It's been over a week since Kanye West's "campaign rally" in South Carolina quickly deteriorated into an unhinged tirade in which the rapper cried, made offensive comments about civil rights leaders, and revealed deeply personal secrets about his own family.

At the time, no one could have imagined that the worst was yet to come.

In a Twitter tirade the following day, Kanye accused Kim Kardashian of cheating on him with rapper Meek Mill

He accused Kim's mother, Kris Jenner, of being a white supremacist, and he slut-shamed her sister Kylie Jenner for appearing in Playboy.

As all of this unfolded, Kim had no face-to-face contact with Kanye, whom she says is in the midst of a severe bipolar episode.

The rapper has been holed up at his ranch in Cody, Wyoming throughout that time, and while he's received several celebrity visitors, Kim has not been among them.

Last week, Kanye referred to an incident in which Kim tried to have him placed under a 5150 psychiatric hold that would have forced him to seek psychiatric treatment.

But if that actually transpired, it seems Kanye managed to avoid coming face-to-face to Kim during her unsuccessful efforts to force him to seek help.

Instead, the couple saw one another in person for the first time on Monday.

And based on the paparazzi photos obtained by TMZ, the encounter did not go smoothly.

The pics show Kim and Kanye seated in his car after making a Wendy's run.

She's obviously in tears -- as she probably has been for much of the past week -- and he's his usual animated self.

Obviously, we have no way of knowing what the couple was talking about, but it's a safe bet that Kim was urging Kanye to seek treatment, and he was vehemently refusing.

We're guessing their limited communications over the past week have consisted of some variation of the same argument.

In the past, Kanye has suffered breakdowns, sought treatment, and made his way back to his family.

This time is different for a number of reasons.

For starters, never before has Kanye gone on the offensive against his own loved ones in such brutal fashion.

In the past, Yeezy's targets were rival rappers, perceived political opponents, or the media.

This time, however, his rage was directed at his wife and in-laws.

But the biggest difference between those past episodes and this one is that in the past, Kanye eventually recognized that he needs help, and it looks as though that's not happening this time.

As a result, his wife may have little choice but to cut him loose.

We've talked at length about whether or not Kim should file for divorce from Kanye, but the fact is, she may not have any other options.

For the sake of her children and her own mental health, Kim might have to cut ties with the father of her four children.

If nothing else, filing for divorce might help her to keep her children safe -- and it may cause West to realize how serious this situation has become.

View Slideshow: Kanye West: I've Been Trying to Divorce Kim For YEARS! Kris Jenner is a White Supremacist! [UPDATED]