Patrick Clancy's Deleted Reddit Posts Reveal Wife's Mental Spiral

Patrick Clancy's deleted Reddit posts offer a detailed, unfiltered account of his then-wife Lindsay Clancy's escalating mental health struggles in the months leading up to her killing their three children. The posts, active from 2017 until last year, describe a concerning spiral that began after Lindsay was prescribed Zoloft for anxiety related to returning to work following the birth of their third child.

According to Patrick's posts, the Zoloft quickly induced a manic state in Lindsay. He detailed how she began sleeping only three to four hours a night without feeling tired, experienced periods of extreme sleeplessness, and lost weight rapidly. In one post dated December 7, 2022, prefaced as being written "for my wife," Patrick noted that she had developed severe insomnia after a week on Zoloft, sometimes going 48 hours without sleep. He expressed suspicion that the medication was unnecessary, noting that doctors were suggesting she might have bipolar disorder.

The Reddit account also included an email address that was later presented in Plymouth court by a cell phone forensics expert during testimony. By December, Lindsay had lost 15 pounds in two months, a common symptom of mania. Patrick also shared his concerns about her mental state, posting on December 9, "Has your [medication] experience ever involved thoughts of hurting others, including loved ones?"

A recurring theme in the posts was regret over Lindsay starting medication. After Zoloft, she was prescribed Ativan and other benzodiazepines and sleeping pills, and later switched to Prozac. Patrick emphasized in a December 6, 2022, post on the "Ask Psychiatry" subreddit that Lindsay's anxiety had been mild before starting medication. He described her as eating well, sleeping normally, and socializing. He believed her anxiety about returning to work as a labor and delivery nurse, a challenge she had overcome with previous children, could have been managed with more personal time and coping skills, rather than medication.

Lindsay's condition worsened, and by December 15, she was experiencing severe depression, numbness, and suicidal thoughts. Patrick took her to the Massachusetts General Hospital emergency room. On December 30, she was admitted to McLean Hospital, where she stayed until January 5. Despite these hospitalizations, Patrick testified in court that Lindsay appeared much improved after her release and he had no indication of impending danger on January 24, the day she killed their children. He had been sent on errands by Lindsay before she strangled Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months, with exercise bands. She then attempted suicide by cutting her wrists and neck and jumping from a bedroom window.

During Lindsay's trial, her diagnosis was a point of contention. While medical experts from both sides suggested bipolar disorder, the defense argued that her manic phase had escalated into psychosis by the time of the murders. Both Lindsay and Patrick are suing the doctors they claim failed to diagnose her with bipolar disorder, which they believe ultimately led to the tragic outcome. Patrick's attorney did not respond to requests for comment.