Mommy Dead and Dearest

[Guest]

I don't know if anyone else is familiar with the murder of Dee Dee Blancharde but it's truly one of the most fucked up stories I've ever read about -- and her murder isn't even the most insane part.

Anyway, according to this story, the documentary will air on HBO in May. In the meanwhile, for those who aren't familiar with Dee Dee and her daughter, Gypsy, here are some links.  

Everything We Know About Dee Dee Blancharde's Twisted Ozarks Murder

Dee Dee Wanted Her Daughter To Be Sick, Gypsy Wanted Her Mom To Be Murdered

I really hope this doc is better than the more recent spate of docs HBO's aired. 

[kathe5133]

Wow!  That is one sick lady!  I might watch this one.....

[Zima]

I find Munchausen by proxy fascinating, so I'll be sure to watch this documentary.  If I were Gypsy, I'd want to do the same thing to my mother, I'm sure...

[MarMar]

Thank you Giant Misfit, I followed your links and I am now hooked. I always found the subject interesting and this case is off the scale.  I have a "friend" on Facebook that looks like she could be a candidate for Munchausen. She always is posting about some medical situation or another. It is hard to take the new situation with urgency when there have been so many. Perhaps I am jaded as I have a progressive, maybe fatal disease I deal with every day and  I can not imagine putting the things put there she does. Anyway, I feel for this young woman and wish her the best. She had her whole youth stolen from her and she deserves better. I have the documentary now

 DVR'd and look forward to it 

Edited May 7, 2017 by MarMar
Clarifing

[Tara Ariano]

Premieres Monday, May 15, at 10 PM ET.

[funky-rat]

If this turns up on YouTube or somewhere that I could watch it, would someone let me know?  We gave up HBO last summer when we found we only watched it every 2-3 months, and I don't do Amazon Prime or Netflix.

[Primetimer]

One is the title, which is trashy. The other is that it's only 82 minutes, and Sarah D. Bunting could have kept watching this crazy story all day.

View the full article

[ms.o]

I currently live in Springfield. The entire town was in a panic when everyone thought Gypsy had been kidnapped. They were in the news prior to this when they were awarded a Habitat for Humanity home. Dee Dee knew how to work the hell out of the system

 

Oh and a slight correction - Gypsy is in Missouri DOC, not Wisconsin.

[AgentRXS]

I can't wait for this. I am sadly fascinated by stories like this.

[veronicamers]

I am so looking forward to this. This case is beyond bonkers. I've shared Dean's Buzzfeed article with countless friends in the vein of "You are not going to believe this one." What a bizarre, twisted tale.

For another, differently disturbing case of Munchausen by Proxy, Marybeth Tinning is a mother who straight up murdered nine (!) of her children claiming they were struck down by SIDS. Like Dee Dee it is unbelievable how many doctors, social workers, family members, and friends did not see what was in front of them.

[krawz555]

I find Munchausen by proxy fascinating, so I'll be sure to watch this documentary.  If I were Gypsy, I'd want to do the same thing to my mother, I'm sure...

Omg, me too. I was Social Service major in college and took a Child Abuse and Neglect class and we talked about this subject in length. Since then it has always fascinated me and boggled my mind. Even in the movie, The Sixth Sense, remember?? I shouted out, Munchausen by Proxie!!!!

[MarMar]

Wow,that was a twisted, f'd up story. I would have liked to hear more about the mom and what drove her to this behavior. Bouncing checks and a tarantula did not explain much, but then again, what could explain that level of disception?  When your entire family wants to flush your ashes down the toilet, you know you have not led anything close to a decent life. The boyfriend's story was sad and scary at the same time.  How in the world did these two find each other?  A schizoid, BDSM enthusiast vampire wannabe and a manipulated, victimized woman/child.  

I was not sure if Gypsy was being honest in her jailhouse interviews or just saying what she thought she was supposed to in her situation.  I am curious how others perceived it.  Is Gypsy now the manipulator?  Does she know anything else?

