Gypsy Rose ​Blanchard Recalls Her Most Painful Unnecessary Procedure During Childhood: ‘Really Hard’

Gypsy Rose Blanchard opened up about the most painful unnecessary procedure she underwent during her childhood.

The Louisiana native, 32, told People in an interview published on December 31, 2023, that she had a surgery “to remove two salivary glands behind my neck.” ​Gypsy added that she “didn’t respond very well to the anesthesia,” which made the recovery process “really, really hard.”

Gypsy – who is a Munchausen by proxy victim – was released from prison early on December 28, 2023, after she served eight years behind bars for her role in the 2015 murder of her mother, Dee Dee Blanchard. Dee Dee falsely told her only daughter that she had several illnesses during her upbringing, which is why she underwent the salivary glands surgery that she didn’t actually need.

“To this day, it has left me with the side effects of having to clear my throat all the time,” Gypsy told the outlet. “So I’m always, if you hear me, that is a constant thing that I’ve had ever since. And it annoys people to no end.”

She explained that she’s constantly clearing her throat because her “saliva is very thick.” Gypsy continued, “So it’s been a negative side effect for me. And the reason why I had that surgery is because my mother had put [Orajel] on my gums to make me drool at the appointment and complain to the doctor that [I drool] too much.”

Gypsy also recalled asking her mother if the procedures were necessary when doctors weren’t around. “She would get really, really upset with me and start manipulating me in a way that she would take her love from me,” she said.

Following Dee Dee’s death, Gypsy was sentenced to serve 10 years in prison after pleading guilty for her role in the murder in July 2016. Dee Dee’s abuse toward Gypsy was determined to be the motive behind the murder. Gypsy’s then-boyfriend, Nicholas Godejohn, was convicted of first-degree murder and was sentenced to serve a life in prison without the possibility of parole for his involvement. Additionally, he was sentenced to serve 25 more years for armed criminal action in February 2019.

Gypsy has since admitted she regrets her mother’s murder. “She was a sick woman and unfortunately I wasn’t educated enough to see that,” she told People on December 27. “She deserved to be where I am, sitting in prison doing time for criminal behavior.”

While Gypsy has only been living a free life for four days, she has already gotten the hang of social media and has been keeping her followers up to date on what her daily life has been like.

She took to Instagram on December 31 to share how she was ringing in 2024 with her husband, Ryan Scott Anderson, and close family members.

“I have my dad, and my stepmom Kristy here, and of course my husband, so we’re looking to ring in the new year together and it’s gonna be really awesome to have some family time after so long,” she said in the clip. “So to everyone watching, happy New Year’s Eve!”