocumentFragment.aspx?DocumentFragmentID=67139151&amp;CheckDocumentGroups=0">lawsuit</a> against Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital, Florida's Department of Children and Families, Smith, the social worker Catherine "Cathi" Bedy, and Suncoast Center Inc., the company that employed Smith at the time of Maya's hospital stay.Together, the Kowalski family is attending the ongoing court proceedings."For us as a family to move on, we need to fulfill my mom's wish and fight," Maya told People. "I want justice for my mom."According to the documentary, the trial is set to commence in September 2023.<h2>The Kowalski family is suing the social worker Cathi Bedy, who they learned had been accused of child abuse in the past</h2><h2><div type="image" title="Cathi Bedy in &quot;Take Care of Maya.&quot;" height="1357" width="1810" msid="101418149" hostid="261"></div></h2>"Take Care of Maya" shows Cathi Bedy, the social worker who was assigned to Maya at the hospital while she was in state custody, monitoring Maya's phone calls with her mother. Bedy declined several of Beata's attempted FaceTime calls with her daughter, The Cut reported.Maya said in a court deposition featured in the documentary that in January 2017, Bedy forced her to take pictures in a bra and shorts before a court hearing, telling her that it was for the risk-management department. According to Maya, Bedy told her that if she didn't comply, she'd be banned from seeing her mother. "I was crying and saying, 'No, stop,'" Maya wrote in a deposition included in a legal filing cited by The Cut. "But she wouldn't stop. Bedy pinned me face down and either she or the nurse took photos of me in my training bra and shorts."The Kowalski family later learned that Bedy had previously been arrested and charged with child abuse in another case.According to <a href="https://www.tampabay.com/archive/2007/06/21/two-mental-health-workers-are-jailed/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Tampa Bay Times</a>, in 2007 Bedy was accused of grabbing a boy's head at a Suncoast mental-health facility, causing him to fall, and then placing her knees on his chest. When the 10-year-old boy, who was a client at Suncoast, turned red in the face and said he couldn't breathe, Bedy, who was a manager at Suncoast at the time, replied, "Yes you can," according to an affidavit cited by the Tampa Bay Times. At that point, other Suncoast employees called the police. Bedy denied putting her knees on the boy in a deposition for that case, The Cut reported.Bedy and a therapist at Suncoast were each charged with one count of felony child abuse, the Tampa Bay Times reported, but according to the Netflix documentary, those charges were later dropped. Suncoast fired Bedy after the incident.<a href="https://affiliate.insider.com?h=8be0f445a684fe31e7da35638679fdcbb4da79499d096b561686d35a4f89882b&amp;postID=649af902506ab8183459ab09&amp;site=in&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Fcathi-bedy-78a98aa%2F" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bedy's apparent LinkedIn profile</a> indicates that she still practices social work in Clearwater, Florida. <h2>Smith settled her lawsuit with the Kowalski family and recently retired</h2><div type="image" title="Dr. Sally Smith." height="1302" width="1737" msid="101418153" hostid="261"></div>Smith determined that Beata had Munchausen by proxy syndrome, and because Maya had a ketamine treatment in Mexico for her CRPS, Smith assumed Maya's parents were "doctor shopping" for a diagnosis. Smith also had a reputation for removing children from parental custody at a high rate, according to "Take Care of Maya."<a href="https://www.thecut.com/article/child-abuse-munchausen-syndrome-by-proxy.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Per The Cut's report,</a> there are at least 12 cases on record where Smith determined a child's caretaker was abusing them only for the child to ultimately be returned to their caretaker, for the charges to be dropped, or for Florida's Department of Children and Families to reverse their order separating the child from their caretaker.Smith was at the center of another high-profile case in 2021, <a href="https://www.thecut.com/article/child-abuse-munchausen-syndrome-by-proxy.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Cut</a> reported, when she determined that the former "American Idol" contestant Syesha Mercado's son was suffering from malnutrition as a result of neglect after Mercado brought her son to Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital for feeding issues. <a href="https://www.insider.com/syesha-mercado-children-florida-amen-ra-american-idol-baby-cps-2021-8">Mercado's son, and later her newborn daughter, were both removed from her custody</a> because of Smith's determination. Mercado retained a team of attorneys to fight the state and was ultimately able to <a href="https://people.com/parents/syesha-mercado-reunites-with-son-after-months-long-custody-battle/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">regain custody of both of her children by October 2021</a>, after her story went viral with celebrities including Kim Kardashian calling attention to it.Maya said in the film that Smith told her that her pain was in her head and that her parents made it up. Smith retired in 2023, and Smith and Suncoast settled their portion of the lawsuit with the Kowalskis earlier in 2023 for $2.5 million in damages, The Cut reported. She never experienced any formal professional consequences in the Kowalski case and maintained that her investigation into Maya's case, and all the cases in her career, had been properly conducted."My job is not to make mistakes," she told The Cut. "To my knowledge, I don't have any cases where I've made an incorrect conclusion.""<a href="https://www.netflix.com/title/81349305" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Take Care of Maya</a>" <a href="https://www.netflix.com/title/81349305" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is streaming now on Netflix</a>.