Edited May 16, 2017 by MarMar

[bilgistic]

1 hour ago, MarMar said:

How in the world did these two find each other?

On a "Christian dating website". So rings the death knell for online dating.

That photo at the top of the story will haunt my dreams tonight, so thanks for that.

I absolutely think there was some manipulation from Gypsy. She was very calm talking to the sheriff after her arrest. I've no doubt she learned it from her mother, and she grew up learning it in a sheltered environment. I have to agree that her sentence was appropriate. She still planned her mother's murder.

MVP goes to Gypsy's father's (Rod's) wife, Kristy. Rod: "Should I wear this one [white, old-man golf hat]?" Kristy: "No. No. No. No."

Edited May 16, 2017 by bilgistic

[FozzyBear]

Can we talk about how hot Dee Dee's nephew was? No? I'm a horrible and shallow? Ok.

That was fascinating. I still don't understand how Dee Dee pulled it off. Those were some major surgeries she talked doctors into performing. And what was the difficult position that Gypsy's Dad was in that no one really got into? It could have just been distance and divorce and whatnot, but I kind of felt like he was scared of Dee Dee. Maybe she would hint at accusing him of things if he pushed back to much?

It was also kind of weird to see a crime doc where I sort of felt justice was done. Gypsy killed her mom and she wasn't crazy or unaware of what she was doing, but after being abused her whole life I can't say she's 100% competent either. She also seemed to almost be thriving in prison. Crazy to think she might have a tiny bit more free will in prison then she did outside of it.

Crazy case all around. I will definitely be obsessing for a while. Count me in the group that wants more info on Dee Dee's past. What made that monster?

[skittl3862]

I'm surprised how little discussion there was of Gypsy as a victim in relation to the crime. The salacious aspects with the boyfriend made it out to be more Bonnie and Clyde than The Burning Bed. She didn't kill her mother because Dee Dee punished her for not making curfew or whatever like Jasmine Richardson. She endured years of torture at the hands of her mother. Obviously murder is not ok, but if Gypsy snapped one day and killed her mother herself, I think the public reaction would have been very different. 

I think Gypsy belongs in a psychiatric hospital, not prison. There's no way she will be a functional human being when she's cast out into society in 2024.

[bilgistic]

3 minutes ago, FozzyBear said:

I still don't understand how Dee Dee pulled it off. Those were some major surgeries she talked doctors into performing.

Meanwhile, I can't get my insurance to approve new migraine meds. WTF?

[Armchair Critic]

Just started watching, Gypsy's father must have been young and horny when he hooked up with DeeDee, then married her out of obligation when she was pregnant. I want to know what made DeeDee do what she did. The more I see the of the father he looked kind of weak, I think he was scared of DeeDee so didn't even try with Gypsy. Then he brought his wife everywhere, like he couldn't be alone with Gypsy.

DAMN her family even said DeeDee had it coming.

Edited May 16, 2017 by Armchair Critic

[Sarah D. Bunting]

Article updated with MO DOC info; thanks.

[Guest]

8 hours ago, MarMar said:

I was not sure if Gypsy was being honest in her jailhouse interviews or just saying what she thought she was supposed to in her situation.  I am curious how others perceived it.  Is Gypsy now the manipulator?

I'd have to answer "yes" to that question. If Gypsy grew up with Dee Dee, learning to lie her entire life about her very life, that's all Gypsy knows -- how to lie and manipulate people. How could she have learned anything else when she was so isolated? Even her multiple attempts at summoning tears fell flat. She made some moisture under her eyes -- but nothing remotely resembling real tears. I 100% have no problem with the way she saw getting out of her situation (and apparently neither did Dee Dee's family who literally said they wanted to flush her ashes down the toilet) -- but I think I'd feel a whole lot better questioning her sociopathy if she hadn't goaded someone else into doing her dirty work. I, too, would prefer Gypsy be in a psych hospital -- because she needs massive amounts of therapy to undo what's been done. Even with that though, I question if it's too late.  

