Hope & Healing: Addressing Population-Wide Trauma in Gaza
Summary
In 2024, Center for Mind Body Medicine (CMBM) committed to significantly scale programs in Gaza to provide more than 500,000 children and adults with trauma healing services over the next three years. The range of services include training and mentorship for 2,500 Gazan teachers and service providers; supporting 250,000 traumatized children and adults through workshops and classroom sessions, as well as skills groups for tens of thousands of the most traumatized children, teens, and adults; and additional group support programs. CMBM’s evidence-based programming is led by a team of Palestinians working directly within their community. The entire population of Gaza is now suffering from significant-to-severe levels of trauma. CMBM commits to create hope and healing for the future of Gaza, and it begins with addressing population wide trauma now.
Approach
Building on decades of experience addressing population-wide trauma, and an incredible Gazan staff and Faculty, Center for Mind Body Medicine (CMBM) commits to securing $6 million to provide evidence-based trauma healing services to over 500,000 children and adults throughout the Gaza strip within the next three years.
The commitment will be implemented through a combination of direct services by CMBM’s team of 50+ Palestinian Faculty and Facilitators, and training/supervision for teachers and other service providers who will then work with beneficiaries. Services will be provided in shelters, classrooms, hospitals, and community-based organizations – throughout the war, and afterward
CMBM will teach participants practical, immediately usable techniques demonstrated to relieve stress and trauma. Based on its experience working in the war to-date, CMBM expects benefits to include significant decreases in the numbers of participants qualifying for the diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) , as well as decreases in psychosocial impairment and depression.
CMBM will focus on serving children and the most traumatized adults, including those who have been grievously injured.
Activities include:
Training and supervision/mentorship in Mind-Body Medicine for approximately 2,500 Gazan teachers and other service providers.
Mind-Body Medicine Workshops and Classroom Sessions for 300,000 traumatized children and adults. Sessions provide participants with a base-line understanding of the science of trauma; experience of practicing several powerful techniques (several forms of meditation, guided imagery, and self-expression in words, drawing and movement) ; and guidance in how to continue to use these skills.
Mind-Body Skills Groups (MBSGs) for tens of thousands of the most traumatized individuals, providing a deeper level of trauma-relief healing.
One-on-one support for 100,000 additional individuals, including in-person counseling and support via the phone and internet.
Digital psychoeducation resources for at least 100,000 individuals. CMBM will share practical mental health resources and guidance via SMS and social media.
Action Plan
Year 1, 2024-2025, Secure $2M and provide trauma-healing services to 166,000 children and adults in Gaza
Q1 – New funding opportunities identified and cultivated; services with existing partners ongoing
Q2 – Proposals for $2M funding invited/submitted; services & reporting with existing partners ongoing
Q3 – Launch services with new partners; services & reporting with existing partners ongoing; ongoing fund development
Q4 – Continue services & reporting with new and existing partners; ongoing fund development
Year 2, 2025 – 2026, Secure $2M ($4M cumulative to date) and provide trauma-healing services to 166,000 (333,000 cumulative to date) children and adults in Gaza
Q1 – New funding opportunities identified and cultivated; services with existing partners ongoing
Q2 – Proposals for $2M funding invited/submitted; services & reporting with existing partners ongoing
Q3 – Launch services with new partners; services & reporting with existing partners ongoing; ongoing fund development
Q4 – Continue services & reporting with new and existing partners; ongoing fund development
Year 3, 2026 – 2027, Secure $2M ($6M cumulative to date) and provide trauma-healing services to 166,000 (500,000 cumulative to date) children and adults in Gaza
Q1 – New funding opportunities identified and cultivated; services with existing partners ongoing
Q2 – Proposals for $2M funding invited/submitted; services & reporting with existing partners ongoing
Q3 – Launch services with new partners; services & reporting with existing partners ongoing; ongoing fund development
Q4 – Continue services & reporting with new and existing partners; ongoing fund development
Background
Virtually everyone in Gaza is now suffering from psychological trauma. More than 38,000 people in the small landmass have been killed since October 7, including 14,000 children (Gaza MOH) . Schools, homes, hospitals, and designated safe spaces are regularly hit by airstrikes.
The impact of such trauma on the whole population cannot be overstated. When stress is overwhelming, it disrupts every physiological function and contributes in significant ways to nearly every major psychological and physical disorder, including depression, anxiety, heart disease, cancer, immune disorders, and pain syndromes, as well as drug addiction. The longer it is left unaddressed, the more likely imbalances are to cause subsequent problems. Iit is vitally important to address trauma as soon as possible to help ensure that it will not persist and cause chronic problems.
The impact of extreme and prolonged stress on children, called “toxic stress,” is particularly dangerous. Children who experience overwhelming adversity may have significant developmental challenges and face lifelong health struggles. Individuals with unaddressed trauma are also far more likely to abuse drugs and become involved in anti-social activity, including acts of violence (Shonkoff, & Phillips, From Neurons to Neighborhoods) .
According to the WHO, mental health and psychosocial issues represent one of the most significant public health challenges across the occupied Palestinian territory. The conditions of the current war – in which civilians are under constant threat of danger and experience incessant violence, widespread loss of family members and homes, serious injuries, and lack of access to basic human resources – drastically compounds existing trauma that spans generations of Gazan families.
Civilians desperately need evidence-based, scalable interventions to relieve stress, trauma, anxiety, depression and despair. Left unaddressed, the situation will lead to a chronically debilitated, despairing population, making all efforts at reconstruction and a new dawn in the region exponentially more difficult.
Progress Update
Partnership Opportunities
CMBM is most actively seeking financial resources and media coverage for this important initiative. Population-wide psychological trauma healing and resilience-building in Gaza – and the West Bank, where CMBM hopes to start working at scale soon – is likely to be a crucial component to helping create a more secure and prosperous future for Palestinians and the region at large. CMBM’s team is uniquely poised to meet this need: indeed, it has already served tens of thousands of children and adults in shelters throughout the ongoing war, with incredible success.
CMBM has a strong track-record of high-impact programming, published research on our approach, and effective financial management, as evident by the fact that our work has been supported by dozens of government and UN agencies, among many others. Our work on the ground, local leadership and team, and Founder and CEO Dr, James Gordon make for compelling media subjects. CMBM is available to speak with prospective partners to share more information about funding and media partnership opportunities., CMBM will freely share information – including summaries of methodology, impact metrics, quantitative and qualitative evaluation findings, photos/videos/testimonials, and more – with other organizations and interested parties. CMBM leadership is available and eager to share their expertise, and to partner on implementation with others committed to hope and healing in Gaza as resources and time allow.