Made For Motherhood

09/02/2026

The irony is that the people warning this case will reduce women to “raging hormones” are the very people reducing Lindsay Clancy’s entire case to raging hormones.

I believe Lindsay killed Cora, Dawson and Callan. I believe she should be held accountable, and I personally believe she should go to prison. But we should not ignore severe psychiatric dysfunction, reported medication reactions, fragmented treatment, inadequate medical evaluation and the systemic failures exposed throughout this trial.

If we are going to call ourselves pro-life, then we must actually be pro-life, before birth, after birth, through illness and through crisis. That means protecting innocent children while also ensuring that the mothers who bring life into this world receive comprehensive, competent care.

Understanding the factors that led to a crime does not excuse the crime. It may help prevent another innocent life from ever being lost. And that is what I believe it means to be truly pro-life.

09/01/2026

When you’re already fighting a battle within yourself, that is enough. Say yes to what is required, say yes to what you genuinely want and let the rest be a no.

Protecting your capacity now may be what allows you to have more “hell yeses” later.

08/28/2026

The ADA stated definitively that the medications Lindsay said destabilized her were “out of her system” by January 24.

But the jury is clearly still looking at the medication question. During deliberations, they asked to review the medication evidence, and the pill bottles were sent back for them to examine. We cannot assume what they are thinking, but medication is clearly part of what they are considering.

Even if the body has cleared most of a medication from the bloodstream, that does not necessarily mean every effect of taking it, reacting to it, stopping it, or switching medications has ended.

Reviews found that stopping psychiatric medications can sometimes cause withdrawal, returning or worsening symptoms, agitation, anxiety, and sleep disruption as drug levels fall. Bosch & colleagues found that estrogen may affect how the body processes medication, while Sundström’s research suggests that the brain may respond differently to medication across the menstrual cycle, even when the amount of medication in the body has not changed, only the cycle phase. 

Also, Lindsay began amitriptyline only eight days before January 24. Her doctor told her to increase the dose the day before, although it remains unclear whether she took that increased dose. How can we conclusively say either way whether these drugs had an effect on her state of mind or the actions of that day? 

I also do not think we fully understand how the hormonal changes of postpartum, weaning, and returning menstrual cycles may affect the way a woman processes and responds to medication, or what she experiences when stopping it.

There is no definitive proof that medication caused Lindsay’s mental state or what happened to Cora, Dawson, and Callan. But “out of her system” answers only one narrow question about whether the drug itself was likely still circulating. I truly don’t believe there is enough information to say that there were no potential effects on that day. 

It is clear that we still do not know enough and our very limited in our understanding. Women deserve research capable of answering these questions.

08/28/2026

08/27/2026

As a neurodivergent woman who suffered with PMDD, I spent way too many years being blindsided by my menstrual cycle and not understanding what was happening.

I tracked my cycle with different period apps, but I didn’t have the full scope of information. Then I started using Mira.

Mira has become one of the tools that has helped me keep my PMDD in remission. It’s an at-home hormone monitor that allows me to track my actual hormone patterns throughout my cycle—including estrogen (E3G), LH, progesterone (PdG), and FSH.

As a neurodivergent woman, having that data at my fingertips has been incredibly beneficial in how I approach my cycle and my PMDD remission journey. I can better understand when I’m ovulating, recognize my own hormone patterns, and use that information to be more intentional about how I support my brain and body throughout the month.

If you’re ready to start understanding your own hormone patterns, use code EMILY for 25% off Mira hormone kits. 🤍

08/26/2026

Yes, we need more research. But we also need better translation of the research we already have into actual clinical practice.

A 2008 study by Maguire & Mody examined what happened when GABA-A receptor adaptation to the enormous neurosteroid changes of pregnancy and childbirth was disrupted in mice. The abnormal behaviors emerged postpartum and included depression-like behavior, anxiety-like behavior, abnormal maternal care, and increased pup mortality from neglect or cannibalism.

The study they conducted doesn’t just have implications for post-childbirth but could have implications on hormonal transitions through the menstrual cycle of a woman.

Progesterone and allopregnanolone also fluctuate across the menstrual cycle, and research into PMDD suggests that some women may have an altered brain response to otherwise normal hormonal fluctuations.

This doesn’t necessarily tell us anything certain about what was going on in Lindsay’s brain or speak to criminal responsibility in any way, but it does give insight into questions about differing interactions to reproductive hormone fluctuations.