Netflix's new documentary 'Take Care Of Maya' follows a little girl's rare disease diagnosis and the family tragedy that followed. Here's where Maya Kowalski, her family, and other key figures are today.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Graham Chase Robinson continued on the witness stand in her $12 million gender discrimination against <a target="_blank" href="https://www.insider.com/robert-de-niro-trial-testimony-call-assistant-grandmother-funeral-2023-10">Robert De Niro</a>.</li><li>She and a co-worker could be heard comparing notes on De Niro's current and former partners in secret audio she took.</li></ul>It seems there wasn't a woman in Robert De Niro's orbit that his former executive assistant didn't spar with.Graham Chase Robinson, continued on the witness stand Monday in her $12 million gender discrimination and retaliation claim against the two-time Oscar-winning actor and his company Canal Productions in Manhattan federal court, detailing her feuds with his ex-wife, Grace Hightower, his current girlfriend, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.insider.com/robert-deniro-assistant-gender-discrimination-trial-tiffany-chen-2023-11">Tiffany Chen</a>, and his business partner, Jane Rosenthal, CEO of Tribeca Enterprises.Robinson, who worked for De Niro from 2008 to 2019, claims that <a target="_blank" href="https://www.insider.com/robert-de-niro-testifies-trial-uber-martini-nobu-2023-10">De Niro</a> verbally abused her, relegated her to "stereotypical duties like housework" and paid her less than male employees because she was a single career woman who didn't have a family to support. De Niro has denied the allegations, calling them "all nonsense."De Niro hit back with a countersuit against the former executive assistant claiming she stole five million frequent flyer miles from him and racked up thousands of dollars on unauthorized taxi fares, pricey restaurants, and gourmet groceries on his company's American Express Gold card. The "Cape Fear" actor also said she spent her days binging Netflix while she claimed to be overworked. In court documents, Robinson <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/article/robert-de-niro-trial-gender-discrimination.html">denied these allegations</a>, The New York Times reported.The jury in this trial will decide on both suits at the same time, and the jurors have already heard an <a target="_blank" href="https://www.insider.com/robert-deniro-trial-staffers-air-dirty-laundry-2023-11">airing of dirty laundry</a> in the case.In secret audio recordings played in court made by Robinson, she and a co-worker could be heard comparing notes on De Niro's current and former love interests."Who do you think is worse Grace or Tiffany?" Robinson asks the actor's accountant, Michael Tasch."Tiffany," he responds. "She's a fucking psychopath. I figured her out in about two minutes. She thought she was Mrs. De Niro from the beginning. Every time she gets off the phone with him, she's mad at him."The ex-wife doesn't fare much better in employee ranking.In the recording, Robinson referred to Hightower as "fucking nuts" and "the devil you knew" who would "bully" her and stare her down.Robinson already testified last Friday that she clashed instantly with Chen, an actor and martial arts expert who moved in with De Niro in the fall of 2018.Robinson said that she believed that Chen was jealous of her relationship with the "Raging Bull" actor and wanted her out of the couple's lives.When Chen complained she was getting sick from a mold problem in the actor's Upper Eastside townhouse, lawyers for De Niro aim to show that Robinson dragged her heels on mitigating the health problem. Instead of fulfilling her obligation to her employer's girlfriend, she can be heard on recordings played in court calling Chen a "sociopath" who suffered from Munchausen syndrome — a psychological condition in which the afflicted person fabricates the ailment.Tribeca boss Rosenthal, De Niro's business partner, was also the target of Robinson's ire.The ambitious assistant hoped to leverage her position as the actor's high-paid gofer into a career in film development and producing, but she thought Rosenthal was holding her back.De Niro's lawyers showed the jury a list that enumerated all of the slights she suffered from Rosenthal.Her gripes range from not being acknowledged in Tribeca productions she assisted with to vague statements, like "Vendetta against me" and "Picks on me."Robinson testified on Friday that she had heard De Niro refer to Rosenthal as a "bitch" and "cunt."The executive assistant, who enjoyed lavish perks like, free air travel, $15,000 Christmas bonuses, and a Rolex watch — compliments of De Niro — on her birthday, must also defend herself from the "Taxi Driver" actor's countersuit claiming she stole from him and breached her fiduciary duty to his company.Lawyers for De Niro on Monday sought to show that Robinson used her company benefits for her personal gain, including flying to London on the actor's dime so she could pitch her own film project to a producer there.Her testimony is expected to continue on Tuesday.

De Niro's former assistant's secret recordings comparing the actor's current and former partners played in court

