Stress-Relief Wearable Devices Sought by Victims, Police Department, High School Students and Community Members Coping in Highland Park, IL

In the aftermath of the trauma, the Touch of Hope Scholarship continues to fulfill dozens of requests for TouchPoints everyday following July’s mass shooting.     

Phoenix, AZ – TouchPoint Solution and the Touch of Hope scholarship fund have delivered dozens of free TouchPoints wearable devices everyday since the mass shooting on Independence Day at the Highland Park holiday parade. The stress-relieving wearables are being donated to a network of frontline anxiety specialists, grief counselors and social workers as well as directly to victims and local community organizations in an effort to provide a resource of post-traumatic stress relief to all those impacted by the tragedy. Requests for the neuroscientific devices poured in from trauma counselors stationed in police departments, libraries and the local high school following the act of violence at the July 4th parade in the Chicago suburb. 

“We’re grateful for all the trauma counselors and anxiety specialists in the field offering their comfort, connection and support as they attempt to deal with the emotional and psychological impact of this latest tragedy,” said Vicki Mayo, CEO of TouchPoint. “The shooting in Buffalo, then Uvalde, then Highland Park only intensified the urgency for an at-home resource for immediate stress relief that TouchPoints can provide alongside professional in-person counseling.”

As the community worked to recover from the horrific tragedy, TouchPoints were immediately distributed to counselors in Chicago’s school districts, including Brenda Marwede, Founder of the Professional Family Solutions in Gurnee, Ill.

“Following the shooting, the collective intention was to bring stress levels down and connect individuals with local groups for ongoing counseling services. TouchPoints were a good tool for helping bring stress levels down at home, thereby directly supporting the crisis goal,” said Brenda Marwede, MA, LCPC, CIMHP. “I work with many trauma patients. There are many strategies including breathing, mindfulness, cold exposure. TouchPoints are unique in the way that users don't have to do anything more than put them on.”

Following the shooting incident, a network of over 600 volunteer licensed therapists mobilized and worked together to support a community of over 3200 members who sought some form of in-person counseling. Gathering in libraries, schools the volunteers deployed immediate protocols knowing there would be a need to transition to long-term strategies.  

“Someone in the Highland Park Strong Facebook community suggested TouchPoints,” noted a parent of three young children who received TouchPoints wearables, and agreed to be interviewed under the condition of anonymity. “Before TouchPoints, I was jumpy and had issues with falling asleep at night. After the shooting, I was triggered easily by things unrelated to the parade. They say the body holds trauma and I had clearly reinjured past trauma by being at the parade.”

“I noticed the first night that right away I felt like I wanted to sleep at a normal time. I started to yawn like I should, instead of my state of constant arousal and wanting to stay up out of fear. The next day, I noticed I would take random deep breaths when I didn't expect. I figured my body was finding a way to calm itself down. By the second day, I noticed my body was starting to notice when it would hit those 'fight or flight' moments and it was often. It felt like that rush would still hit, but the battle in my body would calm down and stabilize within thirty seconds, “she continued. “I could work on things that stressed me out when I'd normally want to walk away and not deal with the anxiety. TouchPoints have truly changed how I'm able to handle stressful situations.”

TouchPoints wearable devices provide a safe, effective at-home treatment that works especially well when paired with a counseling plan. TouchPoint uses a patented method leveraging advances in neuroscience and technology to directly affect the body’s biological mechanism by altering the body’s natural stress response and keeping users in a calm state of mind in as little as 30 seconds; consequently, utilizing the most effective treatment to support and inoculate against PTSD. 

TouchPoints are based on a pre-established, effective component of PTSD therapy that a team of neuropsychologists sought to provide to consumers as a real-time solution outside of their clinical appointments. Users are advised to include TouchPoints as part of a comprehensive treatment plan as a consumer product adjunct to treatment, including managing panic attacks.

To receive a complementary set of TouchPoints, Highland Park families and community members are invited to email the company at hello@thetouchpointsolution.com

About TouchPoints

TouchPoints work by altering the body's stress response with patented scientifically-proven BLAST (Bi-lateral Alternating Stimulation Tactile) technology. BLAST uses gentle, alternating vibrations on each side of the body to shift your brain from your default "fight or flight" response to your calm and in-control response. Over time, TouchPoints retrains your body, creating new behavior patterns that lessen the negative impacts of stress. 

Analysis from TouchPoints users showed that within just 30 seconds of using TouchPoints, people experienced an over 70% reduction in their stress levels and a 68% reduction in body sensations related to stress. 

TouchPoints are non-invasive and safe for use by adults and kids to relieve stress without drugs or side effects.

For studies, data, and a step-by-step guide how to use TouchPoints, visit: https://thetouchpointsolution.com/