As we reported last week, Bethenny Frankel is suffering from a mysterious illness, and while she’s addressed her medical problems publicly, she’s thus far refused to go into any sort of detail.
Her condition was briefly addressed in the first trailer for The Real Housewives of New York City Season 8, but Bethenny was cagey when answering questions about it in a recent People interview.
“I’m facing a women’s health issue that many women can relate to,” she told the magazine, refusing to elaborate any further.
Now, Bethenny’s estranged mother, Bernadette Birk, is throwing shade over the whole situation, telling Radar Online that she believes the 45-year-old reality star is just drumming up publicity in order to secure bigger ratings.
“I have no idea,” Birk said when asked about Bethenny’s illness. “I haven’t spoken to her in 12 years. Maybe more. I really don’t know anything about her life and I don’t want to.”
Subtly dissing her daughter’s fondness for plastic surgery, Birk added, “An overnight stay in the hospital is no big deal. It could be something cosmetic.”
Indeed, it does not look as though Frankel has received any long-term, in-patient medical care, but that doesn’t mean that her condition is, as Birk claims, “no big deal.”
Of course, it’s not like Bethenny’s never been known to blow things out of proportion.