Mindful Junkie

Our mission is to empower First Responders and Veterans with mindfulness strategies to be safe, healthy, and emotionally regulated. We give First Responders tools to work with stress and trauma, as well as increase compassion and empathy. We teach First Responders how to manage reactions, notice impulses, and work through emotions - on the job and when they go home. Founder Gina Rollo White has spent the last seven years developing and leading mindfulness workshops for first responders. A long time mind-body practitioner, Gina received a Masters Degree in Mindfulness from Lesley University, the nation's only university that offers graduate programs in mindfulness. While in university, Gina conducted studies on the benefits of mindfulness for first responders. Her research found that mindfulness can measurably reduce stress and increase wellness for this population. But Gina’s interest in mindfulness for first responders did not begin in the laboratory. As the daughter of two first responders, Gina has seen first hand how chronic stress impacts first responders and their families. As a child, she saw how the sacrifices her parents made for their communities not only took a toll on their physical and mental health but also created strain at home and in the family. Years later, in university, she learned about the connections between trauma, the brain, and emotional regulation. Mindfulness, she learned, could help reverse the negative consequences of sleep deprivation, exposure to violence, and physical injuries by changing the brain itself. This ability -- to positively change the brain through mindfulness -- is important for everyone, but Gina realized these skills are especially critical for one population in particular: the individuals who put their lives on the line to ensure public safety. Gina created Mindful Junkie to empower first responders with mindfulness strategies to be healthier, safer, and more emotionally regulated - both on the job, and at home.