User:Avininja/SafeHeart

The SafeHeart Non-Profit Association  - Support for Victims of Terrorist Attacks in the Gaza Envelope (Also known as לב בטוח – Leb Batu him Hebrew) is an Israeli non-profit organization specializing in assisting and providing aid to victims of terrorism in the surrounding Gaza strip, offering clinical mental support and conducting scientific research. The non-profit association was founded in 2023

The founders of the association include Professor Roi Solomon, Reut Plonsker, Tal Zagursky, Karina Dasao, Shiran Maor, Yair Grynbaum, Yigal Tartakovski, Guy Simon, and Nir Tadmor, all coming from the Harm reduction and psychedelic mental support field in Israel.

Since its establishment, the association has operated nationwide, providing tailored psychological support to approximately 3,000 survivors and bringing together about 400 therapists.

Currently, the association accompanies around 850 patients in long-term treatments, including 36 treatments for each patient in the initial stage. The therapists, including clinical psychologists, psychotherapists, psychiatrists, and clinical social workers, provide treatment with full understanding and a non-judgmental approach.

The association operates in collaboration with the Israeli Trauma Coalition, recognized as a national resilience center, and works with the Ministry of Health, National Insurance Institute, and Ministry of Social Affairs. the Ministry of Health, Social Security, and the Ministry of Welfare.

History and Organization Development
The SafeHeart Non-Profit Association began its activities following the surprise terror attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, when reports started coming from the south of Israel about the massacre at the Nova festivalתבנית:Refn, Psy-duck party, and Midburn gathering, where the total population estimates of the three events was over 4,400 participants, gathered to celebrate. of which approximately 364 were murdered תבנית:Refn Among them, approximately 364 participants of the parties were killed, and another 44 young people were abducted to Gaza.

Such an event requires special treatment and expertise in trauma mental treatment alongside knowledgeable expertise in psychedelic-aware treatment and harm reduction knowledge, which was not available in the public mental health sector.

To assist and support the thousands of survivors, A group of therapists and main characters in the field of harm reduction with experience in psychedelic research and therapy, establishing and managing safe spaces and emotional peer support facilities at parties and festivals quickly united. Together, they established a system providing tailored psychological support to survivors, including clinical treatment by psychedelic-aware therapists with a non-judgmental approach.

In October, SafeHeart, or previously known as "Nova Help," gathered around 500 therapists, professionals in their fields who were well-acquainted with the psychedelic and trance music and festival community and had deep experience and knowledge in acute responses to traumatic events and psychedelic harm reduction support. During the first two weeks, the therapists volunteered to provide acute intervention treatment to around 2,500 תבנית:Refn survivors to minimize mental damage and try to prevent the long-term effects of PTSD תבנית:Refn.

Professional model
The association is a member of the Israeli Trauma Coalition and recognized as a national resilience center, collaborating with "Amcha" (עמך), the Ministry of Health, and the National Insurance Institute as a provider of mental health services to survivors of the massacre at parties within the framework of anxiety emergency protocol.

Individual Treatment
The association offers in-depth individual therapy, consisting of at least 36 individual therapy sessions for each survivor of the events on October 7, with certified and adapted therapists knowledgeable in both trauma and psychedelics by providing nationwide treatment near the patient's home.

The association also provides tailored made emotional support to soldiers who survived the parties.

The treatments are provided by a network of therapists, including clinical psychologists, psychotherapists, psychiatrists, expression and creation therapists, and clinical social workers, all with extensive professional experience with severe traumatic experiences and in the field of psychedelic harm reduction.

This treatment system is accompanied by a dedicated team dealing with extreme complex and emergency cases, alongside a specialized psychiatric team, also from the psychedelic trance community. This team is dedicated to find costume made nd tailored made solutions for acute scenarios, demanding intensive attention and specialized treatments in designated institutes such as mental wards, mental balance institutes, emotional rehabilitation centers, community multidisciplinary teams for rehabilitation, social and economic special support and more

Retreats and Group Processes
In addition to the deep treatment system, as a complementary step intended to provide comprehensive and supportive professional framework for survivors, the association has established a system of retreats, which are an integral part of the comprehensive treatment system provided to survivors of the disaster. These group processes are a cornerstone of survivors' rehabilitation processes, based on clinical research emphasizing the importance of processing trauma collectively and the immense impact of the community on healing and coping with trauma.

