Lindsay Clancy case: Psychologist reveals hidden signs of serious mental health struggles

WARNING: Sensitive content

The people struggling most with their mental health do not always look like they are falling apart.

They can still go to work. Look after their children. Answer texts. See friends. Get dinner on the table and appear, from the outside, to be functioning normally.

And that, according to registered psychologist Zahra Ciardi, is exactly why serious psychological distress can be so difficult for loved ones to recognise before someone reaches crisis point.

“When somebody seems OK, it doesn’t mean that they’re actually OK and functioning is not the same as wellbeing,” she said.

“In fact, functioning is probably the last thing to break, not the first thing.”

The issue has been thrust into the spotlight following the Lindsay Clancy trial, which sparked an enormous, and at times fraught, global conversation about mental illness, motherhood, and what severe psychological distress can look like from the outside.

In Ms Clancy’s case, there were signs and she had sought treatment before the killings.

Blockbuster trial captivates the world

Ms Clancy, 36, killed her three children — Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and eight-month-old Callan — at their home in January 2023.

She pleaded not guilty by reason of lack of criminal responsibility, with her defence arguing she was suffering severe post-partum psychosis.

In the lead up to the murders, she experienced hallucinations, delusions, and depression after giving birth.

She also told her now-ex-husband that she had had suicidal thoughts.

Ms Clancy was medicated and had expressed concerns about developing an addiction to them.

After seven days of deliberations, the jury in the trial was deadlocked and unable to unanimously reach a verdict, prompting Judge Sullivan to formally declare a mistrial and discharge the jury.

Prosecutors now have to decide if they will retry Ms Clancy, negotiate a plea deal or drop the charges.

Though the trial may be over for now, conversations about post-partum psychosis and mental health more broadly have just begun.

How do you spot someone struggling?

If someone can keep working, parenting or socialising while their mental health deteriorates, what should loved ones actually be looking for?

Ms Ciardi said there was no single giveaway, but changes to a person’s sleep, appetite, social life, and interest in things they usually enjoy could offer clues.

For the past three years, the 39-year-old from Sydney has been running a mental health centre in Bali that supports high-performers experiencing trauma, anxiety and depression.

Mental health struggles are often “so incredibly invisible”, she said, and could manifest in less obvious ways, including becoming hyper-independent, suppressing emotions, or intellectualising distress rather than feeling it.

Beyond Blue clinical spokesperson Dr Luke Martin said it was common for people to keep up with their responsibilities while experiencing significant struggles behind closed doors.

“One of the myths we need to challenge is that mental health conditions have a particular ‘look’,” he said.

“We can carry stereotypes about what someone who is really struggling should look or behave like, but there’s no universal presentation.

“People experience and express distress in very different ways.

“People can also become very good at hiding what they’re going through. This is sometimes called ‘the mask of coping’.”

Rather than focusing on whether someone is still fulfilling their responsibilities, Ms Ciardi said loved ones should pay attention to changes in how they normally “show up”; whether that be sleeping and eating patterns, socialisation, or keeping up with hobbies.

“So, it becomes a little bit more nuanced, and that I’m not necessarily looking at their labels and their responsibilities; I’m just looking at how they show up,” she said.

But because those signs can be subtle, or absent altogether, Ms Ciardi said loved ones should not rely solely on what they can see.

What should you say if you’re worried?

For many, the hard part is navigating conversations about mental health after observing out of character behaviour.

But Beyond Blue’s Dr Martin said that having those honest conversations were “one of the most helpful things family and friends can do”.

“Check in regularly, ask how someone is really going and be prepared to listen without trying to immediately solve everything,” he said.

“You don’t need to be an expert. Often knowing someone cares, has noticed and is willing to listen can make a meaningful difference.”

If you do notice something that doesn’t seem quite right, Ms Ciardi suggests keeping it simple.

“This isn’t about judgement, this is about observation,” she said.

“This is you curiously noticing, and then with, again, a curious tone approaching that person.”

She said it could be as simple as telling the person what you have noticed and asking whether they have noticed the change themselves.

The aim is not to diagnose them but to ask how they are feeling and what has been going on.

However the conversation is approached, Ms Ciardi says there’s one important step that cannot be missed.

“Redirecting to a professional is always a good idea,” she said.

“Even if it feels like this is a knee-jerk reaction, or ‘am I being overly cautious?’

“It’s better to be overly cautious than to have retrospective awareness.”

Mental health can’t be explained in a 90-second reel

The Lindsay Clancy case has taken on a life of its own online, with discourse, conspiracies, and commentary aplenty.

Ms Ciardi said there was a lot to learn from the conversations sparked by the trial, but warned complex mental health issues risked being dangerously oversimplified online.

“The complexity of this current case, it cannot be minimised to a 90 second reel,” she said.

Dr Martin said perinatal mental health challenges were “more common than people realise”.

“Around one in five new mothers, and one in 10 new fathers, experience a perinatal mental health condition,” he said.

The problem, Ms Ciardi said, was that conversations improperly held can “deviate us from the truth”, which poses a risk.

Algorithms were not helping the matter of the Clancy trial, she said.

“Depending on how you’re swiping and scrolling, you’re getting a different side of the argument,” she said.

“And it can both be incredibly compelling, and so it can actually change views that we might have without the full data and the information that we need.

“So education is a huge piece here, and if we can use this opportunity to begin educating about mental health, I think we can go a long way.”

Her message to people weighing in online without professional expertise was simple: “Be cautious, because it matters...”

“Be cautious, because it matters; what you say matters, and what you put out there matters,” she warned.

‘Waiting for it to be visible is waiting too long’

Ms Ciardi said it was frustrating that it often took “something shocking” and “a certain level of outrage” to force broader conversations about mental health.

“It makes me sad that this is the case, but it’s the way humans work,” she said.

At her centre, she said, people often sought help only after reaching “rock bottom or crisis”, when earlier intervention could have made a difference.

“If we had early intervention, if that was valued, if we promoted early intervention as the gold standard for care ... then we could be going a really long way of preventing this level of escalation and detrimental outcomes,” she said.

This was a sentiment echoed by Dr Martin, who said early intervention was the best way to develop coping mechanisms and strategies.

“The earlier someone recognises they’re struggling and reaches out for support, the easier it can be to prevent difficulties from becoming more severe or long lasting,” he said.

Ms Ciardi’s biggest message in the wake of the Clancy case was simple: “waiting for (mental health struggles) to be visible is waiting for it to be too late”.

“We need to come together as a community, as people who genuinely care for each other, in having more regular conversations with one another about our mental health,” she said.

“This is how we make the invisible visible; by beginning to have uncomfortable conversations.”

Dr Martin added that no one should feel like they’re on their own.

“What’s important for Australians to know is that struggling during this period is not a sign of failure or weakness, and parents don’t need to simply ‘push through’,” he said.

If you or someone you know needs support, the Beyond Blue Support Service is available 24/7. Call 1300 22 4636 or access support by webchat or email at www.beyondblue.org.au/get-support

Lifeline: 13 11 14.