Veterans & 1st Responders (V1Rs) served occupationally in high stress environments for extended periods of time. Existing in this environment can actively change the way they perceive the world around them which can persist even after they separate. V1Rs have a higher potential for anxiety issues, escalated mood, awareness, responsiveness, a primed fight or flight, enhanced sensory input, and enhanced visual recognition. Many self-medicate through substance abuse to block anger, ... Más información
Veterans & 1st Responders (V1Rs) served occupationally in high stress environments for extended periods of time. Existing in this environment can actively change the way they perceive the world around them which can persist even after they separate. V1Rs have a higher potential for anxiety issues, escalated mood, awareness, responsiveness, a primed fight or flight, enhanced sensory input, and enhanced visual recognition. Many self-medicate through substance abuse to block anger, anxiety, and fear associations. However, some have found significant, lasting relief through the rush and excitement of motorsports.
Track Heroes is a non-profit (501c3) that combines High Performance Driving and cutting edge neuroscience to improve the mental health of V1Rs without the use of drugs or medication. Through our research, we verified that High Performance Driving improves mental health, validated how and why it does so, then designed the Autonomic Integration & Recovery (AIR) program to maximize those benefits while promoting camaraderie and long term mental health.
AIR relies heavily on neuroscience research of the Anterior Cingulate Cortex (ACC) and its role in how we as Veterans and 1st Responders view, process and react to any given situation. Are we calm and relaxed, or are we anxious and angry? Our program focuses on the ACC, engaging it with specific stimuli, in a specific sequence, to trigger specific neurological responses, providing our Heroes with quantifiable improvements to their mental health. By targeting the ACC, we provide “top-down” regulation of the systems it controls and influences, providing both immediate relief and a track for long term healing that doesn’t rely on medication.
We have an approved Institutional Review Board (IRB) plan and have already executed a successful Pilot program and are raising funds to expand those findings into a full clinical trial. Pilot participants displayed significant positive neural shifts (via qEEGs) that demonstrated a very strong signal that will be further explored with continuing research.
Our program has verifiably and quantifiably helped the Heroes we've served. Additional support will ensure more access to more of our community's Heroes.
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