These retreats and group processes are conducted in a focused manner with a limited number of participants, aiming to enable processing and group bonding with other survivors, alongside a supportive community envelope. This is an opportunity for them to participate intimately, feel a part of a meaningful community, and learn new coping mechanisms in a safe and supportive environment.

The retreats take place at various locations, in cooperation with Maccabiah village (כפר המכבייה), in collaboration with the Slonim Spa in Kibbutz Moran, and in the desert.

Family Support
Family Support Envelope Recognizing the significant difficulties faced by survivor families on their own and acknowledging the profound impact on families and the importance of a supportive environment as part of the survivors' healing and recovery journey, the association established a support and assistance system for the close family members of the survivors. This framework includes three circles of support and guidance for families: specialized community spaces for family members, providing knowledge and tools for caring for their loved ones, and therapeutic groups to prevent secondary traumatization.

Quantitative Research in Collaboration with the University of Haifa
In order to study the implications of such an unprecedented event, the association is conducting groundbreaking and in-depth research led by Professor Roy Solomon, one of the founders of the association and a professor and lab head at the University of Haifa. This is the first study of its kind in the world, examining how extreme trauma is experienced and processed when it occurs under the influence of consciousness-altering substances. The research includes both quantitative and qualitative methods, aiming to study the unique cognitive, physiological, and neurological mechanisms associated with this unprecedented phenomenon. The ongoing research integrates various methods including surveys, interviews, heart rate monitors, sleep diaries, saliva samples, and FMRI brain scans, all repeated monthly over a period of 3 years.

In March 2024, the first preliminary findings of the research were published, presenting initial results. 657 survivors participated in the first stage of the research, with all participants reporting direct risk of death. 83% reported witnessing fatalities or injuries, 79% reported the murder of loved ones, and 68% reported the injury of loved ones. This implies that all research participants were exposed to extreme trauma, particularly susceptible to significant psychological impact.

The research reveals that 68% of survivors reported substance use under altered consciousness, with 26.7% specifically using MDMA. Researchers have demonstrated that experiencing trauma under different substances leads to different psychological effects and expressions of symptoms during initial trauma processing.

Initial findings indicate that MDMA use prior to trauma positively influenced sleep quality, social support, and social interactions, and resulted in more positive clinical outcomes compared to those who experienced trauma under other substances or even compared to those who did not use any mind altering substances during the event.

The primary goal of the research is to improve the quality of psychological treatment provided to survivors, with a continuous feedback loop between research and treatment, tailoring treatment efficacy according to emerging clinical findings to provide the best possible response to survivors who experienced this disaster. Additionally, the research aims to learn from this tragedy and seek ways to aid in survivors' healing, enhance their long-term well-being, and increase professional knowledge in trauma clinical treatment.

Qualitative Research in Collaboration with Bar-Ilan University
Another research conducted within the association's framework is in collaboration with Bar-Ilan University, led by Guy Simon from the Department of Sociology and Anthropology. The research focuses on the trauma experience under the influence of psychedelic substances among party survivors: the sense of agency, reality perception, and their implications on coping with the event.

The research examines the coping mechanisms of party survivors with intense psychedelic experiences, uncontrolled exposure to traumatic content, and post-trauma development in the context of using psychoactive substances. The research aims to understand the unique characteristics of the collective traumatic experience of terrorism against an identity-affiliation background under the influence of psychedelic substances. The research question is: what are the unique components structuring the subjective psychedelic experience when exposed to a terror event? Moreover, such an exceptional event cannot be comprehended solely through quantitative tools; it requires documentation and phenomenological analysis to provide a tailored response to the survivor population.