And I hate to say it but I wasn't buying her, "he raped me" story the night of the murder -- particularly when it was she who left those messages on her shared Facebook page post killing and that video of them together in bed the day after. 

My sympathies also lie with Godejohn who seems like an incredibly marginal human being who Gypsy more or less manipulated like her mother manipulated her. I certainly hope the law is as lenient with him as they were with Gypsy. 

6 hours ago, FozzyBear said:

Can we talk about how hot Dee Dee's nephew was? No? I'm a horrible and shallow? Ok.

Yeah we can! Also -- Gypsy's dad was pretty hot, too! How Dee Dee ever wound up with him is beyond me. 

[cpcathy]

Strange, first hour I was thinking "this girl's a victim!" then after the FB stuff and video, she seemed more devious. Definitely not a black and white case. Her sentence was appropriate.

[Armchair Critic]

After watching I have more questions.

I don't understand how Gypsy had a phone and computer to communicate with, that seems out of character for DeeDee to let her have those if she was otherwise smothering the girl.

At first I felt like Gypsy might not fully comprehend what killing her mother would mean besides a means of escape, but then when they showed her dressing up in all those costumes for her boyfriend it showed that she was savvy enough for that.

[AgentRXS]

Quote

I, too, would prefer Gypsy be in a psych hospital -- because she needs massive amounts of therapy to undo what's been done.

Quote

I think Gypsy belongs in a psychiatric hospital, not prison.

Absolutely. I'm not sure why her lawyer couldn't get her an insanity plea, so she gets the treatment she needs. Even then, it might not be enough, but when she is released she is going to be 32 year old woman that has no clue how to handle a life of freedom. I don't see things ending well for her, if she doesn't decide to seek help on her own.

Quote

My sympathies also lie with Godejohn who seems like an incredibly marginal human being who Gypsy more or less manipulated like her mother manipulated her. I certainly hope the law is as lenient with him as they were with Gypsy.

This.

Edited May 16, 2017 by AgentRXS

[funky-rat]

I haven't seen this (we no longer pay for HBO, and I don't pay for Amazon Prime or Netflix), but did read several articles about it, and like any other murder for hire, it could be because even though she could get around on her own power, the girl still looks a little frail, and her mom was a bigger gal (no judgement - I am as well).  Not sure she could have overpowered her mom.  Also, if her mom was known to do horrible stuff to her medically, if she tried and failed, where would it go from there?  This girl lived in a fantasy world, where she was heavily sheltered.  She meets someone who is in to the same stuff she's in to, and he pays lots of attention to her.  Emotionally, she's a puppy love struck 13 year old.  I'm not excusing what she did - she is where she needs to be (a psych hospital would have been better, but still....) and her sentence was just.

[Guest]

30 minutes ago, funky-rat said:

Not sure she could have overpowered her mom. 

I'm surprised her boyfriend overpowered the mother -- he was as slight as Gypsy.

I guess if she really wanted, Gypsy could have poisoned the mother or shot her. Or both. None of those options would require her to have much physical to do with the actual act of killing her. Regardless, Dee Dee got what was coming to her -- 'cause good lord, it seems not a single human being on earth had a good thing to say about her. 

I was also struck by the video (I guess Dee Dee made) of Gypsy sitting on the deck rail and falling into the snow. When Gypsy landed, it was quite clear she had use of her legs as her knees and legs bent with the impact in the snow. I assume if she were a quadriplegic with muscular dystrophy, there'd have been absolutely no buckling of her knees and she likely would have broken both legs in the process. I mean, people saw that video! How could anyone who knew them not be side-eyeing that? 

Edited May 16, 2017 by Guest

[funky-rat]

I can't recall if I've seen any photos of him, except for from the shoulders up, so I wasn't sure.

