TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - May is mental health awareness month, bringing attention to the need for screening and treatment.
The National Institute of Mental Health defines a serious mental illness as a mental, behavioral, or emotional disorder that limits one or more major life activities.
According to Tallahassee Police, there is a lot of overlap when it comes to mental health and substance abuse, and they've seen more mental illness cases.
"Well there's definitely an increase in the number of mental illness cases in what we are seeing," said Sgt. George Creamer of TPD. "But as far as it being related to crime, very often the crime and the direct contact correlation between a person and a crime, has very little to do with mental illness."
According to new research released by nationwide children's hospital, 87 percent of Americans surveyed agree that more mental health support for children and adolescents needs to be available.
