Man's struggle with mental illness ends in suicide
StarJan 20, 2021
Jan. 20—Molly Mazanec watched her son fight a mental illness for 16 years that she believes twisted a sweet boy into a man who could barely recognize himself at the end.
"It's just horrible seeing your child in a casket," she said.
As
It was on
The mother received a call from Luke and his wife who were living in
Luke was prone to angry outbursts and would sometimes physically hurt those around him. He had received treatment over the years to manage his disorders, but for six months with with no in-person treatment available due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Luke struggled, said his mother.
She believes her son was stressed due to not having work, on-going arguments with his wife, and feeling isolated.
Luke's behavior that day was different from other manic or depressive episodes
After they arrived and more arguing ensued, Luke shot an arrow at his family and proceeded to beat his mother and wife that day, according to the
"I think he was so out of his mind that he didn't even know it was me," she said.
After the beating, she lost consciousness. The next thing she remembers is waking up at the ER at Atrium Health-Cleveland in
Luke had been resuscitated and was in the same hospital as his mother.
"I asked the nurses to go tell him that I loved him and forgive him," Mazanec said, remembering the words she uttered as she lay in a hospital bed being treated for the wounds inflicted by Luke just hours before.
Luke's violent attack led to charges of kidnapping, assault by strangulation, two counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to cause serious injury, and two counts of assault on a female.
Luke went to
The Mazanecs would not hear from him again until the first week in October, when he called from
Funding cuts cripple ability to treat
A 2019 health assessment of the county by the
"Mental health issues are major concerns of county residents with many reporting actual diagnoses of anxiety and depression and more residents indicating concerns with personal stress management and anger management issues. Data also indicates frustration with the lack of affordable mental health services provided locally for county residents," according to the report.
The assessment indicated that suicide is the third leading cause of death reported among
Among
"As we look at these issues, we are literally getting cut at the state level for funding. And this has happened for the past four years. It has been somewhat devastating for care," Oliver said.
In the 2018-2019 fiscal year, more than
Oliver believes this lack of funds cuts into available care for people like Luke.
"We are looking down at the breakdown of the behavioral health world," he said.
'It was bound to happen'
After leaving Broughton, Luke ended up in
Now as she reflects on the last few months, she is numb to much of what she has recounted and believes no matter what treatment she got Luke, the outcome would have been the same.
"There was no way he was going to live," she said. "It was bound to happen."
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