Canadian female Pam Winthrope told News 1130 in Canada that Chris Benoit’s son had a genetic condition called Fragile X syndrome.
According to WebMD, “Fragile X Syndrome is a defect of the X chromosome which causes mild mental retardation. The disorder occurs more frequently and severely among males than females. This condition is the leading known familial cause of mental retardation in the United States. Language delays, behavioral problems, autism or autistic-like behavior (including poor eye contact and hand-flapping), enlarged external genitalia (macroorchidism), large or prominent ears, hyperactivity, delayed motor development and/or poor sensory skills are among the wide range of symptoms associated with this disorder.”
Winthrope, whose son also suffers from the condition, told the Canadian news outlet that her husband reached out to Benoit five years ago in an attempt to increase awareness about Fragile X.
She told News 1130, “We talked to him because I was trying to set up a support group in BC and in Canada, we only have a couple of them. My husband was struggling when we got diagnosed with our son, and Chris was struggling with his. They talked for a few minutes and then he said he didn’t want to be a public face for Fragile X, he just wanted to keep it really, really quiet.”
Winthrope noted that the lack of support for those affected by the disorder can tear families apart. Nonetheless, “she couldn’t believe the news that Benoit had taken his life along with his wife and 7-year-old son,” wrote News 1130.
This may explain why Daniel was taking growth hormone injections. It also may shed light onto why Chris didn’t want someone else raising his son and made the fateful decision to kill him. As irrational and twisted as it may sound, he may have felt he was saving his son from the double-blow of losing his parents through a murder-suicide and being subject to being raised by people who didn’t understand or care for his condition.
