Gypsy Rose Blanchard took her newfound freedom in stride Friday, posting an Instagram selfie for the first time since being released from prison this week.
She paired the image with the caption, “First selfie of freedom!”
In the photo, the 32-year-old posed in front of a mirror wearing a white and blue ombre-colored hoodie. The photo has gained over 1.5 million likes and comments from people supporting her entry into every day society after serving seven years behind bars. Her account, which recently had been used to promote her upcoming book, “Released,” had 1.2 million followers at the time of publishing.
Blanchard labeled her profile as a public speaker, public figure, author and an advocate for Munchausen Syndrome by proxy awareness. While Friday’s seflie marked her first personal post, the account was created in August of this year and received verification in October. Its earliest post was made on Oct. 10.
Blanchard’s social media debut comes after she was granted parole in September, and was released from a state women’s prison in Chillicothe, Missouri, on Thursday after serving 85% of her 10-year sentence. On July 5, 2016, Blanchard pleaded guilty to second-degree murder for helping orchestrate the killing of her abusive mother, Clauddine “Dee Dee” Blanchard, who kept her as a prisoner during the majority of Blanchard’s childhood and convinced her that she was fatally ill. In June 2015, Blanchard’s boyfriend, Nicholas Godejohn, stabbed Dee Dee to death while she was in bed asleep.
Blanchard’s story inspired Hulu’s Emmy-winning series “The Act” and became the subject of HBO’s 2017 documentary “Mommy Dead and Dearest.”