<ul class="summary-list"><li>"Take Care of Maya" follows Maya Kowalski and her family after her hospitalization due to a rare pain disorder.</li><li>Her mother Beata died by suicide after being misdiagnosed with mental illness and accused of child abuse.</li></ul>The Netflix documentary "Take Care of Maya," released in June, chronicles <a href="https://www.insider.com/where-is-maya-kowalski-now-take-care-of-maya-netflix-2023-6">Maya Kowalski</a> and her family's heartbreaking journey through the US healthcare and court systems. And their legal battle is continuing offscreen.Here's everything to know about the Kowalski family's case against Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital (JHACH), the facility where Maya was treated and later "imprisoned," according to the family.<h2>Maya Kowalski entered JHACH in October 2016 amid a flare-up of her rare pain disorder</h2>Maya, now 17, was 9 years old when she first began experiencing unexplained symptoms like muscle weakness and burning sensations. According to <a href="https://www.thecut.com/article/child-abuse-munchausen-syndrome-by-proxy.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Cut</a>, Maya's symptoms started after she had a severe asthma attack in 2015.After those symptoms persisted, Maya's parents Jack and Beata took their daughter to doctors all around the country in search of answers before Dr. Anthony Kirkpatrick, an anesthesiologist and CRPS expert in Tampa, Florida, identified that the girl had a <a href="https://www.insider.com/what-is-crps-maya-kowalski-netflix-documentary-2023-7">rare pain disorder called complex regional-pain syndrome (CRPS)</a>. Two additional doctors later confirmed the diagnosis, according to <a href="https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/local/venice/2019/01/27/doctors-suspicion-tears-apart-venice-family/986798007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.</a>Kirkpatrick first put Maya on low doses of ketamine to treat her symptoms. According <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/crps-complex-regional-pain-syndrome/symptoms-causes/syc-20371151" target="_blank" rel="noopener">to The Mayo Clinic</a>, Maya and other patients with CRPS can experience pain that is "out of proportion to the severity of the initial injury." When Kirkpatrick's ketamine dosage didn't work, the doctor recommended that Maya go under a five-day ketamine coma, a procedure that could only be done in Mexico, according to the Herald-Tribune. After some recovery time, the treatment appeared to put Maya's CRPS symptoms into remission.But Maya experienced a relapse of symptoms in October 2016, prompting her father to take her to to Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital (JHACH) near their home in St. Petersburg, Florida.<h2>JHACH reported Maya's mother Beata for child abuse and Maya was placed into state custody</h2>According to a <a href="https://ccmspa.pinellascounty.org/PublicAccess/ViewDocumentFragment.aspx?DocumentFragmentID=67139151&amp;CheckDocumentGroups=0" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">lawsuit</a> filed by Jack Kowalski in 2018, the family informed doctors that Maya's CRPS had successfully been treated with high doses of ketamine. Believing it to be the best way to alleviate their daughter's pain, Maya's parents asked the medical team to administer higher dosages of the drug. Doctors initially "ignored" their request, despite speaking with one of Maya's regular CRPS doctors who confirmed her condition and the dosage."It seemed like they didn't want to listen to what we were trying to tell them," Jack told <a href="https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/local/venice/2019/01/27/doctors-suspicion-tears-apart-venice-family/986798007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Herald-Tribune in 2019. </a>Alarmed by Beata's explanation that CRPS was to be treated with high doses of ketamine, the hospital's medical team reported Beata for child abuse, according to <a href="https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/local/venice/2019/01/27/doctors-suspicion-tears-apart-venice-family/986798007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Herald-Tribune</a>. The initial child abuse case was quickly dismissed after the hospital confirmed Maya's diagnosis with her doctors, according to the lawsuit.Soon after, the hospital called Dr. Sally Smith, a physician with over 30 years of child-abuse pediatrics experience who was also the medical director of the child-protection team for Pinellas County at the time. Smith didn't work for the county, however. <a href="https://www.thecut.com/article/child-abuse-munchausen-syndrome-by-proxy.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">According to The Cut</a>, Pinellas County outsourced its child services to a company called Suncoast Center Inc. — that company employed Smith in 2016.Smith reviewed Maya's case through hospital records, spoke to Kirkpatrick about Maya's CRPS, and ultimately diagnosed Maya's mother Beata with with <a href="https://www.insider.com/mother-accused-injuring-son-munchausen-by-proxy-2017-12" rel="">Munchausen syndrome by proxy</a> (now called factious disorder imposed on another person), a mental illness and form of child abuse in which a child's primary caretaker fakes the child's illness to gain attention for themselves.<h2>After Maya's mother Beata died by suicide, the surviving Kowalski family members brought a lawsuit against the hospital and others involved</h2><div type="image" title="Maya and her mother, Beata Kowalski." height="1828" width="2437" msid="101649994" hostid="261" sizebytes="111736"></div>Because of Smith's belief that Beata had <a href="https://www.insider.com/mother-accused-injuring-son-munchausen-by-proxy-2017-12" rel="">Munchausen syndrome by proxy</a>, JHACH refused to discharge Maya into her parents' custody and brought a second child abuse report to the Department of Children and Families. The court awarded the state of Florida temporary custody of Maya.While Maya was in state custody at the hospital, Beata, a registered nurse at the time, was only allowed monitored phone calls with her daughter, who was supervised by hospital social worker Catherine Bedy on the other side of the line. Over the course of almost 90 days separated from her daughter, <a href="https://people.com/take-care-of-maya-munchausen-by-proxy-accusation-maya-kowalski-mom-death-by-suicide-7509016" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jack Kowalski told People in June 2023</a> that he saw his wife "deteriorating." Beata died by suicide in January 2017 at the age of 43. According <a href="https://ccmspa.pinellascounty.org/PublicAccess/ViewDocumentFragment.aspx?DocumentFragmentID=67139151&amp;CheckDocumentGroups=0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">to court documents seen by Insider</a>, Beata said that she felt "depression, fatigue, and an overwhelming sense of hopelessness" in the months before her death."I'm sorry, but I no longer can take the pain being away from Maya and being treated like a criminal," a note written by Beata read, <a href="https://www.thecut.com/article/child-abuse-munchausen-syndrome-by-proxy.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to The Cut</a>. "I cannot watch my daughter suffer in pain and keep getting worse while my hands are tied by the state of FL and the judge!" Soon after Beata's death, an independent court-appointed psychologist, Tashawna Duncan, <a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5695842-Duncan-Report.html%20" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">filed her evaluation</a>, which found there was "no evidence" to support the idea that Beata had faked her daughter's condition.About a week after Beata's death, Maya was released back into her father's custody.The Kowalski family's lawsuit against the hospital maintains that the defendants acted in bad faith, leading to Maya's "imprisonment" in JHACH, her mother's death, and the surviving family's "mortal fear" of healthcare providers.<h2>Who are the defendants in the Maya Kowalski case, and what are they being charged with?</h2><div type="image" title="From left: Kyle Kowalski, Maya Kowalski, and Jack Kowalski in court." height="1828" width="3840" msid="101649995" hostid="261" sizebytes="153644"></div>In 2018, Jack Kowalski, on behalf of himself, Maya, her brother Kyle, and Beata's estate, filed a <a href="https://ccmspa.pinellascounty.org/PublicAccess/ViewDocumentFragment.aspx?DocumentFragmentID=67139151&amp;CheckDocumentGroups=0" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">lawsuit</a> against Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital, Florida's Department of Children and Families, Smith, the social worker Catherine "Cathi" Bedy, and Suncoast Center Inc., the company that employed Smith at the time of Maya's hospital stay.Per the legal filing, charges include but are not limited to false reporting of child abuse by JHACH and Smith; Maya's false imprisonment by JHACH; battery by Bedy and JHACH; and medical malpractice by JHACH, Suncoast, and Smith. Further charges addressed infliction of emotional distress against the Kowalski family and malicious prosecution by JHACH, Smith, and Suncoast. The suit also alleged that JHACH was negligent in hiring Bedy, who had previously been <a href="https://www.tampabay.com/archive/2007/06/21/two-mental-health-workers-are-jailed/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">arrested on child-abuse charges</a> before her employment at the hospital.Smith and Suncoast settled their portions of the lawsuit in 2022 for $2.5 million, according to The Cut. But the case against JHACH and Bedy is ongoing as of writing.<h2>When is the trial date? </h2><div type="image" title="Maya Kowalski." height="1828" width="2437" msid="101649996" hostid="261" sizebytes="88486"></div>Viewers of "Take Care of Maya" saw a little bit of the roller coaster ride the Kowalskis went on to fight for their legal proceedings to continue after previously being delayed. Cameras followed the family to court in April 2022 for a hearing about whether the trial should continue after it had been delayed earlier in the month. The judge delayed the case indefinitely at the time.According to court records viewed by Insider, jury selection in the Kowalski trial is currently slated to begin on September 14, 2023. Speaking to the <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12223823/Family-teen-mom-accused-Munchausen-proxy-sues-220M-damages.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Daily Mail</a> in June, attorneys for the family said they will be seeking $55 million in compensatory damages and $165 million in punitive damages from JHACH, citing the "irreparable" effect the events had on the Kowalskis."Maya, Jack, and Kyle will need medical care and therapy for the rest of their lives," lawyer Gregory Anderson told the Daily Mail."Take Care of Maya" is streaming now on Netflix.

