Dying anorexic actress makes heart-wrenching video plea for help as hospitals say she is 'too skinny to treat'

May 22, 2015 12:47

At five-foot-seven, she weighs a mere '40-something pounds' and is close to death. Now, Rachael Farrokh, from Southern California, is begging the public to help save her life. The 37-year-old actress, who has been battling anorexia nervosa for more than 10 years, has released a video on YouTube describing her fight against the life-threatening eating disorder.

In the footage, she explains how her condition has severely declined in recent months, leaving her emaciated, breathless and too weak to move around on her own at her San Clemente home. She also reveals how her husband, Ron Edmondson, has had to quit his job to become her 24-hour caregiver, while area hospitals won't treat her because her 'dangerous' weight makes her a 'liability'.

'There's one hospital across the country that can help, and my chances are very slim. We need your help,' a gaunt-looking Ms Farrokh says in the video, asking viewers to donate 'anything you can'.

Sitting on a couch with a pink hooded top covering her tiny frame, Ms Farrokh, begins the video by saying: 'I need your help. I'm suffering from an eating disorder. It's a very severe kind of anorexia.'

Struggling to get her words out, she continues: 'I've been suffering from this for quite a while now. I'm five-[foot]-seven, 40-something pounds and no hospitals will even take me at this point.

'Rod is now my 24-hour caregiver. In order for us to get [to the hospital that can help]... and I'm not one to ever ask for help...I need your help, otherwise I don't have a shot. And I'm ready to get better.

She finally guides viewers to a dedicated GoFundMe page, where she is aiming to raise $100,000 to fund her treatment. She has so far raised $33,150, while her video has garnered over 11,000 views.

Ms Farrokh met Mr Edmondson, 41, while he was working as a personal trainer at her gym. Prior to her battle with anorexia, she was a beautiful, active, healthy woman, Mr Edmondson told ABC.

'She was a very active individual growing up, she was a perfectionist,' he said. On Facebook, Ms Farrokh has posted a photo of herself looking healthy in sports gear, taken many years ago.

'At first, it was innocent, I wanted to drop a few pounds to get better abs,' said Ms Farrokh, adding that a sudden job loss and a painful memory from her past had allowed her anorexia to creep in.

As her disorder 'spiraled out of control', the actress saw her weight drop from a healthy 125 pounds to a much lower figure. And in recent months, it has dropped even further - to below 50 pounds.