GYPSY Rose Blanchard, who hit headlines around the world when she was sent to prison for the murder of her mother in 2016, has revealed how she's finally "happy" again.
The 32-year-old, a victim of Munchausen by proxy, was released in December 2023 after serving seven-and-a-half years of a 10-year sentence in Missouri federal prison for the second-degree murder of her mother, Dee Dee Blanchard.
Now, she's been out of prison for five months and is set to appear in new Crime + Investigation series, Gypsy Rose Life After Lockup, which will follow her movements ever since.
Blanchard admits that the period following her release has been a "challenge" and "overwhelming" at times because she didn't expect the story to receive the level of attention it has.
"It's been hard," she says, speaking in an interview with Closer magazine.
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"I guess you could say I expected to fully fade into the background."
I am happy. It took a while to get there, but I'm happy
Gypsy Rose Blanchard
Court proceedings revealed that Blanchard and her then-boyfriend, Nicholas Godejohn, plotted to kill the mum in a bid to help her escape an abusive situation.
Since childhood, Blanchard, who grew up in Louisiana, was forced by her mother to pretend that she had various illnesses, including leukaemia and muscular dystrophy.
Dee Dee not only produced false paperwork to lie about Gypsy Rose's age and medical history, but also shaved her daughter's head, altered her appearance, regulated unnecessary prescription doses, and consented to needless surgeries.
Gypsy Rose was even made to breathe from an oxygen tank and use a wheelchair - despite not needing either.
Dee Dee suffered from an undiagnosed factitious disorder known as Munchausen syndrome by proxy, which sees people fabricate illnesses or injuries or actually cause them to others to gain attention, sympathy, or other benefits.
In her case, Dee Dee would accept gifts from the community and disability benefits for the fake illnesses she put on her daughter.
On June 9, 2015, Godejohn, who was told all about this because of his relationship with Blanchard, stabbed Dee Dee 17 times in her sleep at the family's Springfield home while Blanchard hid in the bathroom.
On July 5, 2016, Blanchard accepted a plea bargain and pleaded guilty to the second-degree murder of Dee Dee. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
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Godejohn was charged with first-degree murder and is still serving a life sentence at Potosi Correctional Center in Missouri without the chance of parole.
At his sentencing, he told the court: "I was blindly in love. That was always very much the case."
But while it may be surprising to hear, Blanchard says her time in prison made her more "resilient" and helped her to "heal".
She added that it also gave her the education she needed to build herself up in preparation for the "freedom" she has now.
"Coming out of prison, I felt like I had the building blocks already there and so it was about putting them into action and getting to see the final project of life," she explains.
"Hey, I've been building myself up and my self-esteem, now let's get my hair done, let's get my nose done and let's get my nails done, now that I have freedom to do it."
As for the future, Gypsy Rose goes on to say how she'd consider a career in hairdressing.
However, for now, she's enjoying every moment with her family - including learning how to cook with her stepmum and being taught to play guitar by her dad.
"I am happy. It took a while to get there, but I'm happy," she adds.
