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F M S F O U N D A T I O N N E W S L E T T E R (e-mail edition)
January/February 2000 Vol 9 No 1
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ISSN #1069-0484. Copyright (c) 2000 by the FMS Foundation
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The FMSF Newsletter is published 6 times a year by the False
Memory Syndrome Foundation. A hard-copy subscription is in-
cluded in membership fees (to join, see last page). Others may
subscribe by sending a check or money order, payable to
FMS Foundation, to the address below. 2000 subscription rates:
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3401 Market Street suite 130, Philadelphia, PA 19104-3315
This address and the phone numbers have changed as of July 15, 2000
Phone 215-387-1865, Fax 215-387-1917
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IN THIS ISSUE:
McKelvey
Congdon
Harris-Morfit The next issue
Pankratz will be combined
Feld March/April
From Our Readers
Legal Corner
Bulletin Board
Conference Registration
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Dear Friends,
As we enter the year 2000, we find FMS families everywhere along the
continuum from "just learned" to "it's over." Since the middle of
December, the office has been receiving about five calls a day from
families who have just learned about the Foundation from the January
Guideposts article about the Rutherford family. Some of these new
callers tell us how relieved they are to learn about the Foundation
after struggling alone for many years. But for others, tears attest to
the rawness of their loss. The passing fad of FMS often seems more
like the ebbing of a flood tide than the retreat of a storm.
If so many have yet to see improvement in their personal tragedy,
some may question how we can plan a conference called Return to
Reason. The answer is that at the broader social level, major change
has occurred. Past newsletters have regularly recorded changes in the
media, the courts and professional programs. In this issue we continue
with news about what is being taught in undergraduate psychology
classes and news of a Plain Dealer feature investigation into problems
of monitoring psychologists in Ohio. As the culture that supported the
growth of the recovered memory movement changes and science and reason
are used, the tentacles of that movement will gradually release their
grip on our children. The conference will be an opportunity to
celebrate both the changes and the people who have helped to make
them. We hope to see you in April.
With the new year, we have an opportunity to view some of the
concerns of the Foundation within the context of two major government
reports. One report, the first ever about mental health from the
Surgeon General,[1] notes that a high percentage of people have
diagnosable disorders, that "the mental health system is highly
fragmented," and that health care practitioners are often unaware of
research identifying the most effective treatments. It states that "a
range of effective treatments exists for nearly all mental disorders."
If our children had been exposed to treatments that dealt with the
problems that caused them to seek therapy, and those treatments had
been demonstrated to be effective, there would have been no FMS
problem. We need a follow-up of the Surgeon General's report that
clarifies: What are the treatments that work? What do they work for?
And how do we ensure that they are used?
The second report,[2] from the Institute of Medicine, addresses
the problem of reducing the mistakes made within the medical
profession. The report notes: "Whether a person is sick or just trying
to stay healthy, they should not have to worry about being harmed by
the health system itself. This report is a call to action to make
health care safer for patients" and "From the patient's perspective,
not only should a medical intervention proceed properly and safely, it
should be the correct intervention for the particular condition."(
p. 46)
This report is the first major study of the Quality of Health Care
in America and the response has been immediate action by a host of
medical groups to find ways to reduce mistakes. The primary focus has
been on mistakes in hospitals, although the concepts "are just as
applicable to ambulatory care, home care, community pharmacies, or any
other setting in which health care is delivered." (p. 42)
When the FMSF began, we held the expectation that the American
Psychiatric Association and the American Psychological Association
would recognize the iatrogenic illness being created by some of their
members who excavated "repressed" memories of sexual abuse and that
the professional organizations would correct the problem.
Unfortunately, that has not happened. It seems appropriate, therefore,
to move our concerns to the Institute of Medicine and ask them to
include the problem of errors in mental health practices in the
Quality of Health Care project. Each of us should contact the
Institute Of Medicine with his or her own perspective of why this is
important for them to do. The addresses are below.
