Gabriel Savage’s mother is grateful for the sentence, details a decade-long struggle to run the mental health system

MADISON, Wis (WMTV) – When most people think of Gabriel Savage, they picture his mug shot. For Gabriel’s mom, Lisa, she takes pictures of her curly-haired little boy who loves ice cream.

“The Gabriel I know, he can be funny. He can be analytical. For the most part, he was a pretty happy kid,” Lisa recalled.

Taking a walk down Gabriel’s childhood memory lane from the kitchen table is precious, but also painful. She says Gabriel was in kindergarten when the problems started to surface.

“He was sensitive to noise, he didn’t like to be surprised. He was quick to aggression towards other children. One of the last difficulties at school was when he ran out of school and his elderly kindergarten teacher tried to run after him. They said there is nothing else we can do. You have to accept it to be appreciated,” Lisa recalls.

Lisa took her son to his primary care doctor and then to a specialist who she says put him on two different medications. As the boy grew older, so did the health concerns. Gabriel had trouble concentrating and was very afraid of germs.

“Someone would cough in class, he would get thunderstruck. “He had a really hard time with germs,” ​​Lisa said.

Fast forward to high school. The teenager was diagnosed with anxiety and mood disorders. Lisa says she hated physical contact. That fear, she says, was exacerbated by bullying.

“Some children realized that he did not like to be touched and decided to choose him. It was called dunking, and they would jump on it every chance they got. I had to go to the school and tell them they had to stop,” Lisa said. “That’s when he didn’t trust people.”

It was then Lisa says she sat down with Gabriel’s case manager at the school to come up with a plan.

“I would sit and talk and say, OK, we know he has an anxiety disorder. We know he has a mood disorder. But there’s a big element that’s getting in the way every time,” Lisa recalled.

Lisa and her husband thought the element was autism, which is not a mental health disorder. If Gabriel could receive an autism diagnosis, Lisa says he would have had more access to health evaluations and more treatment options for his mental health disorders. But Lisa says Gabriel’s psychiatrist didn’t think autism played a role in Gabriel’s case.

Years passed filled with more of the same medications, therapy and doctor’s appointments. And then when Gabriel was about 15, he threatened to take his life. Lisa took him to the emergency room for help, but Lisa says doctors determined he wasn’t a danger to himself and sent him home. Lisa then took her son to the psychiatrist again.

“And she picks up the tube and says do you think it could be autism? When she said that four years later, I looked at my husband and said ‘yes, yes! We think it’s autism!’ “We need this neurological evaluation to understand what is going on with my son,” said Lisa.

Lisa’s wish for a diagnosis was granted, but too late, according to her. Wisconsin law states that at age 14, a teenager can refuse mental health treatment. And the now 15-year-old Gabriel did.

“And it was like, okay now what do we do? If you don’t know and can work around the system, you don’t know. You’re grasping at straws,” Lisa said.

Mental health experts in the Badger State say early intervention is key. Mary Kay Battaglia is the Executive Director of NAMI Wisconsin. She said that on average, it takes up to ten years to get a proper mental health diagnosis, which is too much time for many people to spare.

“There is great concern about the state of mental health in Wisconsin. I just encourage everyone that the sooner you seek treatment, the faster your recovery time. What we find is that the sooner you get to recovery, the better the outcome,” Battaglia explained.

Left feeling her hands were tied by the law, Lisa watched as her son struggled on. And then when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, so did the illusions.

“I think he had a psychotic break because all of a sudden, ‘I think I have prostate cancer, eye cancer, skin cancer.’ Then he goes, “you know what mom?” I think I have Alzheimer’s and dementia.’ And to this day he still believes he has Alzheimer’s and dementia and that he’s dying,” Lisa explained.

Lisa says Gabriel was afraid of technology, thinking the radiation from it was making him sick. Her son asked her to cover his TV, game system, clocks and microwave in aluminum foil. She says the delusional teenager thought it would protect her. This brings the family to the night the police say the others needed protection from Gabriel.

Police found the then 19-year-old outside his classmate’s house armed with a gun, knife, handcuffs and lots of ammunition. He was convicted of attempted first-degree murder and is now serving 30 years in a mental health facility, a decades-long sentence that Lisa actually wanted. But she didn’t want help like this.

“It’s a great sense of relief to know he’s where he needs to be. He needs to get help. To go to sleep at night knowing he’s going to be okay, that’s huge for us,” Lisa said.

“Gabe has been involved with the mental health system since he was six years old,” added Lisa. “He will be 22 years old this year. In my eyes there is no reason why this should have happened. It should have been caught earlier.”

She says she has to blame her son, the doctors, the mental health system as a whole, and even blames herself.

“I should have fought harder,” Lisa cried.

But this mother moves forward knowing that she now has the time and means to make new wishes not only for her son, but also for other families who want help.

“Fight hard for your children. It is difficult. It is not an easy road. It can be difficult and lonely. But you can’t give up. He will always be my little boy.”

If you or someone you know needs help, there are 24/7 resources available.

Battaglia encourages parents to be proactive in getting their teens help.

“It’s hard to understand that line when you’re asking for help,” Battaglia said. “Then, when you finally need help, there’s that waiting.”

She says the state’s lack of mental health workers means there are waiting lists to see psychologists, therapists and psychiatrists.

Wisconsin Lifeline is part of 988 Lifeline that provides free, 24/7 support to anyone experiencing suicidal thoughts or a mental health crisis. You can call or text 988 anytime to connect with an expert crisis counselor.

For more NAMI mental health resources, click HERE.

Below is a list of crisis hotlines available by county for anyone experiencing a mental health or alcohol- or drug-related emergency:

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