SCRANTON, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — A new app developed by a Lackawanna County man is helping veterans and first responders cope with the stresses they’re exposed to every day.
Peter Cordaro is a Wilkes-Barre City police officer who also served in the Marine Corps reserve, two jobs he said showed him things humans weren’t meant to see.
“Wilkes-Barre City being extremely busy, you go from a suicide, then you pick up and go to a domestic, where you’re trying to solve a family’s problems. At the end of the shift, we have a call for a potential home invasion. We go in guns a-blazing, ready to go, ready to save someone’s life and then the shift ends and we’re supposed to go home and be okay,” Cordaro described.
Cordaro is one of many veterans who suffer from chronic depression, but he has transformed his life thanks to guidance being taught on a new self-help app based in Scranton.
“This wasn’t a big deal 30 or 40 years ago because life was a lot simpler. Today, we’re always on. We’re always on the go and our mental and physical wellness is tested,” said Patrick Sandone, president of Guide.
To help alleviate that pressure, Sandone created an app called Guide.
Sandone said the app works to combat the negative programs we run in our subconscious minds on a daily basis.
“An example, if you grew up in a house where there’s a lot of conflict, depending on your personality, the program you built could’ve been staying out of the way hide, be small, or make myself be big and loud. But you’ve modified who you are at your core,” explained Sandone.
The app empowers first responders and veterans to master their lives and unleash their highest potential by using daily micro-learning practices that help to bring those programs to light.
“I’m sure we’ve all had computers that we’ve had for a couple years, and all the sudden three years in you boot it up and all of the sudden 20 programs pop up and the CPU can’t even keep up with all of the stuff going on in the background that you didn’t even know were happening. But because of all of these programs you’ve started now, we can go in and close all of those programs, delete them, transform them, make them helpful, and all of a sudden that computer can run like new,” Sandone told Eyewitness News.
Guide was recognized by the Department of Veterans Affairs for the app’s contribution to the department’s 10-year strategy to end veteran suicides, receiving a $250K reward.
The staff of Guide will head to Washington DC For a demo day on November 4 to show how the app can help save lives. The app could receive up to $3,000,000 if they win.
Via PA Homepage