SafeHeart Gives 1,500 PTSD Survivors Free Mental Health Care

For Maayan Dee, two small packets of salt and pepper represent more than seasoning. They're a tribute to her friend Sivan Sharabani, who died at the Nova music festival on October 7, 2023, and who playfully named the condiments "simcha v'osher" (joy and happiness) as she sprinkled them on her meals.

Dee, a former lone soldier from the UK who served in the IDF's canine unit, survived the attack that took her friend's life. A week later, Sharabani's body was identified from burned remains in southern Israel.

"I didn't accept the fact that she was dead. I couldn't," Dee told attendees at The Jerusalem Post's annual conference in New York this week. In the months that followed, survivor's guilt and trauma left her searching for help that understood her unique experience.

That's when she found SafeHeart, Israel's largest mental health provider for Nova survivors. Founded by psychiatrists, psychologists, and researchers from the music festival community immediately after the attacks, the organization was built specifically to address the psychological challenges facing young survivors.

SafeHeart paired Dee with a therapist and provided free sessions without limits. "They offered me 24 sessions for free. Twenty-four became 36 when I needed more," she explained. "And now, two years later, SafeHeart has still never asked for one shekel."

The organization now supports over 1,500 survivors every single month with trauma treatment, counseling, support groups, crisis intervention, and long-term mental health care. All services remain completely free for survivors and their families, funded through private donors and government support.

The Ripple Effect

SafeHeart Global Ambassador Ori Schnitzer says the need remains enormous nearly three years after the attacks. "For so many, simply waking up and facing the day is still an uphill battle," he noted. "PTSD changes life not through a year or two, but it reshapes it forever."

The organization has now provided care for over 3,000 survivors and family members. By creating a judgment-free space that understands the Nova community's specific trauma, SafeHeart helps survivors move from merely existing to truly living again.

For Dee, the transformation has been profound. "For me, and many other survivors, navigating this stormy ocean of PTSD, SafeHeart has truly been our lifeboat," she said, holding up the salt and pepper packets in memory of her friend.

"We can do more than survive. We can live."