Netflix's 'Take Care of Maya' shows the Kowalski family's ongoing legal battle with the Florida hospital they accused of falsely imprisoning their 10-year-old. Here's what to know about the case.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>A new Netflix documentary tells the story of Maya Kowalski, who has complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS).</li></ul><ul class="summary-list"><li>CRPS is a rare chronic pain condition that affects less than 0.06% of the population.</li></ul><ul class="summary-list"></ul>The new Netflix documentary "Take Care of Maya" chronicles <a href="https://www.insider.com/where-is-maya-kowalski-now-take-care-of-maya-netflix-2023-6">the story of Maya Kowalski</a> and her family after a complicated medical diagnosis led to a CPS case, a court battle, and ultimately a family tragedy. After a severe asthma attack in 2015, Kowalski was diagnosed with a rare form of chronic pain known as <a href="https://www.insider.com/where-is-maya-kowalski-now-take-care-of-maya-netflix-2023-6">complex regional-pain syndrome (CRPS)</a> when she was just 9 years old. Her symptoms included muscle weakness and burning sensations. Here is what we know about the condition. <h2>CRPS is a painful condition, usually triggered by an injury </h2>CRPS is relatively rare, affecting only <a href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/12085-complex-regional-pain-syndrome-crps">200,000 people each year in the United States</a>, according to the Cleveland Clinic — or roughly 0.06% of the population. CRPS is triggered by injury, typically to the arm or leg and results in "changing combinations of spontaneous pain or excess pain that is much greater than normal," according to the <a href="https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/disorders/complex-regional-pain-syndrome#:~:text=What%20is%20complex%20regional%20pain,greater%20than%20six%20months)%20forms." target="_blank" rel="noopener">National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke</a>. "Your sense get ramped up so if a drop of water touches your skin, it can feel like somebody's jabbing you with a knife," Kowalski's doctor, Dr. Anthony Kirkpatrick, <a href="https://people.com/take-care-of-maya-Munchausen-by-proxy-accusation-maya-kowalski-mom-death-by-suicide-7509016" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said in an interview with People</a>. CRPS is thought to be caused by damaged or malfunctioning <a href="https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/disorders/complex-regional-pain-syndrome#:~:text=What%20is%20complex%20regional%20pain,greater%20than%20six%20months)%20forms." target="_blank" rel="noopener">small C-fiber nerves </a>which extend throughout the body, and relay sensations like temperature, burning and itchiness up to the brain. Doctors still aren't sure why some people develop CRPS, while others with similar injuries do not.C-fiber nerve damage can be debilitating. Apart from symptoms like spontaneous pain and burning, people with CRPS may also experience changes in skin color and texture, changes in skin temperature, swelling, and rapid or nonexistent hair and nail growth, according to <a href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/12085-complex-regional-pain-syndrome-crps#management-and-treatment" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cleveland Clinic</a>. CRPS can happen to anyone, but is more common in women who are younger than 40. It is rare in the elderly and in young children, like Kowalski. However, people with preexisting inflammatory and autoimmune conditions, like asthma, are <a href="https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/disorders/complex-regional-pain-syndrome" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more likely to get CRPS</a>. <h2>CRPS is difficult to diagnose and treat</h2>The unusual symptoms can make CRPS difficult to diagnose, including for Kowalski. One doctor questioned whether her symptoms were real, and instead accused her mother of making her sick, a condition called <a href="https://www.insider.com/mother-accused-injuring-son-Munchausen-by-proxy-2017-12">Munchausen by proxy</a>. The accusation led to Kowalski being kept from her parent's custody for months. Her mother, Beata Kowalski, eventually died by suicide after the accusations. Even when correctly diagnosed, there is no known cure for CRPS. Treatment for CRPS is focused on managing pain and improving functioning. For most, CRPS gradually improves with time and eventually goes away as the C-fiber nerves heal. But for some, CRPS is a life-long condition that is profoundly uncomfortable and disabling. When Kowalski was first diagnosed, she was given low doses of the anesthetic ketamine. Ketamine is a controversial treatment that <a href="https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/disorders/complex-regional-pain-syndrome#:~:text=What%20is%20complex%20regional%20pain,greater%20than%20six%20months)%20forms." target="_blank" rel="noopener">is still being studied to see if it helps with CRPS</a>, and is usually only given in the most severe cases that don't respond to other forms of treatment. For Kowalski, treatment with ketamine was initially helpful, but stopped working, so her doctor recommended that her and her family fly to Mexico for an experimental medical procedure in which Kowalski was put into a 5-day ketamine induced coma. The procedure worked, but her symptoms relapsed in October 2016. Although the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved any medication to be marketed explicitly for treatment of CRPS, pain medications like aspirin, ibuprofen and Tylenol, as well as steroids like prednisone are typically prescribed for pain management or to reduce inflammation. In more severe cases of CRPS opioids, Botox injections, or other medications might be used.Kowalski, now age 17, said that her CRPS symptoms are sometimes so painful they wake her up at night. Kowalski has not received any additional ketamine therapy, but has undergone water therapy and stated that intense exercise helps keep her pain at bay - she recently took home a <a href="https://www.thecut.com/article/child-abuse-munchausen-syndrome-by-proxy.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">first place ribbon in a figure skating competition</a>, The Cut reported. Other treatments for CRPS include physical therapy and talk therapy to manage the psychological stress of the condition.

What you need to know about CRPS &mdash; the often ignored condition at the heart of Netflix's 'Take Care of Maya'