If you’re interested in more research surrounding topics of maternal mental health or impacts hormone fluctuations, let me know in the comments.

08/25/2026

My overall reaction to Dr. Heilbrun’s testimony is that, with the important exception of his repeated reliance on “mortal sin”, he appeared fair, neutral, and methodical.

Of the experts we have heard from, I believe he looked at Lindsay most holistically. He considered who she was before Callan, what was happening in the months leading up to January 24, and her mental state since. He diagnosed her with bipolar II, which multiple clinicians considered and appears plausible based on the testimony. He also acknowledged her current suicidality, even when the prosecution seemed reluctant to move into her present condition.

Today, he discussed peritraumatic dissociation: disconnection from one’s body, emotions, surroundings, or reality during or around a traumatic event.

I know derealization and depersonalization personally. Many women with pmdd or premenstrual exacerbation have also described feeling detached from themselves, unreal, outside their bodies, or unable to access their emotions during their deepest depressive episodes, often in the final 1 to 3 days before their periods.

However, dissociation is not psychosis, but it is a significant altered state of consciousness.

We do not have Lindsay’s last menstrual period or enough cycle data to place January 24 within a hormonal phase. We cannot turn thought into fact or create wild theories.

This testimony reinforces why I continue asking about her cycle, nutritional status, weight loss, medications, sleep, and metabolic health. The brain does not exist separately from the body. Could multiple contributing factors have pulled her further into a depressive or dissociative state?

I believe women often recognize that something inside them has shifted before they understand what the signal means. Intuition can be powerful, although it can also become distorted when someone is severely unwell. It should invite careful investigation by not only the woman, but also by per providers, not automatic dismissal, as Dr. Mack’s testimony illuminated.

I believe what we learn from this tragedy may help prevent the next one.

08/24/2026

Understanding where she was in her menstrual cycle, and how her medications affected her at that time hormonally or otherwise, is critical to evaluating her mental state and criminal responsibility according to Massachusetts law.

If she was at a certain hormonal shift within her cycle I.e. the luteal phase (exacerbated by medication effects, rapid weight loss, malnutrition, poor sleep), a psychotic episode could have been far more likely.

“Menstrual cycle-related psychosis in bipolar I disorder.” Frontiers in Psychiatry. 2025;16:1696891. PMID: 41425818.

08/21/2026

I keep coming back to these questions: had ovarian cycling returned, and where was she in that cycle on January 24th?

She was previously breastfeeding and potentially weaning. Lactation creates significant metabolic demand. In rare cases, when breastfeeding is combined with inadequate energy or carbohydrate intake, fasting, or significant weight loss, that negative energy balance can accelerate ketone production and even progress to lactation ketoacidosis.

She had experienced significant weight loss and was reportedly 124 lbs at 5’6”. We also have testimony that she was having difficulty eating. What had she eaten that day? What had her nutrition looked like in the days leading up to January 24th?

Then add Seroquel. Quetiapine can affect glucose regulation. Its prescribing information specifically warns about hyperglycemia and recommends glucose monitoring in certain patients. In the context of all these other unanswered questions, glucose metabolism needs to be considered.

And then when we consider ovarian hormones, insulin sensitivity and glucose handling can change across the menstrual cycle. Research has demonstrated changes in insulin sensitivity across cycle phases, with some evidence of decreased insulin sensitivity during the luteal phase.

So my questions continue to be:
When did her ovarian cycling return? Was a last menstrual period ever documented? Where was she hormonally? What did her metabolic labs actually show?

So far in the testimony we’ve heard, I have not seen evidence establishing what meaningful metabolic blood work was performed or what those results were.

Breastfeeding, weaning, significant weight loss, difficulty eating, possible ovarian cycling and hormonal shifts, glucose regulation, medication effects and interactions, and previous psychiatric history.

My theory is that there was a metabolic, hormonal, neurobiological, and psychiatric convergence during a significant hormonal shift, and that may have created the perfect storm capable of contributing to severe psychiatric destabilization, including psychotic features.

08/21/2026

Who might we save if we finally start asking the right questions and looking in the right places?

In understanding how hormonal transitions can interact with our biology and psychiatric vulnerability, and hearing this discussed on a national scale, maybe we can prevent another woman from ever getting to this point.

Sadly, we can’t save Cora, Dawson, or Callan.
And they deserve justice.

Lindsay is accountable. But, can we prevent this from ever happening again?

Who can we save if we’re willing to look deeper?

That is why I will keep asking questions. That is why this matters.