Emily Chan
Another case involved teenager Mollie Fancher from Brooklyn, New York. She spent half a century in her bed. It all began in 1865 when she became the victim of a freak accident.
She had fallen out of a horse-drawn trolley and was dragged along behind it by her scarf. The trolley incident occurred two years after a horseback-riding accident that nearly became fatal.
Mollie survived, but she declared that she had lost her vision. Apparently, she also gained a connection with the spiritual realm and other supernatural abilities, such as predicting the future and reading without the use of her eyes.
She no longer needed to eat or drink, and for the next 48 years, she stayed bedridden without any nourishment. She died in 1916.
Ann Moore was a third example of a fasting girl, although she was actually a middle-aged woman. She lived in the village of Tutbury, Staffordshire, England.
Ann claimed she hadn’t eaten for five years. But the reasons behind her fast were never consistent, and one of them included being repulsed by caring for a sick patient with rotting sores.
She became so popular that a wax figure of her was erected in Boston. When doctors began to challenge her story, she admitted that it was all a hoax. Soon after, she died.
Overall, the phenomenon of fasting girls reflects a combination of faith, medical misunderstanding, and psychological factors.
It also shows what society expects from women, such as the idea of going through suffering to achieve purity.
This historical incident highlighted the need for a better understanding of eating disorders and the mental health issues involved.