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Gary is a patient described in the <keyword id="12007221" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="book" source="Orion">book</keyword> "Head First" who continued to show up in ERs with seizures.</li><li>It turned out he'd been inducing his symptoms with <keyword id="11896011" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="insulin" source="Orion">insulin</keyword> pills and had "fictitious disorder."</li><li>The overlooked psychiatric condition leads patients to make themselves sick to remain in medical care.</li></ul>Gary arrived in the emergency department light-headed, in abdominal pain, and unable to concentrate. Then, he had a seizure and fell into a coma. Doctors discovered his blood sugar was low, and revived him through a glucose IV. They thought he had a rare tumor that releases dangerous levels of insulin, but all tests came up clear. The next night, the scenario repeated: Gary at the ER, with a seizure that led to a coma that was successfully treated with glucose infusions. The 24-year-old had turned up at at least a half dozen ERs in the UK in the months prior with the same unexplained symptoms. He never stuck around long enough to help doctors figure out why. In his new book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Head-First-Psychiatrists-Stories-Mind-ebook/dp/B08S6Z5XJL">"Head First,"</a> British psychiatrist Dr. Alastair Santhouse describes how he and colleagues finally discovered the cause of Gary's symptoms - insulin pills he was sneaking to induce them - and the strange and often overlooked mental illness that leads patients like him to make themselves sick. <h2>A nurse discovered Gary's insulin pills, but he denied taking them at first </h2>A few days after his last episode, a nurse discovered insulin pills by Gary's bedside. The meds can be critical for people with diabetes who <a href="https://www.insider.com/insulin-pump">need them to lower blood sugar levels</a>, but they're dangerous for those with normal blood sugar - leading to, as Gary experienced, symptoms like dizziness, confusion, and fainting. At first, Gary, identified only by his first name in the book, denied taking the pills but then admitted to snagging them from his grandfather's cabinet. The medical team called in Santhouse, a consultant psychiatrist at two hospitals and past president of the <keyword id="12024961" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="psychiatry" source="Orion">psychiatry</keyword> council at the Royal Society of Medicine, for help. They'd "resolved one problem but now had another: They didn't know how they were going to be able to safely discharge him home," Santhouse writes. <h2>Fictitious disorder is likely underdiagnosed </h2>Gary's among about 1% of inpatient hospital cases of<a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/factitious-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20356028">"fictitious disorder,"</a> severe cases of which were called Munchausen's syndrome, Santhouse explained, or when patients purposefully induce symptoms but hide that from clinicians.Santhouse also saw someone who continued to fake a shoulder dislocation and another who underwent multiple abdominal surgeries despite any true medical problem. Others may prick their fingers to draw blood in order to dirty their urine samples. The widely overlooked and dangerous condition is different than malingering, Santhouse said, in which people fake sickness for a clear gain, like getting sick benefits. "Patients with factitious disorder also deliberately fake their symptoms, yet the reasons they do so are less clear, not only to the doctor but also to the patients themselves," he writes. One theory is that a patient wants to embody "the sick role" so that a doctor can "legitimize his suffering by making a diagnosis and excuse the individual from his normal social responsibilities, such as going to work," Santhouse says. Rather than following the doctor's advice for getting well, the patient continues to make himself sick, remaining in medical care. <h2>Gary's unstable upbringing may have played a role in his behavior</h2>For Gary, who saw Santhouse a handful of times, the problem began after he felt dismissed by his doctor for stomach pain. He realized the pills gave him symptoms doctors took seriously.Santhouse also learned Gary had an abusive, unstable childhood and few hobbies or close relationships. He suggested Gary was seeking care from professionals given his "childhood of neglect," but Gary just shrugged. Gary brushed off the danger of the situation too, and soon stopped going to therapy. "The most likely outcome was that he would continue to take the tablets and would play out this same scenario in other hospitals where he was not known, with all the risks that entailed," Santhouse writes. "I never saw him again."

A man hooked on hospital care started sneaking insulin pills to induce seizures that required ER treatment

<ul class="summary-list"><li>"<keyword id="3076771" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="normal-people">Normal People</keyword>" star Daisy-Edgar Jones said she struggles with <keyword id="15418" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="anxiety">anxiety</keyword>, and it sometimes manifests as <keyword id="648214" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="hypochondria">hypochondria</keyword>.</li><li>Hypochondria, also called illness anxiety disorder, is a <keyword id="6354774" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="Mental-health">mental health</keyword> condition where you're completely preoccupied and worried that you're sick.</li><li>Edgar-Jones, who is 22, discussed her mental <keyword id="6354750" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="health">health</keyword> on the "<a href="https://www.elizabethdayonline.co.uk/podcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to Fail</a>" podcast with Elizabeth Day.</li><li>She said she worried about missing out on life experiences when her friends went off to university and she was being rejected at auditions.</li><li>She's now found ways to control it, and doesn't let herself Google illnesses anymore.</li></ul><keyword id="7425666" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Daisy-Edgar-Jones">Daisy Edgar-Jones</keyword> opened up about her mental health struggles on the "<a href="https://www.elizabethdayonline.co.uk/podcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to Fail</a>" podcast with Elizabeth Day that was released last week. She said her anxiety often manifests as hypochondria, and she used to Google symptoms because it made her feel like she was in control.She told Day she thinks the condition developed around the time when her friends all went off to university and she was chasing acting auditions. She started to question whether she was missing out of life experiences."It feels like you're dating someone, sometimes, when you're auditioning," she said. "They ask you out and you really think you're right for them, they keep calling you back for dates, and just when you think they're going to ask you out they go for someone else."<div type="image" title="normal people Marianne" height="912" width="1216" msid="76037077" hostid="261"></div>She said it could be really heartbreaking, and she could spiral into doubt about whether she should take a university place."I found that very anxiety-making and I really struggled for a while," she said.Her hypochondria "comes in waves," she said. "I just think it's my way kind of way of dealing with anxiety.""If I see a rash for example, I'm like, 'Okay. If I really need to overthink that and Google the heck out of that, then I'm controlling it in some way,'" she continued. "If I find out that it's something really sinister, I've caught it before it could potentially become something worse."Hypochondria, also called illness anxiety disorder, is a mental health condition where you're constantly convinced and worried that you are very sick.Licensed therapist Kati Morton told Insider <a href="https://www.insider.com/difference-between-factitious-disorder-and-hypochondria-2019-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in a previous article</a> that those with illness anxiety disorder have such an excessive preoccupation with being ill that they can barely think about anything else."I might think, 'Oh, I caught a cold, but I'll be fine,' and people tend to normally downplay it," she said."Whereas people with illness anxiety disorder, it turns into this huge thing. And because they're so worried they're sick, they will avoid a lot of different places, and group outings, because they don't want to get anybody sick or they're afraid they're going to get sick."Edgar-Jones said she'd been faced with mortality from a very young age when her grandfather and uncle both passed away, and her fear of being ill may have stemmed from there. She has now found ways to deal with her anxieties though, mainly by not letting herself Google conditions anymore."If I believe that it's a rational thought, then I'll panic myself," she said. "But if I make sure I realize it isn't, then it's fine."Read more:<a href="https://www.insider.com/difference-between-factitious-disorder-and-hypochondria-2019-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Factitious disorder and hypochondria are both conditions involving illnesses that aren't real, but that's where the similarities end</a><a href="https://www.insider.com/jameela-jamil-accused-munchausen-syndrome-what-is-it-2020-2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Someone on the internet started a wild conspiracy theory that Jameela Jamil has Munchausen syndrome — here's what the disorder really is</a><a href="https://www.insider.com/normal-people-review-hulu-sally-rooney-2020-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">'Normal People' is a sexy, heartbreaking drama that's sure to become your next TV obsession</a><a href="https://www.insider.com/normal-people-daisy-edgar-jones-kiss-mid-air-audition-tape-2020-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The star of 'Normal People' says her audition tape involved awkwardly pretending to kiss in mid-air</a><a href="https://www.insider.com/normal-people-stars-give-heartfelt-readings-gordon-ramsay-james-corden-2020-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The stars of 'Normal People' gave heartfelt readings of Gordon Ramsay quotes and teleshopping clips on 'The Late Late Show with James Corden'</a>Read the original article on <a href="https://www.insider.com/daisy-edgar-jones-opens-up-about-anxiety-and-hypochondria-2020-5">Insider</a>

