Heroic Hearts Project, a nonprofit connecting military Veterans struggling with trauma to psychedelic therapy options, and Fireside Project, a nonprofit helping people minimize risks and fulfill the potential of psychedelic experiences, have announced a partnership that will help ensure Veterans processing past psychedelic experiences may receive free, confidential peer support by phone and text message from other Veterans on the Psychedelic Peer Support Line.
“We are excited to work with Fireside Project in developing the veteran-focused Equity Initiative which will be an important step toward empowering the veteran community through peer support training,” said Jesse Gould, founder of Heroic Hearts Project. “Community must be at the center of any mental health initiative.”
The Fireside Equity Initiative, recently launched by Fireside Project, was developed to create a more equitable psychedelic community by empowering callers from underserved communities with the choice to process past psychedelic experiences with a volunteer sharing their identity. A key part of that initiative is hiring and training military Veterans to provide peer support to other Veterans, then helping those veteran volunteers pursue careers in the psychedelic field. The initiative will also offer free integration circles led by Veterans.
Starting on June 23, military Veterans will have the option to call or text the Psychedelic Peer Support Line and process past psychedelic experiences with other military Veterans. The program will ensure that support line users who align with or come from the veteran community can be connected with a volunteer who is more likely to relate to their background, needs, and struggles.
“Fireside Project is delighted and honored to partner with Heroic Hearts on our Equity Initiative. Now more than ever, it is imperative that we empower Veterans to support other Veterans who are processing past psychedelic experiences. This partnership is a bold step in that direction,” said Joshua White, founder and executive director of Fireside Project.
Activities from the collaboration include, but are not limited to, the following:
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Heroic Hearts Project will support the Fireside Project’s Affinity Cohort by locating and recruiting Veterans to serve as trained volunteers on the Psychedelic Peer Support Line.
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Heroic Hearts Project will drive awareness of Fireside Project’s Affinity Peer Integration Service Outreach program to give Veterans the opportunity to call in and process past psychedelic experiences.
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Heroic Hearts Project will provide peer support training for Veterans interested in working on Fireside Project’s Psychedelic Peer Support Line and give direct feedback to staff and supervisors on best practices for handling calls from Veterans.
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Heroic Hearts Project will develop a comprehensive list of resources to assist Fireside Project in connecting Veterans to valuable services.
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Heroic Hearts Project will provide access for Veterans volunteering on the Psychedelic Peer Support Line to apply for their integration course with costs covered by Fireside Project’s Equity Fund.
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Heroic Hearts Project and Fireside Project will explore an initiative to have the use of psychedelic peer support services covered by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and major insurance carriers.
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Heroic Hearts Project and Fireside Project will investigate research studies and grants related to the effectiveness of the Psychedelic Peer Support Line for Veterans during and after psychedelic experiences. The entities will explore co-authoring peer-reviewed journal articles based on their findings.
To learn more or to apply to be part of the Fireside Equity Initiative, please visit https://firesideproject.org/fireside-equity-initiative.
About Heroic Hearts Project
Heroic Hearts Project (HHP) is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit that connects military Veterans struggling with trauma to psychedelic therapy options in combination with professional coaching and integration. Additionally, Heroic Hearts Project is focused on contributing to the growing base of psychedelic research to educate the public on the potential of psychedelics and to advocate for policy changes enabling increased and more equitable access to psychedelic therapies. The work of HHP has been featured in the New York Times, Forbes, and The Economist. Learn more at https://www.heroicheartsproject.org.
About Fireside Project
Fireside Project is a nonprofit organization that operates the Psychedelic Peer Support Line, providing free, confidential support by mobile app, phone, and text message to people who are in the midst of psychedelic experiences or processing past psychedelic experiences, whether those experiences occurred yesterday or 25 years ago. Fireside Project has received national media attention in such publications as Rolling Stone, Forbes, Esquire, TechCrunch, and more. Fireside Project can be reached by phone and text at 6-2FIRESIDE (623-473-7433) and through its app, which is now available on iPhone and Android. Learn more at https://firesideproject.org.
See the original news release here.