Patiently waiting for this to show up to a location I can watch it.

[OoogleEyes]

Is it just me or weren't some of these people inordinately cheery?

[Glade]

I think this could have been a lot longer - expanding on the long-term medical consequences Gypsy is likely to face after having all these unnecessary medications/surgeries would have been enlightening.  She noted at the end that the feeding tube site had finally healed over...it's horrific that she lived through this endless medical torture.  Her mother was still beating her with a clothes hanger at 24 if she was ever 'bad' and handcuffed her to the bed when she tried to get away the first time... It's clear from this and the power of attorney that DeeDee had that she was obviously never going to let her daughter go, there was no end date to the torture and initialization and puppet show.   

I don't agree that prison is the 'best' they could do.  She should have gotten treatment and 'time served' given that she spent her whole life imprisoned, kidnapped and tortured by her own mother.  She's likely to come out of the hellish U.S. prison system even more traumatized then she already is.  It's interesting how in some of the pictures, Gypsy and her boyfriend look incredibly similar to each other.

[FozzyBear]

Is it just me or weren't some of these people inordinately cheery?

Not just you. Everyone seemed a little out of it. No one acted like they had really come to terms with what happened.

[kathe5133]

Wow, wow, WOW!  That was a whole lot of crazy!  And the closing theme!

I hope Gypsy gets some serious therapy.  She learned manipulation from a master and I have no doubt she manipulated Godejohn and now she's playing her lawyers, her dad and stepmom., and the cameras!

I hope she finds peace.

But, 32 is still young enough to have a child and start the whole cycle over!   

Scary!

[April Bloodgate]

I was familiar with this story already, and I thought this was pretty good. I will say that I think they really overdid it in trying to convey how evil Dee Dee was. It was almost comical. 1) Am I really supposed to take this nephew character seriously? 2) Mentions of witchcraft and owning a tarantula as evidence of evil. *rolls eyes* I found her dad's feelings towards her to be the most compelling part of that narrative. 

[HoboClayton]

Wow.. Gypsy needs serious help. Prison, more than likely, won't be that great for that. Her level of maturity and cunning and intelligence threw me with how she was raised. I really don't know what to think. I wasn't a fan of Gypsy's dad or his wife.  I got the feeling they showed up and acted souly for the cameras. I have to stew on this one for a while. 

[pigs-in-space]

I found myself with a lot of questions after this (most that probably can't be answered), but I keep coming back to this one: who else did Gypsy have friended on Facebook?  And if they were people who knew her irl, why didn't they raise any alarms about this supposedly mentally challenged girl in what looked to be a concerning relationship?

I really liked the defense attorney and that he acknowledged that yes, Gypsy had to be punished for her role.  I also liked the dad and stepmom (although it took me the longest time to realize she was the stepmom- for some reason I thought she was Gypsy's aunt and was really confused that the two were sitting so close all the time).

[iggysaurus]

I think they said Gypsy had a "secret" FB account, which was presumably where she was posting all those pics and comments about Nick being her soul mate, but yeah, does that mean she had no friends on that account besides Nick, or maybe just online friends who knew nothing about her real life? 

[atlantaloves]

I really enjoyed this too, I think she belongs in a mental hospital as well, do not forget she never got beyond 2nd grade.  This was one pitiful case and I am glad Dee Dee is in the ground, what a viper. HBO makes the best murder documentaries in the world!!!!

[Duke2801]

On ‎5‎/‎15‎/‎2017 at 11:35 PM, MarMar said:

Wow,that was a twisted, f'd up story. I would have liked to hear more about the mom and what drove her to this behavior. Bouncing checks and a tarantula did not explain much, but then again, what could explain that level of disception?  When your entire family wants to flush your ashes down the toilet, you know you have not led anything close to a decent life. The boyfriend's story was sad and scary at the same time.  How in the world did these two find each other?  A schizoid, BDSM enthusiast vampire wannabe and a manipulated, victimized woman/child.  