In truth, in the year 2000, we do know quite a bit about effective
mental health therapies. Cognitive-behavioral therapies have been
scientifically tested many times and shown to be safe and effective
for specific problems. (As we go to press there was a lead article in
the New York Times, Science Times [1/11/00] about the person credited
with the development of Cognitive Therapy, Aaron T. Beck, M.D. who is
a member of the FMSF Advisory Board.) The article "Knotty Ideas" in
this issue reflects on some differences between this type of therapy
and the psychodynamic model.
If so much is known, why isn't it used? In his report, the Surgeon
General stated that mental health practitioners are often unaware of
research identifying effective treatment. This is a telling comment
that screams to the need for changes in professional education. In
this issue Charles Congdon, M.D. proposes a way to start the
restructuring of education for psychotherapists.
We have come a long way together since 1992 when most of us were
in the crisis of profound grief and groping to learn what had happened
to us. Together we have turned the situation around to the point where
we now offer reasoned suggestions for changes so other vulnerable
people will not be harmed in the way that we and our distressed
children have been harmed. We give special thanks to each of you whose
generous donations and ongoing support have made this possible. We
hope to thank you in person at the conference in April.
PAMELA
[1] David Satcher, M.D., Ph.D. Surgeon General, "Mental Health: A
Report of the Surgeon General," U.S. Public Health Service,1999.
(available on
www.mentalhealth.org/specials/surgeongeneralreport/home.html)
[2] To Err is Human: Building A Safer Health System, Institute of
Medicine, Koh, L.T., Corrigan, J.M. & Donaldson, M.S. (Editors),
Committee on Quality of Health Care in America, National Academy
Press, Washington, D.C. (Available www.nap.edu. See FMSF
Newsletter Oct/Nov 1999)
________________________SIDEBAR__________________________
/ \
| Send your letters asking the Institute of Medicine |
| to support the inclusion of medical errors in mental |
| health practices in Quality of Health Care project to: |
| |
| Kenneth J. Shine, M.D. |
| President, Institute of Medicine |
| 2101 Constitution Avenue NW |
| Washington, DC 20418 |
| |
| William C. Richardson, Ph.D. |
| President and CEO, W.K. Kellogg Foundation |
| One Michigan Avenue East |
| Battle Creek, MI 49017-1611 |
\_________________________________________________________/
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ABOUT the APRIL CONFERENCES
Memory and Reality: Return to Reason conference information and
registration are available at the end of this email edition. Please
note the cut-off dates and price changes for early registration for
the hotel (March 6), the conference (March 15), and the celebration
dinner (April 1). It is worth making your plans early.
We are very pleased that the New York Medical College is
sponsoring a separate professional conference. They are helped in this
project with a grant from Eleanor and Elliot Goldstein of SIRS
Publishing (Upton Books), the initiative of David Halperin, M.D., an
FMSF Advisory Board member, the kind and gentle encouragement of Paul
Kymissis, M.D., Professor and Director of Child and Adolescent
Psychiatry at the NY Medical College, and the support of the FMS
Foundation. Please note that the NY Medical College program is
completely independent and is under the approval of their continuing
education division. There is separate registration for this
conference.
Over the years, we learned that there are many advantages to
separating conferences for professionals from those for families. But
please be assured that families are welcome at the professional
conference and professionals are welcome at the family conference.
+----------------------------------------------------+
| SPECIAL THANKS |
| |
| We extend a very special `Thank you' to all of |
| the people who help prepare the FMSF Newsletter. |
| |
| EDITORIAL SUPPORT: Toby Feld, Allen Feld, Janet |
| Fetkewicz, Howard Fishman, Peter Freyd |
| COLUMNISTS: August Piper, Jr. and members |
| of the FMSF Scientific Advisory Board |
| LETTERS and INFORMATION: Our Readers |
+----------------------------------------------------+
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BENNETT BRAUN SUES INSURANCE COMPANY THAT SETTLED LAWSUIT
FMSF Staff
In June 1999, Bennett Braun, M.D. filed a lawsuit against the
insurance company that settled the case brought against him and Rush
Presbyterian-St. Luke's Hospital by a former patient for $10.7
million. In his complaint, Braun claimed that his lawyer breached his
fiduciary duties by settling, because Braun never agreed to it. Braun
is seeking $20 million in damages.
