In the summer of 2014, a frenzy of posts appeared with friends, teachers, athletes, celebrities, and even presidents pouring a bucket of ice water over their heads in order to raise funds and awareness for a progressive neurodegenerative disease known as ALS. This year, the trend has been renewed for a different purpose. The University of South Carolina has reignited the challenge in order to increase mental health awareness as well as raise funds to help students in need. They posted the challenge for the first time on March 31
The ice bucket challenge, which was originally initiated in 2014, was made to raise awareness for people with ALS. ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects the nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. The challenge was created by a group of patients who banded together to get funding for treatments and to fund research to find a cure. At first, they expected to raise $2 million annually, but they ended up earning 115 million annually after the challenge went viral. Although they have still not found a cure for the disease, they are still working toward it using the funds.
The Ice-Bucket challenge was re-ignited by the University of South Carolina in honor of a student who died from suicide, while also hoping to raise awareness for students’ mental health. They also hoped to raise funds for a non-profit organization called Active Minds. This program’s main goal is “to empower youth and young adults and to change the stigma around mental health”. Like the last challenge, the club was only hoping to raise around $500, but they ended up raising more. The challenge quickly picked up notice and soon became viral on the internet once again, raising over $370,000. As it became viral, many celebrities and politicians started joining in on the fun, taking the internet by storm.
Wade Jefferdson, the founder of the club at USC that started the challenge, says that their main goal is “breaking the stigma surrounding mental health, advocating for suicide prevention on campus and practicing daily mindfulness.”
Maya Dewaiker, an 8th grader here at Fallon says that, “The ice bucket is really helpful in spreading awareness about mental health and the fact that people participate in it shows that they want to support the cause.”
Millions of people are affected by mental illnesses each year, including both children and adults. The people who are mostly affected are mainly adults ranging from ages 18-25. This means that they are supposedly in college at the time it hits. It’s important to break the stigma around mental health so it can make it easier for people struggling to talk freely about how they’re feeling.
From citizens to politicians, millions have participated in this viral challenge. All you need to participate is a bucket full of water and ice, and something to record it with so you can post it and add the official ice bucket challenge hashtag #SpeakYourMIND. It’s a super easy and fun way to support people with mental health without having to donate money.
This trend not only gave people a fun time but raised an abundance of awareness toward people affected by mental health issues. The people participating don’t realize how much they’re awareness helps students and people with issues feel more seen in today’s world. The money raised can help to support students and people with their mental health problems, and research to find more optimal ways to help people cope.
