After hearing about the deaths of Clare and Rachel Wallmeyer, I felt that it was necessary to share their story. I became familiar with them when I watched an episode of 60 Minutes (see below) a couple years ago, and frankly I was absolutely shocked.
Hearing Rachel say “We live to die,” and saying that both twins’ ‘goal weight’ is 55 pounds is both unbelievable and haunting. The twins developed an eating disorder in their early teens which only got worse and worse all the way until their death at 42. Eventually they started using drugs and becoming involved in criminal activity, all linked to their eating disorder. They’ve tried to commit suicide many times in the past, so the house fire that claimed their lives is not being deemed as suspicious.
However in my research, something I found odd was that Clare and Rachel were not the first set of famous anorexic twins. In fact, the number of anorexic twins is incredibly high.
Above is Maria and Katy Campbell, 33, who vowed never to eat when they were pre-teens after overhearing their dad say “Gosh, those girls are becoming young women, aren’t they? They’re getting hips”. They both dream about being mothers someday but due to their weight they’ve never had their period.
Here’s Michaela and Samantha Kendall, who both died as a result of anorexia. It seems so odd to me that there are so many twins who are anorexic but a quote from Samantha sheds some light on it, she said “The competition makes it twice as bad. If Michaela says she doesn’t want a cup of tea, then I won’t have one, even if I’m desperate. When I say to her, ‘Please, Michaela, eat a bit more, you look like a skeleton,’ she snaps back at me, ‘You’re only jealous”. I think it really is the competition, its proven that anorexics don’t do well together, they always feel the need to one up each other. Its a vicious and deadly cycle that only ends when both are in recovery or dead. All the best to Maria and Katy, I know they’ll be wonderful mothers someday. R.I.P Michaela and Samantha Kendall & Clare and Rachel Wallmeyer.