A longtime NYC and Long Island cop is trying to reshape the stigma around mental health in policing — and cites himself as “living proof” that officers can be open about their troubles and come out better on the other side.
Former NYPD and current Nassau County police officer Tommy Shevlin now serves as the president of Nassau Police Benevolent Association, and is using both his platform and his own battle with depression and addiction to reshape the way mental illness is addressed in the police force.
“I’m living proof that you’re not broken forever, and you don’t just get rehabilitated and survive, you actually can thrive like I am,” Shevlin told The Post.
Shevlin first joined the NYPD back in 1998, and after serving on the city streets for seven years joined the Nassau County Police Department where he patrolled for 10 more years.
During that time, Shevlin found the inherent stressors of the job — long hours, violent encounters, public scrutiny — became too much for him to bear and began to bleed into his home life.
“As a police officer, everyone looks to us for help. So it kind of becomes where we’re almost considered to look to be like superheroes,” he said. “So you have to keep up this persona, that you’re strong, and that you can handle everything that’s going on.”
“I went through some rough times personally and on the job normal stress, and then extra stress things that most police officers go through. And it kind of put me into a dark place where I turned to alcoholism, and I suffered from depression,” he said.
“I was in a really bad spot in my life. And then I turned that around, I finally got help through the Nassau County Police Department employee assistance office.”
Suicide rates are a staggering 60% higher among law enforcement than the general population, while 65% of officers suffer from PTSD caused by violence encountered on the job, according to figures from the PBA.
Shevlin believes those frightening numbers are the product of an “old school mentality” about mental health that pervades police departments, and forces cops to “white knuckle” their way through their troubles until they can no longer handle things.
“Let’s say you get hurt as a cop on the street, you hurt your leg, your back. Everybody gives you the chance to get better… You’re rehabbing, all your co-workers reach out to see how you’re doing,” Shevlin explained.
“But when it’s mental health related, it’s the unknown and everybody avoids you like the plague. Nobody knows what to say to you, how to say it, and it kinda singles you out. So nobody wants to be that person.
“So most people, most cops, they white knuckle it and they don’t get help, right?” he added. “That’s why you see these alarming statistics especially when it gets so bad that it’s suicide.”
After experiencing such turmoil firsthand, and finally finding the courage to ask for help, Shevlin decided he needed to share his experience in hopes of reaching other officers going through the same things who might otherwise not have sought help.
“I started going around telling my story, letting them realize that we’re human, and if one of them or a few of them are going through something similar, they’re not alone,” Shevlin said.
“I want to normalize mental health like getting help, the same way people are like, ‘Oh, yeah, I have a doctor’s appointment today … for whatever,’ I want them to be able to talk about going to counseling like it’s not a big deal whatsoever.
“For the job we do, it’s actually normal to need to talk to somebody because the things that we witnessed on a daily basis are far from normal. And we’re human.”
After retiring from the streets, Shevlin served as a counselor for the Nassau Police Department and travelled the state giving trainings and sharing his story. Now as PBA president, he’s taking his crusade for mental health to lawmakers.
Gov. Kathy Hochul recently allocated $13 million to provide mental help support to New York police officers, and touted Shevlin’s work as one of the driving forces behind the package.
“I have the platform where now I’m meeting with elected officials,” he said. “I’ve met with the governor a few times. I’ve been meeting with senators, Assembly, and I’m trying to get them to change things, put into law.”
Shevlin’s top priority currently is standardizing mental health training across all police departments in the state, and he’s developing a number of bills with lawmakers intended to accomplish that.
In the meantime, Shevlin has already succeeded in saving lives.
“One of the best things that I’ve ever had in my career was getting a thank you card from children of a police officer, and it says thank you for saving my dad,” he said.
If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts or are experiencing a mental health crisis and live in New York City, you can call 1-888-NYC-WELL for free and confidential crisis counseling. If you live outside the five boroughs, you can dial the 24/7 National Suicide Prevention hotline at 988 or go to SuicidePreventionLifeline.org.