Shortly after the October 7 attacks, and with the assistance of the Mirage Israel Foundation, a mental health and emergency treatment system was established in the pastoral rehab village of Retorno in the Beit Shemesh area, to help young people experiencing distress following the events of Black Saturday. The department works to locate young people in distress throughout the country, with an emphasis on survivors of the "Nova" nature party that took place in Reim. The project is called "Iron Hug".
Rabbi Eitan Eckstein, founder of the Retorno Center, which since its establishment in the late 90s has been providing therapeutic solutions for cases of addiction, trauma, anxiety and shell shock, says: "When I heard the story of Nova and what happened there, I immediately realized that we had 3,500 red lights on above our heads.
About a month after the massacre: Rally in memory of the victims of the nature party "Nova" // Shmuel Buchris
"Most of the people who have been there know someone, or are in the world, or use a little or a lot of drugs. Everyone who survived the massacre experienced terrible distress, and there is no doubt that there is a direct connection between those who went through distress and what makes them feel good. And our fear is that those who have occasionally used cannabis will now switch to regular use, from morning to night, in order to feel good and forget. We realized there was a problem and decided to go."
The response offered by the center was published on social networks and passed on by word of mouth. Slowly, patients began to arrive – those who had experienced hardship following the events of October 7, evacuees from the envelope, survivors of the party, friends of the murdered and more.
About a month ago, Rabbi Eckstein Yoni Kahane, owner of the "Secret Forest" - a luxury spa complex in Cyprus, called him. He told him that he had set up an emotional and mental health treatment center specifically for Nova survivors, and consulted him on the right way to treat people, many of whom turn to drugs to escape the memories that never let go. A team of therapists from Retorno is sent to the compound, assisting the survivors along with other bodies.
Chaos: Footage from the Nova party near Kibbutz Reim
From Sunday to Thursday the stay is free of charge. The flights are subsidized by Kahane, and during the stay the participants receive a variety of treatments, workshops, listening circles, performances, support groups and more.
Every week, dozens of survivors come and meet people like them, who experienced the same horrors. They connect, talk and share, some manage to go back to sleep again. When they return to Israel, they are referred, if necessary, to further treatment at Retorno, where a therapeutic system takes place three times a week through art workshops, psychotherapy, work with animals and more. So far, hundreds of survivors have arrived at the secret forest, some of whom continued treatment in Retorno as well.
Yehuda is a social worker in Retorno, who is currently staying in the secret forest. He explains the process: "We have conversations with them all the time, from morning to evening. They open up and talk about the pain, what drug they are taking and whether it helps them or not.
Nova Festival complex held on the Gaza border, photo: Oren Cohen
"I hear terribly painful stories here, and it's not simple. Everyone talks about what happened to them. The one who was in Migonit and her friends were murdered next to her, those who were at the party and people were killed next to them. That's the discourse, and we talk about how we can deal with it and what the trauma does to us."
Talia, the manager of Retorno who came to the secret forest, also says: "There are many people here who have lost their loved ones in their hands. There are those who still don't realize that they have been traumatized, and there are also those who don't know how to move on and are in immense pain. There are moments of deep and fluent crying, panic attacks alongside joy and singing. In this situation, we are conducting, and we are giving them an envelope."
Nicole Hood, CEO of the Mirage Israel Foundation, which supports the project, says: "The partnership with Retorno is, in our view, saving lives and rebuilding, as many young people have been injured physically and mentally, and will carry with them severe traumas that young people in other parts of the world will never experience."
Retorno treatment is free. For assistance, please call *9056
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