Summer camp aims to promote mental and physical wellness in teenagers

A week-long adventure camp for teens – that focuses on mind as well as body by combining physical activities with personal development – is coming to Galway this summer.

The idea behind the Bounce Project is to provide teens with the skills required to flourish in an ever changing environment, with tools from the worlds of mindfulness, coaching and positive psychology.

The Bounce Project is a collaboration between local adventure and team-building company, Get West, and John McNamara of Coaching for Confidence.

And they have organized events in Limerick, Ennis and Galway, with the local week taking place at Calasanctius College Oranmore, from July 3 to 7, 9am to 3pm, for teenagers from 13 to 18.

Each day revolves around a particular theme with the following five themes being explored over the course of the week – Confidence, Communication, Resilience, Leadership and Happiness.

The teens will get to engage with and explore a host of topics in a safe and enjoyable space, all of which will be facilitated by top class trainers and coaches.

“Having worked with thousands of young people over the past ten years in schools, colleges, sporting and youth organisations, I have seen the challenges facing teenagers first hand. This programme is designed to tackle these issues in a safe and fun environment,” explained John McNamara.

A recent survey of 2,500 teens conducted by Reachout Ireland and the Irish Examiner found that two thirds of teenagers rated their mental health as ‘average’, ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’ with self-reports of overall emotional health and wellbeing deteriorating between early adolescence and mid to late adolescence.

Indeed only seven per cent described their mental health was very good. And research has also shown that by age 13, one in three young people in Ireland is likely to have experienced some type of mental disorder and that by age 24, up to 20% of young people will have experienced  suicidal ideation.

Against this backdrop, the decision to create and collaborate on the Bounce Project was an easy one for John and Get West.

In all of their professional interactions with teens, they have witnessed the immense benefits that young people get from being given the opportunity to step outside of their comfort zone and face new challenges in a safe, supported environment.

“Resilience, that ability to bounce back and move forward in tough times, is critical in maintaining positive youth mental health and is a necessary part of any wellness toolkit in order to live a happy and fulfilled life. Hence, the Bounce Project was born,” says John.

They are also currently seeking a company who would like to get on board as main sponsor for the programme. For more information on Bounce Project, you can visit www.bounceproject.ie