Healing Trauma in Israel – Status

Our work in Israel has been successful and tremendously rewarding to both our national and international faculty and staff.

We have worked successfully with non–governmental organizations and agencies and local government to make HWW sustainable. In Israel, we worked with the Ministry of Education, major hospitals and universities. By partnering with these organizations we can ensure the sustainability of the HWW program through working with professionals who have the ability to reach the largest number of Israeli people.

In April 2006, CMBM established a local Israeli Amuta (non-profit organization) called the Training Centre for Mind-Body Skills, which will help support and sustain CMBM activities and projects in Israel.

Healing the Wounds of War; Israel Timeline:

  • Summer, 2002: Naomi Baum, psychologist at the Israel Center for Psychotrauma in Jerusalem writes Dr. Gordon to ask for his help.
  • October, 2002: CMBM hires their first faculty member in Israel, Rhonda Adessky, PhD to work as the In–Country Program Coordinator.
  • July 4–9, 2004: CMBM implements Healing the Wounds of War program in Israel with a 6 day training.
  • January, 2005: CMBM holds an Advanced Training Program with 46 of 65 participants from our first training, returning. Study groups running in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
  • December 2005: Training held for 34 participants. A select few of these 34 will be chosen to run the next training program which is our next phase. These are mostly medical and mental health professionals who are working with populations affected by trauma and high levels of stress from the ongoing conflict.
  • March 2005: Selection of an in-country faculty to run our next phase which will train 120 participants run by the Israeli faculty and supervised by CMBM staff with on–going consulting and support.
  • July 9–14, 2006: Phase II Initial Training. This training program will be led by selected Israeli faculty (with consultation and supervision provided by senior CMBM international faculty members) for approximately 120 of their peers. A careful selection process will determine participants for this phase of training. There will be a focus on leaders within organizations who can immediately implement the program and quickly disseminate these strategies to the population.
  • December 2006: Phase II Advanced Training. This training program will provide leadership skills in the CMBM group model to those who have completed the initial training programs.
  • July 2007:  Mind Body Medicine Training in Nazareth, Israel for 100 professionals from the Ministry of Education (Shefi).  These professionals will attend the advanced training in the next year.

Healing Trauma in Israel – Next Steps

  • CMBM and CMBM Israel will continue to support and develop ongoing projects such as the one provided by CMBM where Israeli graduates are supporting evacuees from the former Israeli settlements in Gaza.

Helpful Documents:

Update on Healing the Wounds of War in the Middle East (PDF 117 KB)

Dr. James Gordon's Israel Diary (PDF 75 KB)

Dr. James Gordon's, "Both Sides Now" (PDF 59 KB)

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I feel rejuvenated and very optimistic about bringing my new knowledge to my colleagues, and to the people we help.

- Sigal Haimov, Hot line Director, Natal, Israel Trauma Center for Victims of Terror and War