According to an article in the December Psychiatric Times [1],
Braun also claimed that his lawyers didn't properly investigate the
facts, did not retain expert witnesses or raise statute of limitations
defenses.
Psychiatric Times noted that the attorney defending the insurance
companies that are associated with the American Psychiatric
Association will argue that if Braun actually had the right to
consent, he withheld it unreasonably. The attorney stated: "The reason
it did settle was because there was a substantial body of evidence
which continued to grow, which was persuasive, and which would have
resulted in a very severe verdict against Dr. Braun, probably
exceeding his policy limits."
Last October, Braun agreed to give up his license to practice for
two years in a case brought against him by the Illinois Department of
Professional Regulation.
[1] Michael J. Grinfeld, Psychiatric Times, December 1999. See FMSF
Newsletters 9/95; 10/97; 12/97; 3/98; 9/98; 11/98; 12/98; 6/99;
7/99; 12/99.
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| "A recovered-memory indictment, when it isn't backed up by other |
| evidence, is something that might have been invented by Kafka. Its |
| propositions can't be falsified.". |
| |
| John Gross,11/28/1999, The Sunday Telegraph (UK), The Arts: |
| False memory on father's day -- Theatre |
\____________________________________________________________________/
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ARE UNDERGRADUATES LEARNING ABOUT FALSE MEMORIES?
FMSF Staff
In November we were pleased to receive a few pages from an
introductory psychology text [1] that were sent by the sister of a
woman who had acquired memories. The heading of the section she sent
was "Repressed Memory: Uncovered Life Events or Implanted
Fabrications?" and the subheadings were "What is the nature of
unquestioned abuse memories?, How can false memories be implanted by
suggestion?, What techniques are used by repressed memory recovery
therapists?, and Memory as construction and reconstruction." The
authors noted that "It is now unquestioned that significant numbers of
adults were sexually abused as children, and that reports of such
abuse had, until fairly recently, often been ignored or discredited."
And that "What greatly concerns memory researchers and many therapists
as well is that the techniques that have successfully implanted false
memories in research are exactly the sort of techniques used by memory
recovery therapists."
A new study [2] confirms the fact that many college students are
being exposed to information about false memories. A systematic
examination of 24 recently published introductory psychology textbooks
found that 20 of them contain information about the recovered memory
debate. If future outbreaks of FMS are to be prevented, it is
important that students be exposed to scientific information about
memory.
[1] Leahey, T.H. & Harris, R. J. Learning and Cognition 4th Edition,
Prentice Hall, 1997.
[2] Letourneau, E.J. & Lewis, T.C. Portrayal of Child Sexual Assault
in Introductory Psychology Textbooks Teaching of Psychology,
Vol. 26, No. 4, 1999, pp. 253-258.
+------------------------------------------+
| "One thing I do: forget what lies behind |
| and reach forward to what lies ahead". |
| Phil 3:13b |
+------------------------------------------+
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The Role of Suggestive Questions, Social Influence, Reinforcement, and
Removal in Creating Adult False Memories
Garven, S., Wood, J. M., Malpass, R. S., Shaw III, J. S.
More than suggestion: The effect of interviewing techniques from the
McMartin preschool case. Journal of Applied Psychology, 1998, 33,
347-359.
Review by Allen Feld
There has been a tendency by some professionals and families to
oversimplify how false statements may be obtained from clients by
attributing the process solely to "suggestive interviewing." While
that "short-hand" term may be useful to a lay person's understanding,
professionals also often oversimplify the process. It is not unusual
for a therapist to assert: "I don't ask suggestive questions." But do
those who make that statement recognize what might be considered
"suggestive?" Are they sensitive to the effect of repeated questions
or the "asked-and-answered" technique? Importantly, have they
considered other factors when they make such a claim?
