Deaths still a mystery, but search for answers points to devastating mental illness

While Winnipeg police remain tight-lipped about causes of deaths and potential motives in the Gibson family tragedy, expert observers almost immediately pointed to postpartum psychosis as a possible trigger.

Nicholas, three months, and Anna, 2, were found lifeless in a bathtub in their west Winnipeg home on Wednesday; their mother, Lisa Gibson, 32, was found dead in the Red River in downtown Winnipeg on Saturday morning.

“With a postpartum psychosis, we also expect that we might begin to see symptoms fairly quickly and acutely, within say two weeks of the delivery of the baby, and symptoms may worsen over a period of about three months,” Dr. Carrie Lionberg told Global News. She’s a clinical health psychologist and assistant professor at the University of Manitoba.

“The woman may hear messages or commands that are hallucinations, which may direct her to do something as tragic as ending the life of her children or ending her own life.”

Gibson’s second child, Nicholas, was born in April.

A member of Gibson’s extended family told Global News the young mom had actively sought help for a mental health issue in the days leading up to the tragedy. It’s unknown what treatment she received.

Neighbours told Global News Gibson struggled with depression and relatives were frequently at the house on Coleridge Park Drive to help with the children. Her immediate family have not confirmed this.

While police have said Gibson was the last to see her children alive, they have yet to conclude that she is responsible for their deaths or that she took her own life, saying the investigation continues. But a police public information officer sent an email message to reporters Sunday taking note of the difference between postpartum depression and postpartum psychosis.