I was not sure if Gypsy was being honest in her jailhouse interviews or just saying what she thought she was supposed to in her situation.  I am curious how others perceived it.  Is Gypsy now the manipulator?  Does she know anything else?

I was thinking the same thing.  I almost feel like they could make a whole separate documentary about Dee Dee.  She was one sick fuck of a woman. 

And seriously. I would love for them to have interviewed some of the doctors who treated Gypsy and performed these unnecessary procedures on her. Like...HOW in the living fuck does that happen?? HOW does a doctor not know when somebody does or does not have muscular dystrophy??  I know one of the "diseases" they said she had was leukemia?  Please tell me she wasn't receiving chemo and taking cancer drugs too??!

On ‎5‎/‎16‎/‎2017 at 2:18 AM, Armchair Critic said:

Just started watching, Gypsy's father must have been young and horny when he hooked up with DeeDee, then married her out of obligation when she was pregnant. I want to know what made DeeDee do what she did. The more I see the of the father he looked kind of weak, I think he was scared of DeeDee so didn't even try with Gypsy. Then he brought his wife everywhere, like he couldn't be alone with Gypsy.

DAMN her family even said DeeDee had it coming.

Yeah when I first saw him, I was like... really?  Those 2 were a couple??  But then when he explained he was just a horny 17 year old who accidentally knocked her up (well, probably NOT accidental now knowing what we know of her...) it kind of made a bit more sense.  She had to have been a good bit older than him too - at least 24 or 25.  But I was also curious about their marriage.  Did the Munchhausen by proxy only start once the 2 of them got divorced? 

All in all, a good documentary - but I think it needed to be longer.  Maybe even a series.   Still so many  unanswered questions. 

[movingtargetgal]

I want to know more about the doctors and hospitals that "treated" Gypsy.  How were they manipulated by Dee Dee into doing SO MANY unnecessary procedures?!!!!  The one doctor who suspected Munchausen by Proxy was too afraid to confront Dee Dee and her supporters,  needs to be investigated.  He covered up child abuse because it was easier for him to let it go!  He is a mandated reporter and did NOTHING.  I wonder how many doctors and hospitals suspected that Gypsy was being horribly abused but did nothing.     

Edited May 18, 2017 by movingtargetgal

[Armchair Critic]

5 hours ago, Duke2801 said:

Did the Munchhausen by proxy only start once the 2 of them got divorced? 

The father said it started when Gypsy was 3 months, I think they were together then.

21 hours ago, HoboClayton said:

I wasn't a fan of Gypsy's dad or his wife.  I got the feeling they showed up and acted souly for the cameras.

I figured that too, the dad should have seen her without his wife at the end but it's like he didn't want to be alone with Gypsy. The way Gypsy clung to him it's like she was finally getting some love from him (unfortunately way too late).

[SheTV]

Did they address what was going on with her teeth? I horrifyingly thought it was either that Dee Dee pulled them (shudder) to keep her looking young/sick or they fell out due to poor nutrition and/or medications, but I don't think it was mentioned.

[sally-can-wait]

On 5/17/2017 at 0:28 AM, HoboClayton said:

Wow.. Gypsy needs serious help. Prison, more than likely, won't be that great for that. Her level of maturity and cunning and intelligence threw me with how she was raised. I really don't know what to think. I wasn't a fan of Gypsy's dad or his wife.  I got the feeling they showed up and acted souly for the cameras. I have to stew on this one for a while. 

I was fascinated by this! The documentary noted she only had a 2nd grade education but the way she spoke and the vocabulary she used made me think she is far from developmentally limited. She came off as smart and perceptive and I do believe that she manipulated the boyfriend into the murder. All that being said, her mother was HORRIBLY abusive towards her and I can understand her desperate need to get out of the situation anyway she could. I was also struck by how small she looked standing next to her lawyers. That girl is tiny and there was no way she could have overpowered Dee Dee. 