While Garven et al. use the injustices of the McMartin day care
case as an organizing theme for their research and article, they are
unequivocal in their contention that the research relates to adults as
well as to children: "First, research has repeatedly shown that
suggestive questions influence the immediate and subsequent reports of
adults." (p. 355) They present other factors that they consider to
play an important part in developing false statements, and use what
they identify as the SIRR model to explain the interaction of these
factors: Suggestive questions, social Influences, Reinforcement and
Removal from direct experiences. One of the values of this article is
that the definitions of these four terms are concise and free of
jargon, and clear examples are given to provide greater meaning to
these terms.
There are other reasons I find this article important. In
discussing it with a colleague, the point was made that this article
may help parents more fully understand the often-asked question: "How
could this happen?" We also believe it important for attorneys
involved in recovered memory litigation to be familiar with this
article.
The conclusions Garven et al. reach are research-supported. Six
problematic techniques from the McMartin interviews are reviewed and
analyzed using current research. Their article describes the results
of a study they conducted showing that social influence and
reinforcement "appeared to be more powerful determinants of children's
answers than simple suggestion." (p. 347) They also make the
significant point that "Research findings and theory from the past 50
years would have predicted the results" (emphasis added). (p. 355)
Retractors' reports of their experiences in therapy and much of
the recent research cited in previous Newsletters add weight to this
statement. Now, when will professional organizations and licensing
boards become proactive in assuring that under-informed or misinformed
therapists harm fewer clients and their families?
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| License Boards |
| |
| "The licensing boards were put in place number one to protect the |
| public interest. I would much rather err on the side of having too |
| much information in the public arena than not enough." |
| |
| "This is not about protecting the income rights of licensees but |
| to protect the people they're serving. |
| |
| Nevada State Senator Randolph Townsend, Las Vegas SUN |
| Dec.19, 1999 "Board faulted for secret discipline of psychologist" |
\____________________________________________________________________/
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WHO IS PROTECTING THE PUBLIC?
Bob McKelvey
"Disciplined psychologists face few consequences" read the headline on
the front page of the December 5th issue of the Cleveland (OH) Plain
Dealer.
Written by staff writer Ted Wendling, the article was the first of
a four-day series detailing the shocking abuses of rogue
psychotherapists and the unwillingness of state licensing boards to
punish them.
As Wendling reported, of the 2,200 licensed psychologists who have
committed major ethical violations, only a handful have had their
licenses revoked by regulatory boards composed of their peers. And
four states have never revoked a license.
Amazingly, the licensing boards admit that their goal is to
rehabilitate wayward members, instead of safeguarding patients'
rights. As one board member explained: "We almost never revoke...Do we
have to destroy a person to protect the public?"
Therapy's victims often take a less charitable view. "You've heard
of the good old boy network," said an abused patient in Alabama. "Here
it's thicker than thick."
Obviously, there can be no solution to the regulatory question as
long as the fox is allowed to guard the hen house. Maybe the answer is
to appoint non-professionals -- true members of the public -- to the
licensing boards.
+------------------------------------+
| Have you read these? |
| |
| Confabulations |
| True Stories of False Memories |
| Beware the Talking Cure |
| Psychology Astray |
| Smiling Through Tears |
| Selling Serenity |
| |
| Upton Books |
| 800-232-7477 |
| www.sirs.com/uptonbooks/index.htm |
+------------------------------------+
**********************************************************************
COMMENTS on "FALSE MEMORY" by DEAN KOONTZ
Bantam $26.95, 628p
FMSF Staff
As we go to press, Publishers Weekly lists "False Memory" as the
number one bestseller for hardback fiction. And given the record with
Koontz's previous suspense novels we can expect the book to remain on
the best-seller lists for a long time.
The theme is summarized on page 384: "A therapist without finesse
can easily, unwittingly implant false memories. Any hypnotized subject
is vulnerable. And if the therapist has an agenda and isn't
ethical...."
Alas, the book may do more harm than good.
