Gayle Laverne Grinds

Gayle Laverne Grinds (August 27, 1964 - August 11, 2004) was a resident of Stuart, in Martin County, Florida who gained notoriety following her death. Grinds, who was 4'10" and 478 pounds, had been sitting on the same couch since 1998 following a broken leg, and her skin had fused inseparably with the upholstery. Gayle Laverne Grinds is depicted in an episode of Nip/Tuck, . She also inspired the one-woman show "Don't Look At the Fat Lady" by Topher Payne.

Martin County fire-rescue workers were summoned to assist Grinds after family members made an emergency call late on August 10, 2004 reporting that she was having difficulty breathing. Upon arrival, the rescuers, forced to use protective gear by the extreme squalor of Grinds' residence and stymied by their inability to lift her from the couch, transported Grinds and the couch together to the hospital on a pickup trailer, but Grinds died shortly after being admitted and before surgeons could separate her from the couch.

Grinds' case generated interest worldwide over the circumstances that led to her prolonged recumbency, as well as speculation on the role of Grinds' relatives, especially Herman Thomas, the man who lived with her and who described himself as her husband, in abetting her desperate circumstances. Grinds' sister, Vivian Kendricks, reported that she regularly visited Grinds to cook for her and wash her on the couch, but said that she didn't remember the last time she had visited Grinds, and that nothing had seemed wrong with her lifestyle.

Several commentators expressed their amazement that Grinds had survived for so long without dying from complications of what was essentially an enormous bedsore.

Main Menu

See Also

Main Menu