A 22-year-old woman with anorexia passed away after reportedly encountering insensitive remarks from nurses that negatively impacted her mental health during treatment.
Jennifer Michelle Matters, a nursing graduate and biomedical science student from Adelaide, Australia, weighed just 65 lbs at the time of her death, leaving behind a note expressing that she was “exhausted.” She had struggled with the eating disorder for two years and often confided in her parents about distressing comments from hospital staff, including questions like, “What’s your secret to being skinny?”
Throughout her treatment, Jennifer experienced multiple voluntary and involuntary hospital admissions and sought various therapies. Her father criticized the hospital staff for their handling of her “devastating illness,” asserting they “lacked empathy” for patients suffering from anorexia. He remarked, “She was suffering from a horrible disease but still wanted to help others until the end.”
On social media, Instagram users shared mixed reactions to the news. One user, kristy143, expressed, “This is devastating. How could someone treating her say this? I’m recovered, and back when I had anorexia, no one knew how to handle it. Today they should, and that’s just callous. My heart hurts for this girl and her family.” Another user, mr.andreas.stark, added, “Mental illness is real. Be kind.” Reactions varied, with some supporting Jennifer while others defended the hospital staff, suggesting that the complexities of mental health cannot always be blamed on others’ actions.