If you wish to find the intellectual antecedents for Koontz's
book, look to the MPD-therapists who followed the traditions of the
ISSD. Koontz's fictional evil psychiatrist seems a direct descendent
of the (supposedly non-fictional) Jewish-Nazi doctor in Dr. Corydon
Hammond's famous 1992 "Greenbaum Speech," the evil genius who learned
how to program innocent people (which innocents will, if lucky,
eventually be cured by Dr. Hammond). Koontz's fictional secret
mind-control institute reads like a spinoff of the (supposedly real)
CIA as conceived by Colin Ross, M.D. in his book proposal, "CIA Mind
Control."
Koontz's psychiatrist is that rarity in modern literature: an
utterly evil character with no sympathetic qualities whatsoever.
Koontz clearly wished to portray him as a modern satan (and he signals
that from the beginning by naming him Dr. Ahriman, the name of the
Zoroastrian devil). The FMS problem would have been easily solved if
we had to worry only about utterly evil characters -- much, much more
difficult have been the legions of well-intentioned therapists who
unwittingly create the environments that foster false memories.
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| Return to Rationality |
| |
| "The intellectual battle may not be over yet, but the repressed- |
| memory forces are in full retreat. Scientific skepticism of the |
| supposed phenomenon has never been higher, courts are belatedly |
| taking long, critical looks at "recovered" memories of alleged |
| childhood abuse, and the public at large has moved beyond |
| unquestioning acceptance of such claims." |
| |
| The return to rationality comes after a decade of hysteria, in |
| which innocent people were sued and even jailed for crimes up to |
| and including murder, based solely upon memories their adult |
| children acquired during therapy. Thousands more families have |
| been torn apart by similar allegations." |
| |
| Joe Dirck, The Plain Dealer, July 13, 1997 |
| "A compelling look at repressed memory" |
| Review of Spectral Evidence by Moira Johnston |
\____________________________________________________________________/
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FALSE MEMORIES, LASTING SCARS
Lynn Lamberg, JAMA,July 21, 1999 "Medical News & Perspectives"
FMSF Staff
This article in JAMA reports on a presentation by Harold Lief, M.D. at
the American Psychiatric Association conference in Washington DC in
May, 1999. Lief, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and an
FMSF Advisor, and Janet Fetkewicz, a member of the FMSF staff,
conducted interviews with seven fathers whose daughters had retracted
their accusations of sexual abuse. One conclusion of this research was
that "A daughter's false memories of a father's sexual abuse, even if
later retracted, become a defining feature of the father's life."
The men experienced varied emotions after the accusations. One
father said "I went from hurt, to anger, to anguish, to wanting to
know what happened, to frustration." Other emotions were devastation,
numbness and fear. Soon after the accusations, one father had a stroke
and another had a heart attack.
Some of the fathers reported concern about whether their wives
would believe them and while the marriages sustained a substantial
blow, several reported that the accusations brought them closer to
their spouse.
The accusations caused the men to reflect on their role as
fathers. Some became closer to the accusing child after she retracted.
In one family the retractor-daughter committed suicide and her father
assumed new responsibilities for his grandchildren.
Even after the retractions, some of the men said they experienced
a decreased sense of power and an undermining of their traditional
masculine role.
The Lief and Fetkewicz paper appears in R. Friedman (Ed.)
Masculinity and Sexuality, published by American Psychiatric Press,
1999.
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| "It is hard, in our enlightened times, to appreciate what the |
| introduction of a rational system of laws meant, and the |
| elementary ways in which it impelled society's progress. It is |
| also worth noting that in our enlightened times, a rational |
| justice system is so central a value that any violations thereof |
| stand out as peculiarly shocking -- a throwback to the irrational |
| past. |
| |
| "We have witnessed echoes of that past in nearly two decades of |
| child sex-abuse trials, with all their accusatory fervor, |
| incredible testimony and convictions based on no evidence -- all |
| of which have fallen apart or are in the process of doing so." |
| |
| Dorothy Rabinowitz, "Only in Massachusetts" |
| The Wall Street Journal, December 29, 1999 |
\____________________________________________________________________/
+-----------------------------------------------------------+
| There is nothing more frightful than ignorance in action. |
| Johan Wolfgang von Goethe |
+-----------------------------------------------------------+
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IS RESTRUCTURING OF PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION OF PSYCHOTHERAPISTS
NECESSARY -- OR POSSIBLE?
