Crisis support for Israel
After October 7th, 2023, several Breath-Body-Mind teachers with friends and family in Israel reached out to Dr Brown and Dr. Gerbarg to start programs in Israel. Shira Gordon, BBM teacher Level 4, Yael Dresdner Level 2, Ben Avital Level 2, Sonia Kleinman Level 2, along with senior teachers Ann Fleuchas Level 4, and Joanna Harper Level 4 began to plan programs for Israel.
No stranger to trauma, Israel has many fine trauma therapists. However, the scale of these events and the pervasive stress affecting the entire population was overwhelming the mental healthcare system. We felt compelled to offer help to all who could benefit, including healthcare providers and emergency responders. We learned how to deliver services online during COVID-19. In Ukraine, our train-the-trainers model has empowered over 350 Ukrainian psychologists and other mental health professionals to provide BBM to adults and children during the war there. We are ready to help the people of Israel with evidence-based BBM practices that are simple, effective, and easy to scale up.
In January 2024, Shira Gordon visited Israel, where she met with service organizations and introduced people to BBM programs. As of January 2025, close to 1000 people have experienced BBM mind-body practices, 130 Israelis have completed the 12-hour Fundamentals course; 17 Israelis have completed the Level 1 Teacher training course (40 hours), and 4 Israelis have completed Level 3 training (140 hours) and are qualified to train other teachers in Israel. The people who have taken our programs are sharing these practices with others in Israel.
How can you help?
Spread the word about our BBM disaster relief in Israel to your friends, family, and professional contacts. We want to invite all Israelis, including healthcare professionals, emergency responders, schoolteachers, and therapists, to our programs. Those who train with us can share these healing practices whenever and wherever they are needed. (Please do NOT post on social media to public groups.)
If you have contacts with Israeli health organizations, schools, charities, or NGOs providing services to Israel, please contact Shira Gordon at bbmfshiragordon@gmail.com.
Please donate to the Breath-Body-Mind Foundation's programs for Israel. Your donation will support free or low-cost crisis relief programs, weekly practice sessions, and teacher training.