Duxbury resident Lindsay Clancy, 32, is going to be charged with murder of her five year old daughter and three year old son. She strangled her two children last night, ie., Jan 24th, and injured her 7-month-old infant son before attempting to kill herself. She was a delivery nurse at Massachusetts General Hospital. She was married and appeared to be a happy mother and wife from postings on her social media accounts. Her husband came home at 6 PM and discovered the tragedy and called the police. The children were airlifted to the hospital.

A psychiatrist from Tufts Medical Center gave an interview and stated that Ms. Clancy most likely suffered from postpartum depression and urged anyone who was suffering from the “baby blues” to get professional help as quickly as possible. He had a difficult time discussing the tragedy without nearly coming to tears, and he said that he has had first hand experience with such tragedies.

Ms. Clancy and her infant were lucky Mr. Clancy arrived at the family home at 6 PM, as it appears from news reports that had he not arrived Ms. Clancy may have succeeded in killing her newborn and herself.

Postpartum psychosis is a rare condition. Experts estimate that it affects up to 2.6 out of every 1,000 births. In the United States, that means it happens in between 320 and 9,400 births each year. Unfortunately the medical system in this country does not provide much in the way of mental health check ups of mothers for some period of time after they give birth.

People with postpartum psychosis have a much higher risk of harming themselves, dying by suicide or harming their children. Postpartum psychosis is considered a mental health emergency. If you have the symptoms of postpartum psychosis or are near someone who shows signs of it, it’s important to seek immediate help. If you believe someone is a danger to themselves or others, you should immediately dial 911.

Ms. Clancy worked in a delivery ward of a hospital as a nurse. Its unfortunate that none of the trained professionals and co-workers at the hospital was able to see any signs that she was suffering from postpartum depression. It is also possible that Ms. Clancy was receiving treatment for postpartum depression and that she was either not properly medicated or was misdiagnosed as to the seriousness of her condition. Either way, it is a tragedy, and I offer my prayers to the family.

“The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside the still waters.
He restores my soul. He guides me in a straight path for His name’s sake.
Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for God is with me. Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me….
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” (Psalm 23)