Charles C. Congdon, M.D.
According to William Longmire in a recent issue of The Pharos,[1] "as
recently as the end of the nineteenth century, medical education in
the United States was in a deplorable state. Hundreds of medical
schools were little more than academically anemic apprenticeships."
Longmire cites extensively from Abraham Flexner[2] who was noted for a
famous study and report on medical education in the early part of the
20th century. Flexner was convinced that the central deficiencies in
medical education at the time were (1) the failure to teach state-of-
the-art knowledge, and (2) the absence of science-based and evidence-
based medical education. A revolution in medical education resulted
from the Flexner report. Medical schools were overhauled, many were
closed and the curriculum became science-based. To this day, doctors
still worry about keeping a balance between research and practice in
professional education.
Several contemporary observers have made the analogy between
medical education at the turn of the century and professional
education of psychotherapists now. For example, Paul McHugh, Chief of
Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, has commented
frequently about the comparison and the importance of improving
education in the mental health fields.[3]
The time is right. There was no scientific foundation for
psychiatry in its early years, but that has changed in the past two
decades with a veritable explosion of scientific knowledge about
mental disorders and how to treat them. In Therapy's Delusions,
Watters and Ofshe also bluntly make the comparison:[4]
"Flexner's conclusion could not be more true of the mental health
field at present. As medicine was a hundred years ago, the mental
health field is now plagued by a large gap between its research
and clinical applications."
In a 1994 survey, Michael Yapko [5] documented professional
ignorance of basic facts about memory and hypnosis. In that same year
Robyn Dawes[6] exposed the unscientific ideas that were a part of
current professional training. The lives of families, individuals and
children have been tragically shattered because of this lack of
scientific understanding, a harm well-documented in books by Mark
Pendergrast,[7] Terence Campbell,[8] Tana Dineen,[9] Joan
Acocella,[10] and Margaret Hagen,[11] to name a few.
If a similar tragedy is to be prevented in the future, improved
professional education must be an important part of the effort.
Medical education was transformed and became science-based. Can
education for mental health professionals be similarly transformed?
What would the process be? Who would provide the leadership? What
would the curriculum look like? How would such a program encompass the
multitude of different mental health professionals and regulatory
groups?
If there is to be a reform of education in psychotherapy, it must
be a fundamental reform. It will require scientific integrity and
scientific thought. Attention to the form without substance won't
work. In my opinion, the content for any restructuring of professional
education in psychotherapy should come from the educators themselves
with attention to the issues outsiders raise. Outsiders are essential
for change, but content is an insider game.
Is it possible to have a "Flexner" investigation and report on the
professional education in psychotherapy? It seems to me that could be
the first step in bridging the gap between research and clinical
applications in professional education.
[1] Longmire, W.P. The Halstedian influence goes west: Personal and
historical remarks. The Pharos/Summer 1999, p. 19-24. (Halsted
was a reformer of surgical training in the U.S. around 1904.)
[2] Flexner, A. Medical education in the United States and Canada; a
report to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.
1910.
[3] McHugh, P. public remarks.
[4] Watters, E. and Ofshe, R. Therapy's delusions: The myth of the
unconscious and the exploitation of today's walking worried.
Scribner, 1999. p. 230-231.
[5] Yapko, M. Suggestions of abuse. Simon & Schuster, 1994.
[6] Dawes, R. M. House of Cards: Psychology and Psychotherapy Built on
Myth. Free Press, 1994.
[7] Pendergrast, M. Victims of memory: Sex abuse accusations and
shattered lives, 2nd Edition. Upper Access, 1996.
[8] Campbell, T.W. Smoke and mirrors: The devastating effect of false
sexual abuse claims. Insight Books, Plenum Press, 1998.
