Experts believe
When Gypsy was a child, her mom Dee Dee told her that she suffered from leukemia and a host of other health issues. Gypsy revealed in a 20/20 interview that the only medical condition she actually has is a lazy eye.
In 2011, Gypsy tried to escape from Dee Dee with a man she met online. Eventually, the attempt failed, and Dee Dee Blanchard brought her daughter home, smashed her computer, and threatened to do the same to her fingers if she tried it again.
In 2010, Dee Dee was telling everyone that Gypsy Rose was 14, but she was actually 19 years old. By then, she knew she wasn't as sick as her mother claimed — as she was well aware that she could walk.
On-screen performances aside, The Act also highlights a psychological disorder called Munchausen syndrome by proxy. Dee Dee Blanchard, Gypsy Rose's mother, reportedly had Munchhausen syndrome by proxy which caused her to fabricate Gypsy's physical wellbeing.
However, Gypsy wasn't actually unwell — her mother had been lying about her symptoms. Experts believe Dee Dee's behavior stemmed from the mental disorder Munchausen syndrome by proxy; because Dee Dee wanted to be a caretaker, she feigned and induced illness in her daughter.
Gypsy never thought she was going to get caught
She was also seen expressing immediate regret at the murder of her mother, and was desperately attempting to cover her up.
But, according to a 2016 BuzzFeed News investigation on the true story, it's unclear whether Gypsy's teeth were rotting because of poor dental hygiene, malnutrition, or the medications she didn't need—or a combination of all three. Gypsy says a medication called Tegretol for epilepsy caused her "teeth to crumble."
Gypsy lost her virginity to him in a movie theater bathroom.
This particularly extraordinary moment from The Act's fifth episode is played out just how it happened in real life.
Gypsy told him she had 30 different procedures, including multiple eye, leg and throat surgeries. Her salivary glands were also removed. "You have been cut open. You had parts taken out of you.
Dee Dee had pretended to the world that Gypsy Rose was severely physically and mentally ill — perhaps for the attention, sympathy, or so that Gypsy would be more reliant on Dee Dee. Part of that ruse included lying about Gypsy Rose's real age.
"It is possible that Gypsy Rose presents with puberphonia (high-pitched voice after birth), a class of psychogenic voice disorders," says Jayne Latz, an executive communication coach and president and founder of Corporate Speech Solutions.
In addition to being told she had leukemia, muscular dystrophy and epilepsy, Gypsy Rose Blanchard never even knew her real age.
While under the ever-watchful care of her mother, Gypsy was often bald because Dee Dee would regularly shave her hair so her daughter would look sick. Save for the time-hopped finale episode, Infinity doesn't have hair either. There's even a scene in which Nana is seen shaving her head.
As for her teeth, they did rot and were subsequently removed, likely due to the removal of Gypsy's salivary glands. According to Gypsy, her mother used a numbing agent to numb her gums, causing her to drool, which helped convince doctors to remove the glands.
The show cuts to Gypsy waking up from the procedure, her mouth bloodied and bruised-and completely toothless. To make matters worse, Gypsy must later be honored at a Child Of The Year ceremony (later, Dee Dee surprises Gypsy with a new set of teeth, just moments before she was supposed to go on stage).
Gypsy recalls that afterward, Dee Dee smashed her computer with a hammer and threatened to do the same to her fingers if she ever tried to escape again; she also kept Gypsy leashed and handcuffed to her bed for two weeks.
Prosecutors cut a deal with Gypsy, however, because of the horrific abuse she suffered at the hands of her mother. In exchange for pleading guilty to second-degree murder, Gypsy was sentenced to the minimum of 10 years in prison.
And immediately after treating her like a literal child, Dee Dee is angry right back because Gypsy has started her period early. The offense was apparently that Gypsy didn't immediately alert her mother to this fact. Also, it's not exactly as if Dee Dee has made Gypsy very self sufficient after all these years.
Dee Dee Blanchard kept Gypsy's head shaved and forced her to use a wheelchair even though there was nothing wrong with her legs. Dee Dee Blanchard also convinced a physician to put a feeding tube into Gypsy and would tell people that Gypsy was mentally incompetent.
The Act shows a scene in which Gypsy Rose Blanchard wins an award for Child of the Year. In real life, Gypsy did win a similar award, based on her positive attitude and charity efforts in the face of her medical conditions.
According to Gypsy Rose, she knew she could walk and eat real food, but that was it. Per the fascinating Buzzfeed article that inspired The Act (the author, Michelle Dean, is the co-creator of the show):
Rod and Gypsy have reconnected since she's been in prison.
"It's a hundred times better, honestly," he said. "We email each other. She can call me anytime, and she does. I'm keeping tabs on all of her accomplishments in school.
Gypsy Rose is serving a 10-year prison sentence for second-degree murder (Godejohn got life in prison). It appears that Woodmansee is getting married. But she's still in touch with her old friend. Woodmansee was optimistic about Gypsy Rose's disposition after visiting her in prison.
Dee Dee's years of abuse impacted Gypsy Rose physically, mentally and emotionally. She was 23 when Dee Dee was killed, but had been told by her mother that she was just a teenager with the mental capacity of a 7-year-old.