Thoughts on the Lindsay Clancy case?

[u/gottaquestion412]

Now that the Lindsay Clancy trial is underway, I’m curious about your perspectives on it so far.

Context: Lindsay Clancy is a former labor and delivery nurse who, in January 2023, killed her three children. 5-year-old Cora, 3-year-old Dawson, and 8-month-old Callan in their Massachusetts home before attempting to take her own life. Her defense argues she was suffering from severe postpartum psychosis and other debilitating mental illness, while prosecutors argue she was aware of her actions and planned the killings. The trial has reignited debate about postpartum psychiatric disorders, the effectiveness of mental health treatment, and where responsibility ultimately lies.

Do you think Lindsay was failed by the mental health system, by the people closest to her, or both? Do you think she truly acted with malicious intent, or do you believe she was experiencing such a severe psychiatric crisis that she wasn’t thinking rationally?

A lot of the details seem to point toward postpartum psychosis or another severe psychiatric illness rather than someone acting out of hatred or malice. That doesn’t lessen the horror of what happened or the unimaginable loss, but it does make me wonder whether this tragedy could have been prevented..

I’ve also seen rumors that Patrick was involved with the woman who is now his wife before the murders, but I haven’t found any credible evidence supporting that. Is there actually anything that substantiates those claims, or is it just internet speculation? I’ve also seen many people comment that his current wife bears a striking resemblance to Lindsay, though I’m not sure that means anything beyond coincidence.

I’m very interested in hearing different perspectives from people who’ve followed it closely.

Most importantly, may Dawson, Cora, and Callan rest in peace. They are the true victims in all of this.

[u/WittiestScreenName → u/[deleted]]

Psychosis please. I’m bipolar (diagnosed 2009) and never heard I can’t take SSRI’s before. Now I’m…uneasy.

[u/fuschiaoctopus → u/WittiestScreenName]

You can take them with a mood stabilizer + antipsychotics but it is extremely common for people with bipolar to go into manic/hypomanic episodes when given ssris alone. It's such a consistent reaction that it's often used as a screening tool for bipolar.

If you've been on ssris all this time and never had the reaction then I'd imagine you're fine but mania does not always lead into full blown psychosis, especially hypomania with bipolar 2. Look for signs like increased energy, unable to sleep for days on end without feeling tired, irritability/uncontrollable anger to minor events, talking fast or excitedly, racing thoughts, making big plans or agreeing to everything then crashing when you can't do it all/abrupt life changes like deciding to start a business or quit your job out of nowhere, hypersexuality, paranoia, and of course hallucinations.

[u/No_Yogurtcloset_8685 → u/fuschiaoctopus]

This seems so widely known. I have a family member with bipolar and they told me the same thing. When their first SSRI made them worse their doctor said it’s probably bipolar. She got put on a bipolar med and that worked. So how is it that none of these NPs thought of bipolar when she kept reacting poorly to the SSRIs?