Timeout Company Newsletter
May 2022
Written by: Mikaela Brewer | Head of Research & Content
#Timeout4MentalHealth
Research | Community | Technology | Content
Welcome back to The Huddle!
“Depression is something that’s in you. It’s not wanting to get out of bed, continuously feeling sad and down on yourself. It’s not wanting to exist, sometimes. There’s no on-and-off light switch. When I hear coaches, athletes telling people to ‘snap’ out of it, it makes me mad. Because you could be pushing them down that dark hole further.” — Allison Schmitt
Updates from the Timeout Team & Community
Development
We officially have a working beta of the Timeout applications! We will be able to share a demo with you all (and provide sign-up options to see the app in action) very soon. In the meantime, we are hosting focus groups for another service we offer: Program Evaluations. Developed by Timeout’s R&D team and overseen by our Advisory Board, Timeout Program Evaluations use detailed qualitative and quantitative insights to explore the health of college campus mental healthcare ecosystems. Via a comprehensive series of interviews, surveys, and visually compelling reports, we’re introducing a new standard of care that allows for proactive decision-making surrounding mental health on college campuses.
Because we hope that this service accurately and safely reflects your strengths, pain points, and needs, we want to hear from you! If you’re interested in joining a focus group to help us further refine our Program Evaluation service, please don’t hesitate to join one of our focus groups below:
- Athletes focus group
- Coaches & Staff focus group
- Care Providers focus group
- Athletic Directors focus group
Research
In partnership with an incredible team of Louisville area researchers (who are also working on non-police mental health crisis intervention programs), our team submitted a proposal to The Health Equity Innovation Hub. This proposal included five key pillars focused on understanding the health equity needs for LGBTQ+ and BIPOC athletes:
- Food justice
- Housing justice
- Environmental justice
- Maternal & child health
- Employment
More to come on this needed and exciting project!
Advisory Board & Team
A warm welcome to Kait Simpson, Dr. Madeline Barlow, Marshai Iverson, and Annie Graham — the newest members of our Advisory Board and team. Kait, Madeline, Marshai, and Annie, we are so excited to work with you!
Content & Partnerships
Our Head of Content, Mikaela, contributed to the newest Global Sport Matters issue — Mental Health: A New Priority In Sport. Read the full issue here and Mikaela’s article here!
If you’d like to write with us on Medium, please fill out this form, sign up for a potential interview consult here, or email Mikaela at mikaela@thetimeout.app.
In the partnership projects world, we have exciting news to come! We’re energized by the work that AAADF and Narrative 4 are doing, and can’t wait to share more about these collaborations.
Athlete Ambassador Program
Our Ambassador Program is underway! If you’ve been searching for a community to connect with or a way to share your story, please join us — send an email to deja@thetimeout.app.
The Timeout Team in the News
We couldn’t be more excited about (and grateful for) the recognition we’ve received. In late April, we’re honored to have won the 2nd Annual ASU Sun Devil Athletics Venture Challenge! Read more about the challenge here, and watch Maya’s feature on ABC15 News Channel: ASU researcher and former Sun Devil volleyball player shines light on mental health for athletes.
On April 28th, a few members of our team also attended NFLPA Pitch Day! Neemo Tawasha, our Head of Operations, reflected on the day:
“Pitch day was a great place to watch other innovators present their business to an amazing group of investors! For Timeout it was an indescribable feeling to speak about our cause to such an influential group of athlete and business minds.”
We’re inspired by Healium, the winner of NFLPA pitch day and an incredible company founded by Sarah Hill. Using virtual reality and the body’s electricity (brain patterns, heart rate, and other biometrics), Healium allows people to practice mental wellness (self-management of stress, sleep, and human performance) through neuroscience, storytelling, and gamification with real-time feedback on healing. Check out Healium here!
Keep up with our awards & grants here.
Community Mental Health Timeout
Within each newsletter, we’d like to build in an opportunity to pause, be vulnerable, and take a community mental health timeout. Here are a few resources to breathe and connect with this month.
In lieu of the tragic losses in our community, Mikaela will be leading and hosting a grief workshop inspired by The Dinner Party on May 22nd from 7–9 pm EST. Here is a form to sign-up.
This time of year is saturated with transitions — athletic, life, weather, and career — so we’re also highlighting some of our transition-themed interviews, guest pieces, and team writing from last month. In case you’re needing some extra support, we’ve also included Global Sport Matters’ new Mental Health Resource Database.
- Essential Reading for Your Transition Journey
- Origin Stories: China McCarney on Mental Health & Athlete Transitions
- Wins & Losses: A Reflection on What I’ve Lost + Gained in Life After Sport
- Literature Review: What is post-athlete depression?
- You’re Not Alone: 10 Athletes Who Have Prioritized Mental Health
Thank you for being here. We so appreciate your time and dedication to saving athletes’ lives. If you’d like to follow up with us about any input, thoughts, insight, questions or concerns, please reach out to admin@thetimeout.app.
We’ll be in touch soon!
The Timeout Team
