Its about this girl who's parents asumes shes sick and always has her missing school to take her to the doctors. The mom takes her to the doctor and tells the doctor all these simptoms she says her daughter has. The weird thing is that her daughter is not sick her mom is just making it up. Her mom takes her to a hospital where the doctor runs all these heart test because she says her daughter has a heart condition. They run several test but all of them came out negative indicating that nothing was wrong with her so they make an incision in her leg to see and hear her heart beat but still they couldnt find anything wrong with her...She ran wawy from home because she had told some one that her parents where abusing the foster kids and her self so her mom got so mad so she told her to do some work before her dad came home to give her her beating.She ran away and lived in a correctional shelter for teens. Her parents ended up turning the story back to her and making her look bad so she droped the charges she had on her parents....She went home again and bagan feeling better.She did not take pills or anything the doctors over the years prescribed. One day when she spent a night at her friends house her house had burnet down over night. Her parents got all the insurence money and her mom went to Mexico with the guy who lent them the trailer...when she came back she told Julie that her husband and planed to burned down the house and that he killed her dog ..

This book was an amazing yet horrifying journey. The gruesome detail through each stage of Gregory's life was expertly woven into the overall story, and it really exposed the horrible abuse she suffered. From beatings to lies horrifying surgeries, each event is laid out in a way that truly captures her childhood. I admire Julie Gregory's ability to write and her courage to share her story, face her abuse and continue to bring awareness to Munchausen by proxy.

It's quite hard to review this book because if it is true, it is a horrific and true account of a mother ruining the childhood of her daughter and purposefully making her sick (and undergo unnessary medical procedures). In addition to the emotion and physical abuse that she suffers.

I say 'if it is true' because I really don't know. The book certainly felt realistic and includes what are purported to be Julie's medical notes, however, they don't really prove things one way or another. I did some googling after I finished the book to see what happened to the mother because Julie says at the end of the book that she is going to prosecute her. However, although she certainly made allegations and had this book published, it doesn't look like her mother has been convicted of any charges. I would rather a judge and jury had confirmed she was guilty before I make a decision myself.

Regardless of whether it is a true account, this book is an interesting representation of Munchausen by Proxy.

2.5

I picked this book up at the library yesterday afternoon and finished it in the same day. It was a fascinating and terrifying story that I didn't want to put down.

Julie Gregory, in a bold voice, tells the story of her life as a victim of Munchausen's syndrome by proxy. Much is written about the parents who perpetrate this particular type of abuse, but little is said about the children who experience it (many of whom die).

Gregory is obviously writing from the perspective of someone who comes to recognize what has happened to her -- of one who realizes that she is not, in fact, an ill person but a victim of horrible child abuse. Her first person account, coupled with reproductions of the childhood medical records she obtained, draw a picture of a family whose dysfunction centered on the mother and the dire actions she would take to obtain attention and approval at any cost.

Not to be missed by those who wish to understand this unfortunately common, but poorly understood, illness and the victims thereof.

What a horrendous tale - way more than just Munchausen by Proxy (surprised she or her doctors never considered it, it’s been around a very long time) - add hoarding and cruelty to the mothers mental disorders. The grandparents and parents on both sides suffered from weirdness so what can you expect? How they got foster kids and vets in their “home” is beyond belief. Just one creepy chapter after another, but I couldn’t put it down! Yes, I was Sickened.

Once I started reading this book I couldn't put it down. The story is very compelling in itself. his book does not flinch from reality. The book starts with the childhood of the mother. Her mother came from a world where incest was usual and it was not uncommon for the babies to be born deformed. It then launches into the life of Julie, the author of the book. Her mother is determined that Julie is fatally ill. She drags her from doctor to doctor, coaxing the child on what she should tell the doctor. The child is not aware of what she is saying. She tells the doctor that she has a headache when she is too young to know what a headache is. The child is starved and overworked so of course she always looks sick. The saddest part of the book for me is when her parents burn their double trailer leaving their dog inside. They then abandon their children. Julie is left with a legacy that never leaves her. Is she actually sick? She know longer knows.

this was scary and horrible but very interesting. I kind of wanted to know more about Julie and her journey after learning about MBP. I felt like that part was too short. But otherwise I liked it

Das Buch war etwas enttäuschend. Es wird weniger das Münchhausen Stellvertreter Syndrom behandelt sondern mehr der physische und emotionale Missbrauch ihrer Eltern. Mich hätte interessiert, was für Folgen das „Krank halten“ ihrer Tochter für die Mutter hatte, aber genau an dem Punkt, an dem die Tochter erste Maßnahmen ergreift, endet das Buch. Das Buch über wiederholen sich die Geschehnisse immer und immer wieder, man dreht sich knapp 300 seiten lang eigentlich nur im Kreis. Natürlich handelt es sich hier um eine Biographie und damit einfach die Wiedergabe des Lebens von Julie gregory, es war aber einfach für mich zu uninteressant.

Read this sad one for a book club. I was sure I would feel extremely depressed while reading it, but it wasn't as bad as I thought. Still absolutely horrible what this girl went through, but her writing somehow made it tolerable. I got completely sucked in and finished in a day and a half.

Cât de mult am așteptat ca autoarea să facă o schimbare, dar lectura din păcate nu m-a „captivat” pe cât mă așteptam.
Atunci când vezi că propria ta mamă se bucură când ești bolnavă, încearcă să facă să fii bolnavă, atunci îți dai seama că ceva e în neregulă. Julie, știai că ceva nu se leagă, că totul e nenormal, dar în loc să strigi, să te zbați ca toți să știe prin ce treci, ai tăcut. Ai tăcut și cu ce te-ai ales? Cu spirite care te vor bântuie întreaga viață. Strigă! Luptă! Fă ceva!

I feel bad giving a memoir a three star rating, especially with a true story as tragic as this one, but feel that writing is not this author’s strength. The story is very interesting and sad, but I’ve read more compelling memoirs of abusive upbringing (The Glass Castle, Running with Scissors). I could see how writing this book would be very cathartic for the author and I commend her work in bringing awareness to MBP. The copies of her medical records were a very nice addition and overall the story is fascinating (albeit tragic) and would give the author herself 5 stars for her vulnerability ;)