SEATTLE – May is Mental Health Awareness Month and UW Athletics and Premera Blue Cross have teamed up for a unique, month-long social media campaign to promote mental health.
The REFRESHER Challenge will feature three teams comprised of seven or eight Husky athletics programs competing for a prize. Premera Blue Cross has provided the prize in addition to directly supporting six Husky student-athletes who were selected as team captains as part of an athlete partnership: Giselle Alvarez, Drew Azzopardi, Jadyn Holdenried, Julia Hunt, Bodi Ligons, and Connor Lofy.
The acronym R.E.F.R.E.S.H.E.R. is a menu of activities that has been shown through research to contribute to mental health. The activities, created by UW Student-Athlete Wellness Services Coordinator Dr. Polo DeCano, include:
Relationships
Exercise
Fun
Relaxation & Stress Management
Eating well
Sufficient sleep
Helping others
Earth
Reason
“The REFRESHER Challenge is an opportunity for the UW athletic department and Husky student-athletes to do their part for Mental Health Awareness Month,” Dr. DeCano said. “All of the REFRESHERs are non-pharmaceutical and can be accessed in our day-to-day lives. We are fortunate and grateful to partner with Premera Blue Cross, who is contributing resources to local non-profits.”
Throughout the month of May, the Huskies will share their REFRESHER activities on social media and will earn their team points when they accept a challenge, complete a REFRESHER and challenge other student-athletes. The winning team will receive a grand prize, provided by Premera Blue Cross, which will support a mental health care organization of the team’s choosing.
This partnership was facilitated by Huskies Sports Properties in conjunction with Dawgs Unleashed. For more information on student-athlete partnerships, visit dawgs-unleashed.com.
Follow @UWAthletics and @UW_HuskiesMentalHealth on social media to track the challenge and discover tips on mental wellbeing.