'Normal People' star Daisy Edgar-Jones opened about up her anxiety and hypochondria

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="6606372" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Jameela-Jamil">Jameela Jamil</keyword> defended <keyword id="466335" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Demi-Lovato">Demi Lovato</keyword> after she criticized a frozen-yogurt shop.</li><li>Lovato has been both praised and attacked for her <keyword id="819905" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Instagram">Instagram</keyword> story. </li><li>The situation follows Jamil's many online controversies. </li></ul>Actress Jameela Jamil came to Demi Lovato's defense after the singer <a href="https://www.insider.com/demi-lovato-calls-out-fro-yo-brand-diet-culture-vultures-2021-4">blasted a frozen yogurt shop</a> on Instagram, following the body-positivity advocate's long history of becoming involved with online controversies. In an Instagram story on Sunday, Lovato called out The Bigg Chill, a frozen yogurt shop in Los Angeles, for having sugar-free options promoted as "guilt-free." Lovato said it was triggering for her, as somebody who has been open about her struggle with disordered eating. The singer used the hashtag "#DietCultureVultures," which she encouraged users to employ to criticize companies "that perpetuate a society that not only enables but praises disordered eating."Lovato's comments were met with both criticism and praise online. Some called her out for previously <a href="https://twitter.com/SelOnTheBrain/status/1383773637702950914?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1383773637702950914%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.insider.com%2Fdemi-lovato-calls-out-fro-yo-brand-diet-culture-vultures-2021-421-4">promoting dietary supplements</a> in the past. The singer later apologized to the shop in a video <a href="https://www.instagram.com/tv/CN3HpwDDUuI/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link">on Instagram.</a> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px); data.width~540;"><div style="padding:8px;"><div style="background:#F8F8F8; line-height:0; margin-top:40px; padding:62.4537037037% 0; text-align:center; width:100%;"><div style="background:url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAACwAAAAsCAMAAAApWqozAAAABGdBTUEAALGPC/xhBQAAAAFzUkdCAK7OHOkAAAAMUExURczMzPf399fX1+bm5mzY9AMAAADiSURBVDjLvZXbEsMgCES5/P8/t9FuRVCRmU73JWlzosgSIIZURCjo/ad+EQJJB4Hv8BFt+IDpQoCx1wjOSBFhh2XssxEIYn3ulI/6MNReE07UIWJEv8UEOWDS88LY97kqyTliJKKtuYBbruAyVh5wOHiXmpi5we58Ek028czwyuQdLKPG1Bkb4NnM+VeAnfHqn1k4+GPT6uGQcvu2h2OVuIf/gWUFyy8OWEpdyZSa3aVCqpVoVvzZZ2VTnn2wU8qzVjDDetO90GSy9mVLqtgYSy231MxrY6I2gGqjrTY0L8fxCxfCBbhWrsYYAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); display:block; height:44px; margin:0 auto -44px; position:relative; top:-22px; width:44px;"></div></div><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CN3HpwDDUuI" style=" color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;" target="_blank"></a> <p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;">A post shared by Demi Lovato (@ddlovato)<time style=" font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px;" datetime=""></time></div></blockquote>Jamil, who has also been open about her history with eating disorders as well, posted her defense of Lovato on her Instagram story."Ok, I want to try to avoid making the story bigger than it already is. But if an eating disorder advocate says she sees products that are positioned as guilt-free, and it is potentially triggering, that doesn't mean she's too stupid to remember that diabetics exist," the "Good Place" star said. "It just means that we need to change the marketing of products that are for people's medical needs."This isn't the first time Jamil has inserted herself into or been the subject of social media drama. She's repeatedly found herself at the center of controversy. <h2>Jamil condemned Khloé Kardashian's promotion of Flat Tummy shakes in April 2019</h2>In the spring of 2019, Jamil criticized Khloé for posting a since-deleted photo on her Instagram promoting Flat Tummy's meal replacement shakes. "Loving the way my tummy looks right now, you guys," the caption said. Comments on the post criticized Khloé for promoting a weight-loss product, with many noting that she could afford her own team of fitness and wellness professionals. "You have this gorgeous body because you work out and eat healthy," one commenter said. Jamil also <a href="https://www.insider.com/jameela-jamil-khloe-kardashian-instagram-photo-criticism-2019-3">called Khloé out in the comments section</a>, saying that she was being "irresponsible" for not listing the possible side effects and that images like these could potentially "hurt other girls."<blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px); data.width~540;"><div style="padding:8px;"><div style="background:#F8F8F8; line-height:0; margin-top:40px; padding:62.4537037037% 0; text-align:center; width:100%;"><div style="background:url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAACwAAAAsCAMAAAApWqozAAAABGdBTUEAALGPC/xhBQAAAAFzUkdCAK7OHOkAAAAMUExURczMzPf399fX1+bm5mzY9AMAAADiSURBVDjLvZXbEsMgCES5/P8/t9FuRVCRmU73JWlzosgSIIZURCjo/ad+EQJJB4Hv8BFt+IDpQoCx1wjOSBFhh2XssxEIYn3ulI/6MNReE07UIWJEv8UEOWDS88LY97kqyTliJKKtuYBbruAyVh5wOHiXmpi5we58Ek028czwyuQdLKPG1Bkb4NnM+VeAnfHqn1k4+GPT6uGQcvu2h2OVuIf/gWUFyy8OWEpdyZSa3aVCqpVoVvzZZ2VTnn2wU8qzVjDDetO90GSy9mVLqtgYSy231MxrY6I2gGqjrTY0L8fxCxfCBbhWrsYYAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); display:block; height:44px; margin:0 auto -44px; position:relative; top:-22px; width:44px;"></div></div><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BvRMi0RF9iD" style=" color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;" target="_blank"></a> <p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;">A post shared by Comments By Celebs (@commentsbycelebs)<time style=" font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px;" datetime=""></time></div></blockquote>The statement eventually inspired a reaction from the head of the Kardashian-Jenner family. During an <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/30/style/kardashians-interview.html?emc=edit_nn_20190331&amp;nl=morning-briefing&amp;nlid=6538137220190331&amp;te=1331&amp;te=1">interview with The New York Times</a>, Kris Jenner responded to Jamil's comments about her daughter: "I don't live in that negative energy space," she said. <h2>Jamil faced criticism for her role as a dance competition judge</h2>In February 2020, Jamil was announced as an MC and judge on the HBO Max voguing-dance competition series "Legendary." As <a href="https://ew.com/tv/hbo-max-legendary-jameela-jamil-controversy-response/">Entertainment Weekly reported at the time</a>, the role of MC is "typically filled by a veteran of this queer counterculture." Social media was set ablaze as people argued that there were people better suited for the role - including members of the LGBTQ+ community. Trace Lysette, a house mother and actress, said on <keyword id="6354616" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Twitter">Twitter</keyword> that she auditioned for the same role but ultimately didn't get it.Jamil defended herself by saying that Lysette went out for a different role and added that she was on the judging panel, and not an MC. The panel was slated to include rapper Megan Thee Stallion, stylist Law Roach, and ballroom icon Leiomy Maldonado, she said. She then posted a statement to Twitter titled "Twitter is brutal" and came out as queer. "This is why I never officially came out as queer," the statement read. Jamil added, "I kept it low because I was scared of the pain of being accused of performative bandwagon jumping, over something that caused me a lot of confusion, fear, and turmoil when I was a kid."She continued, "I'm just a lead judge due to my 11 years of hosting experience, being fully impartial, a newcomer to ballroom (like much of the audience will be) and therefore a window in for people who are just discovering it now, and being a long time ally of the LGBTQ community."