BlueSky, DoSomething.org help teens manage stress and anxiety while coping with the COVID-19 crisis and other social pressures
Blue Shield of California has teamed up with DoSomething.org, the largest organization for young people and social change in the nation, to develop a first-of-its-kind mental health guide to help youth cope with stress and anxiety during these difficult times.
“New State of Mind” is a unique addition to the resources developed and offered by Blue Shield of California’s BlueSky initiative, a multi-year effort to enhance awareness, advocacy, and access to mental health support for middle and high school students in California and beyond.
This innovative, three-month digital campaign, will include text, email, and social media activations to DoSomething.org’s millions of members, encouraging young people across the U.S. to share their tips to help combat anxiety, especially in our new COVID-19 reality. The idea is to reduce stigma, raise awareness, and encourage youth to seek help.
In the few weeks that this campaign has been active, young people from across the country have responded, submitting over 18,000 stress-reducing tips so far. These tips – mostly centered on ways to handle COVID-19 related worries – will evolve and grow into a first-of-its-kind, crowdsourced mental health resource that Blue Shield of California and DoSomething.org will share widely with youth across the country.
“The introduction of New State of Mind couldn’t be timelier with the coronavirus outbreak causing considerable stress among youth and their families across the country,” said Kimberley Goode, senior vice president of External Affairs at Blue Shield of California. “Working with DoSomething.org, we’re extending our program to provide additional mental health resources and coping strategies to reach even more youth during this difficult time.”
As an incentive to boost participation, young people who submit tips will be entered for a chance to win one of three $1,000 scholarships. There will be a scholarship drawing at the end of April, May and June as more tips are collected.
Resources for Coronavirus
DoSomething.org also offers resources for not feeling alone while physical distancing and links to remote learning, financial aid and career readiness tools for students whose education has been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Mental health is one of the biggest challenges facing young Americans today — and one of the social causes young people most want to get involved in,” says Carrie Bloxson, Chief Marketing Officer of DoSomething.org. “That’s why we’re proud and excited to partner with Blue Shield of California. Not only will we help thousands of students access mental health services they need — we’ll activate those young people to offer crucial support and resources to their friends and communities. The impact won’t be individual; it’ll be exponential.”
For more information on Blue Shield of California’s BlueSky initiative, and for links to resources around student mental health, visit blueshieldca.com/BlueSky.
SOURCE: Blue Shield of California