[9] Dineen, T. Manufacturing victims: What the psychology industry is
doing to people, 2nd Edition. Robert Davies, 1998.
[10] Acocella, J. Creating hysteria: Women and multiple personality
disorder. Jossey Bass, 1999.
[11] Hagen, M.A. Whores of the court: The fraud of psychiatric
testimony and the rape of American justice. Harper Collins, 1997.
Charles Congdon is Professor Emeritus in the Graduate School of
Medicine at the University of Tennessee Medical Center in
Knoxville. He is an experimental pathologist..
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| "Psychopathological exploitation in the form of induced false |
| memories has sent tremors through the profession, as had the |
| effect of third-party payment, the problems that accompany managed |
| health care, and the divided loyalties of psychiatrists between |
| their patients and the institutions that employ them." |
| Frank J. Ayd, Jr., M.D. |
| Psychiatric Times, December 1999 |
| "Misuse and Abuse of Psychiatry: An Overview" |
| (writing about a lecture by Paul Chodoff, M.D.) |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
KNOTTY IDEAS
Spencer Harris Morfit
In their book, Therapy's Delusions, Ethan Watters and Richard Ofshe
aptly describe the proliferation of convoluted, faddish and often
contradictory theories of psychotherapy as a "Gordian Knot." The
Gordian Knot is a concept from ancient mythology. It describes a knot
so constructed that any attempt to carefully untie it has only the
result of creating more tangles. The only way to undo the Gordian knot
is to slice through it. The recommended tool is a sword, but I
personally prefer Ockham's Razor. "Ockham's Razor" is a principle that
says, essentially, "Whenever you are confronted with more that one
explanation for something, the simplest one that accounts for all the
facts is the best." The purpose of Ockham's Razor is to cut away
superfluous material that can lead one down detours and false trails.
This serviceable principle was set forth by William of Ockham in the
1300s and has withstood the tests of time.
I personally believe that psychodynamic therapy is a Gordian knot.
Psychodynamic therapy, broadly defined, is therapy that evolves from
Freudian roots. There are many forms of psychodynamic therapy but they
share a common belief that emotional difficulties have their origins
in childhood events, that they are caused by emotions that are out of
awareness ("repressed") and cannot be accessed without treatment that
requires the intervention of a professional with special training and
abilities.
The trouble with this belief is that it creates an interaction
between two people who are not equals. A therapist who knew nothing of
the client's history until he or she walked into the consulting room,
who generally does not see the client interacting with others, and
knows nothing of the client's history or family of origin, suddenly
becomes the expert on the client's history, motivations, etc. If the
client believes in the therapist's special knowledge, the client
defers to the therapist's authority. The opportunities to subject the
therapy to any sort of reality test are greatly diminished, while the
opportunities for suggestion multiply...with all the attendant
difficulties with which we are so familiar.
I also believe that we now have a form of therapy, namely
cognitive-behavioral therapy, that at least comes close to therapy
after Ockham's shave. The major contribution of cognitive-behavioral
therapy is that it has extended the definition of "behaviors" to
include thoughts or "cognition." Cognitive-behavioral therapy seeks
first to identify problematic behaviors, including habits of thought,
and second to outline a course of treatment that involves,
essentially, coaching the patient until he or she develops some
alternative behaviors, a wider set of choices, and some skill at
making decisions that are appropriate to the circumstances. It applies
conditioning theory, which does have an empirical base and which
applies to any sort of habit-formation from learning to tie one's
shoes to far more complex behaviors.
In an attempt to contrast the two therapies, I would like to take
a case with which I am familiar, take a look at it from a
psychodynamic perspective and then from a cognitive-behavioral
perspective. We will then wield Ockham's Razor to see if, in the end,
we can give psychodynamic therapy a much-needed close shave.
The case involves a man who enters therapy for marital problems.