<h2>The 'swarm of bees' drama </h2>In February 2020, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/traciemorrissey/">Tracie Egan Morrissey</a>, who is a writer, producer, and host of the podcast "<a href="https://www.patreon.com/potpsychology">Pot Psychology</a>," called out Jamil for seemingly making contradictory statements about her <keyword id="6354750" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="health">health</keyword>."The Good Place" actress <a href="https://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/jameela-jamil-faced-cancer-spine-5555978">told the Daily Mirror in 2015</a> that she ran into oncoming traffic after attempting to run away from a bee - resulting in a damaged spine, bed rest for "two years," and having to wear a Zimmer frame to walk.She told a slightly different story in October 2019, telling <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/tv/ct-ent-my-worst-moment-jameela-jamil-1023-20191022-chvavkqkt5h3jmmcwc27ztgptu-story.html">the Chicago Tribune</a> that she was hit by a car during an evening jog as she was trying to get away from a "swarm of bees." She said she managed to make it out of the accident unscathed and sat in a juice bar nearby.Jamil spoke to <a href="https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/a29713913/jameela-jamil-turns-down-3-million-dollars-problematic-brands-twitter-fights-modeling-career-car-crash/">Cosmopolitan</a> in November 2019 and detailed yet another slightly different story. She told the publication that she only needed to rest for "about a year," followed by about six months of wheelchair use.Her breast cancer scare in 2014 was then also called into question by Morrissey. The actress told the <a href="https://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/jameela-jamil-faced-cancer-spine-5555978">Daily Mirror in 2015</a> that she had a lump she found in her breast tested and found that it wasn't cancerous. But in October 2019, she claimed to have <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/jameela-jamil-cancer-twitter-chronic-illness-ageing-taboo-a9147066.html">survived breast cancer twice</a>."I would just like to say, that as someone who has been chronically ill my whole life, and had cancer twice, I find it EXTREMELY offensive that there is a cultural taboo around ageing," Jamil wrote in a since-deleted tweet.Jamil took to Twitter again to respond to Morrissey's claims and said in a since-deleted tweet, "First I'm lying about my sexuality, now I'm now being accused of Munchausens? By an unhinged idiot who didn't even realize in all her 'research' that my car accident injury stories are 'different' because they were about TWO SEPARATE CAR ACCIDENTS 13 years apart? You can keep it."The actress also said that she has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, which according to the Mayo Clinic is a "group of disorders that "affect your connective tissues - primarily your skin, joints, and blood vessel walls." This "means always having people doubt your illness and injuries because you look okay," Jamil wrote in a since-deleted tweet.<h2>Jamil called out Kim Kardashian's pregnancy shapewear line in September 2020</h2>"The Good Place" <a href="https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/jameela-jamil-shades-kim-kardashian-over-skims-maternity-shapewear/">actress spoke out on Instagram</a> after Kim announced the maternity line for her shapewear line SKIMS. The announcement <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2020/09/14/kim-kardashian-maternity-wear-debate-jameela-jamil-chrissy-teigen-react/5790345002/">sparked debate online</a> and caused mixed reactions. Some people were concerned that this product was contributing to unhealthy beauty standards."Excuse my ignorance but who's trynna shape their pregnant bodies? Y'all don't like being comfy and free and loose when pregnant? It's pretty much the only time you can be as shapeless and free and comfy as you want!" one Twitter user wrote.While model Chrissy Teigen, who was pregnant with her third child at the time, defended the product, saying, "Hi guys, actual pregnant person here. Just wanting to show you and maybe talk a little about what pregnancy shapewear is."She continued, "We're not idiots. None of us think that this is making us smaller... We do it so we feel high and tight. Honestly, it feels easier to get up, it feels easier to move around when you're not flopping all over the place. It just makes you feel better."But Jamil was not a fan of the message the shapewear could potentially send to pregnant people. She wrote in an Instagram post, "You don't need your shape corrected or hidden. You don't need an even more awkward obstacle between you and a piss. You just need to try and ride with this miracle and do your best to be as happy/comfortable as is possible within your circumstances. Pregnancy is hard enough, with enough worries already."<blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px); data.width~540;"><div style="padding:8px;"><div style="background:#F8F8F8; line-height:0; margin-top:40px; padding:62.4537037037% 0; text-align:center; width:100%;"><div style="background:url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAACwAAAAsCAMAAAApWqozAAAABGdBTUEAALGPC/xhBQAAAAFzUkdCAK7OHOkAAAAMUExURczMzPf399fX1+bm5mzY9AMAAADiSURBVDjLvZXbEsMgCES5/P8/t9FuRVCRmU73JWlzosgSIIZURCjo/ad+EQJJB4Hv8BFt+IDpQoCx1wjOSBFhh2XssxEIYn3ulI/6MNReE07UIWJEv8UEOWDS88LY97kqyTliJKKtuYBbruAyVh5wOHiXmpi5we58Ek028czwyuQdLKPG1Bkb4NnM+VeAnfHqn1k4+GPT6uGQcvu2h2OVuIf/gWUFyy8OWEpdyZSa3aVCqpVoVvzZZ2VTnn2wU8qzVjDDetO90GSy9mVLqtgYSy231MxrY6I2gGqjrTY0L8fxCxfCBbhWrsYYAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); display:block; height:44px; margin:0 auto -44px; position:relative; top:-22px; width:44px;"></div></div><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CFFgAIPjrk7" style=" color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;" target="_blank"></a> <p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;">A post shared by Jameela Jamil (@jameelajamilofficial)<time style=" font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px;" datetime=""></time></div></blockquote><h2>Jamil also chimed in on Khloé's unedited photo scandal in April 2021</h2>Earlier this month, an unedited photo of Khloé began circulating on social media after it was posted without her permission. Her team began trying to erase traces of the photo from the internet and <a href="https://www.insider.com/khloe-kardashian-photo-unedited-unfiltered-legal-threats-2021-4">began threatening people</a> who reposted the photo with legal action. The photo scandal prompted a larger <a href="https://www.insider.com/khloe-kardashians-photo-natural-unfiltered-bikini-celebrity-reactions-unauthorized-controversy-2021-4">discussion of body image on the internet</a> that lasted for several days. Tracy Romulus, chief marketing officer for KKW Brands, told Page Six in a statement, "Khloé looks beautiful but it is within the right of the copyright owner to not want an image not intended to be published taken down."<blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px); data.width~540;"><div style="padding:8px;"><div style="background:#F8F8F8; line-height:0; margin-top:40px; padding:62.4537037037% 0; text-align:center; width:100%;"><div style="background:url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAACwAAAAsCAMAAAApWqozAAAABGdBTUEAALGPC/xhBQAAAAFzUkdCAK7OHOkAAAAMUExURczMzPf399fX1+bm5mzY9AMAAADiSURBVDjLvZXbEsMgCES5/P8/t9FuRVCRmU73JWlzosgSIIZURCjo/ad+EQJJB4Hv8BFt+IDpQoCx1wjOSBFhh2XssxEIYn3ulI/6MNReE07UIWJEv8UEOWDS88LY97kqyTliJKKtuYBbruAyVh5wOHiXmpi5we58Ek028czwyuQdLKPG1Bkb4NnM+VeAnfHqn1k4+GPT6uGQcvu2h2OVuIf/gWUFyy8OWEpdyZSa3aVCqpVoVvzZZ2VTnn2wU8qzVjDDetO90GSy9mVLqtgYSy231MxrY6I2gGqjrTY0L8fxCxfCBbhWrsYYAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC); display:block; height:44px; margin:0 auto -44px; position:relative; top:-22px; width:44px;"></div></div><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CNYIst_Dmc9" style=" color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;" target="_blank"></a> <p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;">A post shared by Jameela Jamil (@jameelajamilofficial)<time style=" font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px;" datetime=""></time></div></blockquote>As the conversation around body<a href="https://www.insider.com/khloe-kardashians-photo-natural-unfiltered-bikini-celebrity-reactions-unauthorized-controversy-2021-4"> image continued on the internet</a>, Jamil said on Instagram, "We are all f---ed when we buy into diet <keyword id="24504" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="culture">culture</keyword>." She referenced her longstanding feuds with the Kardashian family, which she said "perpetuates fat-phobia and impossible beauty standards." But Jamil also extended some empathy towards the clan. "I TOTALLY see why they're so obsessed with presenting as whatever society's latest ideal of 'perfect' is. Because they were harassed and bullied and scrutinized to within an inch of their lives."She finished by saying, "We cannot keep treating ourselves and each other like this. What's happening to her isn't funny. It's sad for everyone. May a good thing that comes from it be that at least young girls can breathe knowing they're trying to live up to fake standards and give themselves a break when they take holiday photos. And may Khloe maybe start to post more unedited photos and be a role model for self-acceptance."

