It's Maternal Mental Health Week. Let's Get Real On It.
Will the Lindsay Clancy situation shift any public consciousness on post-partum?
We treat new moms broadly like sh*t as we expect them to drive our families forward. In Massachusetts, one horrific case may shift the entire paradigm.
If you are generally unfamiliar with the Lindsay Clancy situation, I can summarize it for you quickly: she was a mom of three in Duxbury, Massachusetts. The kids were 5, 3, and eight months. Her husband, Patrick, seemed to work remotely for Microsoft. She was on a ton of meds for post-partum and was apparently anxious about returning to her work as a labor and delivery nurse. From January 1 to January 5, 2023, she committed herself to some type of mental health program or facility. About 19 days later, she choked her three children to death with exercise bands, then slit her wrists (and potentially neck) and jumped out of the second floor of her home. She survived, although — and this is reported in different ways — she may be paralyzed from the waist down. None of the kids survived.
This is a fascinating (and horrible) life situation, so naturally I did write about it once before.
Well, recently the Plymouth County (MA) DA’s office unsealed about 299 pages related to Clancy, and it’s covered well in this video:
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