Oh and there was one pic of the Dee Dee in her teens where she did look relatively slim and pretty so I'm guessing that was the time when she hooked up with the dad at the bowling alley. 

Edited May 19, 2017 by double-elvis

[CherryMalotte]

Quote

She came off as smart and perceptive and I do believe that she manipulated the boyfriend into the murder. All that being said, her mother was HORRIBLY abusive towards her and I can understand her desperate need to get out of the situation anyway she could.

I agree, I think she learned how to manipulate from Dee Dee - who was very very very good at it.  She's probably savvy in the short term, but lacks any long term skills and despite having the secret FB account and taking sexy pictures and having sex with the boyfriend in the bathroom at the movie theatre she has a low maturity level.  I'd bet she didn't think she and the boyfriend didn't think they'd get caught, really caught.  

Unless she's able to have some counseling in prison or some type of mental health care she's going to come out at age 32 with very little changes in her perceptions and may not ever be truly capable of any normal kind of life.  

Edited May 18, 2017 by CherryMalotte

[Armchair Critic]

4 hours ago, double-elvis said:

Oh and there was one pic of the Dee Dee in her teens where she did look relatively slim and pretty so I'm guessing that was the time when she hooked up with the dad at the bowling alley.

Dee Dee was 24 and he was 17. They showed her in some sort of pageant/debutante ball when she was around 22 and she was already dowdy looking.

[biakbiak]

I wanted to slap the doctor who talked about how he felt it was off and there was something wrong but no one else appeared to have an issue so he just dropped it. Dude, you let a child continue to be abused by her mother with the help of your colleagues because you didn't want to rock the boat. You sir, are an asshole who sucks at your job. 

[pigs-in-space]

49 minutes ago, biakbiak said:

I wanted to slap the doctor who talked about how he felt it was off and there was something wrong but no one else appeared to have an issue so he just dropped it. Dude, you let a child continue to be abused by her mother with the help of your colleagues because you didn't want to rock the boat. You sir, are an asshole who sucks at your job. 

Well, he was apparently the only doctor she saw that was smart enough to see through her bs, but...yeah, he failed Gypsy completely and his rationale was ridiculous.

[woodscommaelle]

That Buzzfeed Writer was exactly how I expected a Buzzfeed Writer to be.

God what a fucked up story.

Quote

 

[FozzyBear]

15 hours ago, SheTV said:

Did they address what was going on with her teeth? I horrifyingly thought it was either that Dee Dee pulled them (shudder) to keep her looking young/sick or they fell out due to poor nutrition and/or medications, but I don't think it was mentioned.

I was wondering the same thing. Were Gypsy's teeth actually fucked up from all the drugs and medical treatments DeeDee had her on. Did DeeDee somehow find a dentist she could con? Because I don't even know how you would get that done. Seriously, in some ways that seems harder then a stomach surgery to pull off. Some stuff (especially stomach stuff or muscle fatigue issues and stuff like that) if a patient keeps coming in complaining you might see a Dr start some sort of treatment based on a likely scenario. Some stuff is actually hard to diagnose to absolute certainty. But dental issues? Dentist don't even ask you that much. It's x-rays and and exam and we're gonna fill that cavity. What on earth could she have told a dentist to convince one to pull healthy teeth? Which leaves the *shudder* option that DeeDee was purposely doing something to Gypsy's teeth *shudder*  

[kendi]

On 5/15/2017 at 10:20 PM, FozzyBear said:

Can we talk about how hot Dee Dee's nephew was? No? I'm a horrible and shallow? Ok.
 

Yeah he is. (I can't help being shallow)

 

Amazing how the medical staff would just take DeeDee's word on Gypsy's "medical history" and not run their own tests, especially if she claimed medical records were lost. 