You Searched For "munchausen syndrome" and got 11 results

Gypsy Rose Blanchard was a victim of Munchausen by proxy. Experts explain why moms are often behind the abuse.

Rebecca Rommen

Mom sentenced to 16 years for signing off on medical treatments that killed her healthy daughter

Andrea Michelson

Ohio woman charged after police say she faked her daughter's cancer diagnosis to raise thousands of dollars

Kenneth Niemeyer

Gypsy Rose Blanchard is everywhere. The woman behind her documentary says 'it's my fault.'

Palmer Haasch

Netflix's new documentary 'Take Care Of Maya' follows a little girl's rare disease diagnosis and the family tragedy that followed. Here's where Maya Kowalski, her family, and other key figures are today.

Esme Mazzeo

De Niro's former assistant's secret recordings comparing the actor's current and former partners played in court

Janon Fisher

Netflix's 'Take Care of Maya' shows the Kowalski family's ongoing legal battle with the Florida hospital they accused of falsely imprisoning their 10-year-old. Here's what to know about the case.

Esme Mazzeo

What you need to know about CRPS the often ignored condition at the heart of Netflix's 'Take Care of Maya'

Kate Hull

A man hooked on hospital care started sneaking insulin pills to induce seizures that required ER treatment

Anna Medaris Miller

'Normal People' star Daisy Edgar-Jones opened about up her anxiety and hypochondria

Lindsay Dodgson

Jameela Jamil defended Demi Lovato attacking a fro-yo shop. She has a long history of social media controversies.

Moises Mendez II