National Wellness Month: Rethinking What It Means to Thrive 

August is National Wellness Month, a time when we’re encouraged to slow down, care for ourselves and check in on our physical and mental health. But while the concept of “wellness” is often associated with individual habits and lifestyle choices, it’s just as much about the systems that surround us.

Not everyone has the same access to rest, healthy food, medical care or emotional support. Not everyone can step away from work or find a quiet space when they need it. That’s why National Wellness Month is also a chance to examine what makes well-being possible in the first place.

Wellness Isn’t One-Size-Fits-All

It’s easy to define wellness in terms of routines or products: hydration, exercise, sleep, journaling, yoga. These are all valuable, but they only scratch the surface. True wellness goes beyond what someone can do alone. It’s shaped by factors like economic stability, access to health services, supportive relationships, and safe environments.

For children and young adults in particular, wellness is often tied to the structures they move through every day— especially schools. Students cannot thrive academically without the emotional, physical and nutritional support they need to feel safe and focused. When these basic needs aren’t met, learning becomes harder and long-term health can suffer.

In that sense, wellness is not just personal. It’s communal. It reflects how well we care for one another, especially those who are most vulnerable.

The Link Between Education and Wellness

Education and wellness are deeply interconnected. When a child or young adult is dealing with hunger, trauma, housing instability or untreated health concerns, those issues don’t disappear when the school bell rings. They show up in the classroom— in concentration, behavior, attendance and performance.

This is why supporting wellness must be part of any conversation about equitable education. Schools are often one of the few consistent touchpoints for young people. They have the potential to be stabilizing spaces, where students feel seen, supported and safe. But that’s only possible when they are adequately resourced and responsive to the needs of the whole child.

It’s also important to recognize that some students face added barriers due to systemic inequities related to race, income, disability or immigration status. A commitment to wellness must include a commitment to equity.

The Role of Community in Wellness

Wellness doesn’t begin and end in schools, it’s also built in communities. When families have reliable access to nutritious food, secure housing, affordable healthcare and mental health support, young people are more likely to thrive in all areas of life.

This is where nonprofits, local organizations and community advocates play a critical role. They often fill in the gaps left by larger systems, providing direct services and wraparound support that make wellness more than a buzzword.

At the Elias & Sultana Foundation, we believe that community-rooted solutions are essential to wellness. That’s why we support partners who understand the intersection of health, education, food security and stability.

How the Elias & Sultana Foundation Supports Holistic Wellness

Our grantmaking reflects a broad definition of wellness, one that includes physical, mental and emotional well-being, as well as access to the resources that make those things possible.

With Community Compassion USA, we help ensure that those facing homelessness or food insecurity receive the support they need to regain stability and dignity.

We also support back education-focused programs that offer after-school tutoring, mentoring, and safe, structured environments for students to explore, grow, and connect. These efforts are part of a larger commitment to making wellness real for children, families and entire communities.

Wellness as an Ongoing Practice

National Wellness Month is a reminder, not a solution. It’s a prompt to ask: What does it mean for a society to truly care for its people? What would it look like if wellness wasn’t seen as a luxury, but as a shared responsibility?

That means looking beyond individual self-care routines and into the broader systems that shape well-being. It means advocating for mental health support in schools, living wages for families, healthy food in underserved neighborhoods and policy changes that prioritize human dignity.

It also means asking ourselves what role we can play, whether it’s volunteering, donating, advocating or simply checking in on someone who may be struggling.

Let’s Redefine What Wellness Looks Like

Wellness shouldn’t be performative or reserved for those with time and money to spare. It should be accessible, adaptable and community-centered. When we create environments where people feel safe, supported and cared for, we make wellness possible everywhere.

As we observe National Wellness Month, it’s time to broaden the conversation. At the Elias & Sultana Foundation, we’re committed to supporting the organizations and efforts that make whole-person wellness more achievable for every child, family and community. Together, we can build a future where well-being isn’t a privilege, it’s a shared foundation we create and protect for one another.