Gabriel Savage’s mom thankful for sentence, details decade-long struggle navigating mental health system

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) – When most people think of Gabriel Savage, they picture his mug shot. For Gabriel’s mother Lisa, she pictures her little curly haired 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,” remembered Lisa.

Taking a walk down memory lane of Gabriel’s childhood from her kitchen table is precious but also painful. She says Gabriel was in kindergarten when problems started surfacing.

“He had noise sensitivity, didn’t like to be startled. He was quick to aggress towards other kids. One of the last straws at the school was when he ran out of the school and his elderly kindergarten teacher tried to race after him. They said there’s nothing else we can do. You need to take him in to get evaluated,” recalled Lisa.

Lisa took her son to his primary care doctor and then to a specialist who she says put the kindergartener on two different medications. As the boy grew, the health concerns did too. Gabriel had trouble concentrating and he was severely scared of germs.

“Somebody would cough in class, he would bolt. He had a really tough time with germs,” said Lisa.

Fast forward to middle school. The teen was diagnosed with anxiety and mood disorders. Lisa says he hated physical contact. That fear, she says, was aggravated by bullying.

“A couple of kids realized he didn’t like to be touched, and they decided to pick on him. It was called dunking, and they would jump up on him any chance they got. I had to go into the school and tell them that needed to stop,” said Lisa. “That’s when he distrusted people.”

It was about that time Lisa says she sat down with Gabriel’s case manager in school to figure out a plan.

“I would sit and talk and say, okay, we know he has an anxiety disorder. We know he has a mood disorder. But there’s this big element that’s hindering him every time,” remembered Lisa.

Lisa and her husband thought that element was autism which is not a mental health disorder. If Gabriel could get 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 around 15 years old, he threatened to take his own life. Lisa took him to the emergency room for help, but Lisa says doctors determined he was not a danger to himself and sent him home. Lisa then took her son to the psychiatrist again.

“And she pipes up and says do you think it might be autism? When she said that four years later, I looked at my husband and said ‘yeah, yeah! We think its autism!’ We need this neurological evaluation to figure out what’s going on with my son,” said Lisa.

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

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

Mental health experts in the Badger State say early intervention is key. Mary Kay Battaglia is the Executive Director of NAMI Wisconsin. She said on average, getting the right mental health diagnosis takes up to ten years, time many people don’t have to spare.

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

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

“I think he suffered some 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,” explained Lisa.

Lisa says Gabriel became afraid of technology, thinking radiation from it was making him sick. Her son asked her to cover his television, gaming system, clocks and microwave with aluminum foil. She says the delusional teen thought that would protect him. That brings the family to the night police say others needed protection from Gabriel.

Police found the then 19-year-old outside his classmate’s home armed with a gun, knife, handcuffs and lots of ammunition. He was convicted of attempted first degree intentional homicide and is now committed to 30 years in a mental health facility, a decades long sentence Lisa actually wished for. But she didn’t wish for help in this way.

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

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

She says blame should be placed on her son, doctors, the mental health system as a whole, and she even puts blame on herself.

“I should have fought harder,” cried Lisa.

But this mom moves forward knowing she now has the time and tools to make new wishes not only for her son, but for other families wishing for help.

“Fight hard for your kids. It’s hard. It’s 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 figure out that line for when you ask for help,” said Battaglia. “Then, when you finally need help, there is that wait.”

She says a shortage of mental health workers in the state means there are waiting lists to see psychologists, therapists, and psychiatrists.

The Wisconsin Lifeline is part of the 988 Lifeline that provides free, 24/7 support for anyone experiencing thoughts of suicide or a mental health crisis. You can call or text 988 at any time to connect with an expert crisis counselor.

For more NAMI mental health resources, click HERE.

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

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