Written by Tanya Terry, with featured photo by Sarah Chai on Pexels
Jennifer Johnson, founding chair of the Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health at Michigan State University, recently discussed the Lindsay Clancy murder trial and its connection to postpartum mental health awareness with the Courier. Johnson explained that while the case is tragic, it has sparked important conversations about mental health during pregnancy and postpartum periods.
The high-profile trial of Clancy, a 36-year-old former labor and delivery nurse from Duxbury, Massachusetts, ended in a mistrial on September 4, 2026, after a 12-person jury became deadlocked .Clancy was tried for her criminal responsibility in the January 2023 deaths of her three young children, ages 5, 3 and 8 months. Following the strangulation of her children.
Clancy also attempted suicide by slitting her wrists and neck before jumping from a second-story bedroom window, which severed her spinal cord and left her permanently paralyzed from the waist down, requiring her to use a wheelchair.
Johnson clarified the differences between postpartum depression, baby blues, postpartum anxiety and more severe conditions like postpartum psychosis and bipolar disorder. Baby blues typically last up to two weeks with mild impacts, while postpartum depression affects about one in seven to eight mothers and can last months if untreated. Johnson said while many people don’t talk as much about postpartum anxiety, it is also very common. Its symptoms could be worrying all the time, having panic attacks, feeling jittery or on edge or, afraid of something terrible happening to the baby. Johnson noted that bipolar disorder combined with postpartum symptoms is particularly dangerous, especially when treated with regular antidepressants, which can worsen bipolar symptoms rather than improve them. She emphasized that postpartum psychosis is rare but a medical emergency, occurring in one to two per thousand births.
Johnson highlighted the ROSE (Reach Out, stay Strong, Essentials) program, which is typically a four-session prenatal intervention that prevents half of postpartum depression cases by educating parents about symptoms, identifying needed support systems and ensuring adequate sleep and care. The program costs approximately $2,000 to implement per clinic but prevents cases that would cost $33,000 – $34,000 to treat on average, Johnson stated.
Her team has helped 98 health and community agencies across 32 states and Puerto Rico reach over 8,000 new parents.
Current research involves recruiting more than 2,000 participants nationally to determine if offering the ROSE program to all pregnant individuals is more effective than targeting only those at risk.
Johnson stressed that lack of sleep and stress are significant triggers for postpartum mental health problems and encouraged pregnant individuals and their support systems to prioritize maternal care, seek professional help when needed and utilize resources like the suicide prevention hotline 988 and Postpartum Support International.
“Help is out there,” stated Johnson. “I just hope that people will feel empowered to take care of themselves and ask for the help that they need.”
For more information on the ROSE program, including information on how to sign up, visit Rosemom.org
