Julia Broglie was inspired to create BroglieBox, after experiencing her own mental health challenges and losing her older brother Justin to suicide when he was 24. BroglieBox is an all-inclusive seasonal subscription box that focuses on delivering self-care items and resources for mental health and stress relief.
I was curious about her story and why a chemical engineer with a bright future in the cosmetics industry would drop everything to start her own company. Here is her open-hearted interview.
What made you want to create a quarterly subscription box for mental health?
Having my own personal struggle with issues of anxiety, perfectionism, OCD and depression, I had been trying to put into place my own healthy habits for mental fitness for years. But my brother’s suicide turned my world upside down. Friends and family came out of the woodwork with their own stories of struggle and that’s when I started researching and finding so many of the resources I now want to share with others.
I feel so strongly that there has to be a way to get these resources out into the world and into the hands of so many people who need them. I believe we need to be thinking about our mental health on a daily basis.
After my brother Justin’s suicide, I made a commitment to help the overwhelmingly large number of people suffering with mental health challenges.
When I realized that there was nothing like BroglieBox out there I decided to create it. I wanted to enable people to gift these resources to someone they love and have them delivered right to their door or buy a subscription for themselves. I want to make it easy for someone to take care of their own mental health and get additional help when they need it.
Can you share what kinds of items would be in the box?
Each season, the box contents differ which enables our subscribers to try out many different self care items. Every box includes 6-7 full sized items from the categories of; Sensory such as essential oil aromatherapy, Tactile such as a massage roller, A Sleep resource such as a sleep sound machine, Physical fitness such as a jump rope or resistance band , An Inspiration writing element such as a gratitude journal, Nutrition such as an herbal tea and finally what I like to call a “feel good” item such as a candle. The box also includes an issue of my carefully curated Piece of Mind magazine with articles and useful information written by physicians, psychologists, mental health and wellness experts, along with recommended apps, organizations, how to find a doctor, crisis hotline numbers and lots more.
I want taking of care of yourself to be fun and not so exhausting, having it delivered to your door makes it just that much easier.
The reality is that the same self-nurturing techniques don’t work for every person so by offering lots of different options allows people to find what works for them and then incorporate that self-help method into their daily routines.
Who are you hoping to reach?
There is lots of research that taking care of your mental fitness and mental resilience is as important as our physical health. Everyone at some time in their life will be faced with a mental or emotional challenge, whether they currently suffer from anxiety, stress or depression.
I want BroglieBox to be a resource for anyone, male or female who is looking to proactively prioritize their mental wellness.
With 20 million college students in the United States, I want to reach as many of those students suffering from depression or anxiety and their families. My hope is for BroglieBox to create a ripple effect of positive change in someone else’s life – even potentially saving a life and sparing another family the heartache we endured losing Justin to suicide.
We also hope to reach specific populations with great need such as the growing number of teens suffering from mental stress, military personnel with PTSD, caregivers of the chronically or terminally ill, families of suicide and women victims of domestic violence or trafficking.
What results should people expect?
When the box is given as a gift, it often makes the recipient feel loved and remembered and that someone cares about them which is so important for a person who is in a dark moment of their life.
Each box has such a wide variety of resources which provides a feeling of control and empowerment and the ability to supplement any therapeutic help the recipient may already be getting, or even a place to find more help if they need it.
It also creates a comfortable place to explore some of their mental health issues, be reflective and also inspire them in a supportive community.
What’s the most important message you want people to understand about their mental health?
Taking time for your mental health care as a daily practice is just like your daily exercise routine, and it’s better to not wait until there is an issue or incident in your life to try to create mental fitness.
What is one of your favorite items from one of the BroglieBox boxes?
The Sleep sound machine was a huge hit. We all know when we don’t get enough sleep that it effects our entire system, so the sleep sound machine allows you to choose the particular sound you want to lull you to sleep such as ocean breeze or rain.
You also created The BroglieBox Foundation as the non-profit arm of your company.
Yes, with the BroglieBox Foundation, we now have the opportunity to get many of these desperately needed resources into the hands of those who may not have easy access to them. We want to break this barrier and deliver BroglieBoxes in a warm and supportive way to those most vulnerable.
Want to share any other BroglieBox dream?
I would love to have every corporate human resource department across the country to send a BroglieBox to each of their employees.
I want every college health center to have BroglieBox boxes available to give to their students in need.
I want BroglieBox to help as many people as possible to feel better.
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