[Mannahatta]

1 hour ago, FozzyBear said:

What on earth could she have told a dentist to convince one to pull healthy teeth? Which leaves the *shudder* option that DeeDee was purposely doing something to Gypsy's teeth *shudder*  

http://gawker.com/everything-we-know-about-dee-dee-blanchardes-twisted-oz-1712087183

The Gawker article says that the mother forced Gypsy to take anti-seizure medication that caused her teeth to fall out. It really is mind boggling that the mother was able to get away with torturing Gypsy all those years with the complicity of the medical community. Very scary stuff. That doctor who said that the mother wasn't neglecting Gypsy - just being overly concerned - conveniently left out that the very nature of Munchausen by Proxy means abuse was taking place.

And that scene of Gypsy singing (dreadfully) on stage in that Shirley Temple outfit really skeeved me. It just seemed so patronizing. Didn't anyone in that audience think something was very wrong with the dynamic between mother and daughter?

[movingtargetgal]

I'm sure that doctor was not the only medical professional to suspect there was something fishy going on here.  I think nursing staff (who know their patients better than the doctors) probable reported things to their superiors  and were told not to question the Dee Dee and the doctors.  The doctors were afraid of Dee Dee bringing in a lawyer and they did not want to be sued.  It was a conspiracy of silence and Gypsy paid the price.

I would love a sequel to this documentary that would explain how the medical establishment allowed this abuse to continue.  

[FozzyBear]

So I had a stomach issue that took close to 30 years to diagnose (seriously, 30. 3-0.) and spent a lot of time going to doctors as a kid. My mom does remember once or twice nurses and doctors asking her a bunch of stuff about herself in a sort of causal way. Years later she realized they were probably running a psychological profile on her to see if it was a possible Munchousen thing. Some stuff really is hard to diagnose and to a large degree doctors do have to rely on what patients tell them. To a degree I get how this could happen, but to the extreme DeeDee pulled it off is crazy. A fucking feeding tube! How did she pull that off?

i also want to know so very much more about Gypsy's first escape. Who was that guy? Were they having an affair? Was that Gypsy's first run at seeing if some guy would kill her mom? Was that why he refused to do anything when DeeDee showed up? Like maybe he thought he and Gypsy would just start dating and then she started feeling him out to see how far he would go and he backed off? I feel like there was way more to that story.

[annewithaneee]

I'm surprised I'd managed to miss this one, as true crime and human disasters are two of my chief interests. This was great, engrossing stuff. I wish it had been longer, but they packed in so much fuckery in that my stomach already vaguely hurt by the end, so maybe more wouldn't have necessarily been better.

I too find the fact that all of this went unnoticed by her physicians to be appalling. At the very least, I'd think that she was having routine blood panels, and something in them could have alerted them as not lining up with what was detailed in the lengthy, horribly misspelled medical history maintained by Dee Dee. It's just so maddening, and Dee Dee's deception was so thorough that I'm not sure had a nurse or doctor followed their obligation to report to CPS/DCS that anything would have come of that either. An overworked social worker probably would have dropped by for a home visit once and shrugged it off as a family of weirdos with a genuinely sick kid. If Gypsy didn't have any huge bruises or welts on her, the system is kind of designed to let her fall through the cracks...at the very best, that seems to be the kind of abuse that gets caught, not a rarely occurring mental illness that would take a lot of time and care to uncover. Then again -- DOB? Wouldn't that be a huge issue with Dee Dee's con? I could see her explaining away Gypsy's own confusion about her age with tales of her mental delays, but does that mean she also found a fake ID for her and stuck with it rigidly? That's the one thing I'd expect all these hospitals and clinics to keep a sharp eye on, they verify DOB repeatedly for every trip, and I'd hope that would trace back to IDs and insurance info rather than some bullshit mom spewed during intake.

Another thing I wondered about with the boyfriend was the costuming. I wanted to know more about how she got the Hot Topic-y bondage gear and wigs and whatnot, and what conflict that caused between her and Dee Dee. Because that was....a lot.