AT 37, Rachael Farrokh weighs just 20 kilograms.
She’s lived with anorexia for 10 long years, but the battle to get better has never been more urgent than it is right now.
She is severely emaciated, she frequently loses her train of thought and she is too weak to even walk on her own.
In a heartbreaking YouTube video, the California-based former actor has detailed her dire situation.
“My name is Rachael, I need your help,” she begins.
“I’m suffering from an eating disorder and it’s a very severe kind of anorexia. This is a psychological disease … I’ve been suffering for quite a while now.”
She says her husband, Rod, has quit his job to become her 24-hour caregiver but in order to get better, she needs access to a treatment facility in Denver.
“No hospitals will even take me at this point. There’s one hospital across the country that can help and my chances are very slim.
“I’ve not been one to ever ask for help, I need your help, we need your help, otherwise I don’t have a shot, and I’m ready to get better, so please if there’s anything you can do to save my life please do anything you can … anything will help. Thank you.”
In a GoFundMe page set up by Rod, he details the extremity of Rachael’s decade-long battle, which has included medical problems like multiple blood transfusions, blood clots, oedema and heart, liver and kidney failure.
“She will be seeing her final days if we don’t take action, her weight continues to plummet to a weight that’s extremely dangerous,” he writes.
“She is at a critical point. Her days are limited if we don’t take action immediately.
“The reality is people are hurting so much that they’re trying to make themselves disappear, and if we ignore it we let them. I don’t want this fate for my wife.”
He describes her agonising process to recovery, which requires a method called “refeeding”, where patients’ bodies are slowly introduced to food and nutrients.
However, refeeding will have side effects as the body is suddenly forced to adapt to the introduction of nutrients.
In order for Rachael to fully recover, Rod said she “desperately needs the highest level of care possible.
“The funding will help cover medical bills and overall treatment. Time is of the essence and I don’t want to lose the most important person in my life.”
