On Thursday, November 7th, we organized a seminar for professionals working in social, healthcare, and psychological services within Jewish organizations, as well as other organizations supporting Holocaust survivors. The seminar also included community workers from Jewish communities across the Czech Republic. The focus of the seminar was stress management based on real-life experiences.
The first speaker was Associate Professor Eva Závadová, MD, PhD, who brings extensive experience from the Department of Tumor Immunology at the University of Vienna, as well as from prestigious institutions in Houston and Tel Aviv. Currently, she serves as an Associate Professor of Immunology at the First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University in Prague, where she teaches immunology and tumor immunology. Dr. Závadová is a specialist in internal medicine, Chief of Allergy and Immunology, and a mentor in postgraduate medical education. She also leads the Post-COVID Immune Rehabilitation Clinic at the Pulmonary Department of General University Hospital. During the seminar, she explained the significant impact of stress on the immune system, the physiological changes that occur during stress, the harmful and beneficial effects of stress, and methods to activate the immune system.
The seminar continued with a lecture by Professor Yori Gidron, MSc, PhD, a professor of clinical psychology at the Faculty of Social and Health Sciences at the University of Haifa, Israel. As a psychoneuroimmunologist, Professor Gidron specializes in research on cognitive modulation and neuromodulation in health and disease. He has authored over 115 scientific publications and has participated in several humanitarian missions focused on PTSD prevention. During his session, he discussed post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and the impact of stress on our lives. He also provided practical demonstrations on how to relax and alleviate stress tension.
The third speaker was Marcela Maftoul, a lecturer in hypnosis and self-hypnosis and a longtime engineer in teaching technologies at universities in Paris and Grenoble. She has completed training in hypnosis at prominent institutes in Paris and has translated several books on the topic into Czech. Through practical breathing and relaxation exercises, she demonstrated techniques for managing stress more effectively.
We extend our sincere thanks to our partners and donors: the Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, the Federation of Jewish Communities in the Czech Republic, the Public Benefit Association for Supporting Holocaust Survivors, and the Department for Education and Culture of the Jewish Museum in Prague.
Foto: Petr Balajka