Immediately after the first session with the therapist the man has a
dream in which "my mother is sexually abusing me with an enema." The
dream is sufficiently disturbing to wake him, and in turn, he wakes
his wife. Such first dreams are often regarded as very important
signposts in psychodynamic therapy, productions that outline the
future direction of the entire therapeutic adventure.
His wife asks him if he remembers ever being sexually abused by
his mother with an enema. He responds with some anger that although
he does not remember any sexual abuse he does remember an incident
"when I was about ten years old. I reported to my mother that I was
constipated and she decided [he says this with some animosity and
emphasis] to administer an enema." He also reports that while he was
in the bathroom his mother chastised him for withholding and told him
"You could do better."
As the therapy unfolds, it is clear that the man has a primary
experience of having things "extracted" from him, then of being blamed
for being ungenerous, selfish and withholding. For instance, he tells
a tale of taking a newspaper route. His parents asked him how he
intended to spend the money he made. Whatever he answered, they became
quite angry and accused him of being "selfish." They demanded that he
spend the money, or a substantial majority of it, on family Christmas
presents. In another story, he remembers how his parents made vacation
plans and then told the children they would have to make a
contribution to the expenses. The boy argued that if he had to help
out with expenses, he should have some say in the vacation plans. He
negotiated with his parents to stop at a particular tourist attraction
en route. However, when the vacation time came, the parents drove
right past the tourist spot with some blase excuse and he was the "bad
child" for complaining and "spoiling everyone else's vacation." His
history is full of stories along this same theme.
It also becomes clear that in adult life the man repeats this
pattern by consistently making commitments from which he unilaterally
withdraws. He then accuses the person at the other end of the line of
having extracted something against his will. This leaves his wife
feeling angry and "extracted from" herself and exasperated that he
thinks he is the victim. This is a critical problem in the marriage
as well as in other relationships.
Okay, let's contrast psychodynamic and cognitive-behavioral
interpretations here...
Depending upon where you put your foot in the psychodynamic
stream, you might get a variety of interpretations here.
Interpretations could be made, for instance, that the event happened
during the "anal phase" and therefore had something to do with
client's developing sense of control-or lack thereof. Interpretations
could be made that the man's handling of money is symbolic of the way
he handled his feces -- an interpretation that ignores the fact that,
after all, many of the original events did have to do with money. The
administration of an enema may be sexually stimulating to a male and
often is, whether anything sexual was intended by his mother or
not. This could lead to a great deal of speculation about an "Oedipus
complex," though such an interpretation ignores the fact that the
boy's father was an equal participant in some of these incidents. It
could lead to a suggestion that he take the sexual aspect of the abuse
more seriously, though his own interpretation minimizes this. The
experience may also be interpreted as "traumatic" whether it was
experienced as coercive and/or because it was too sexual for a young
boy to understand, or handle, or both. Another therapist might simply
see all this as symbolic. There might be talk about "identifying with
the abuser." Etc.
By contrast, cognitive-behavioral therapy would take a look at the
pattern of the interactions here. It would say that over a sustained
period of time the boy became habituated to seeing himself as someone
from whom his parents were extracting things. He developed automatic
responses to these situations which are now habituated and which he
does without much thought. It would also say that the young boy
learned these behaviors from his parents and carries them forward in
his adult life.
There is an implied and critical difference in these two
therapeutic approaches. Psychodynamic theory more or less takes the
approach that it is interpretations that give meaning to behaviors.
Cognitive-behavioral therapy, on the other hand, basically takes the
position that it is behaviors that give meaning to the material. In
any case, the cognitive-behavioral therapy quickly leaves speculation
behind to focus on the behaviors which are, after all, both the only
empirical evidence available to therapy and the only possible locus of
change and control. I don't think many people realize that this is
quite different from some psychodynamic theory, theory that holds it
is necessary for the patient to "regress" to the point of maximum
vulnerability and to "re-experience" traumatic events in a new
ways. Many a patient has seriously deteriorated under this kind of
treatment.
It is also important to realize that even psychodynamic therapists
must do this behavioral work with clients and most will tell you it is
the hardest part of the therapeutic effort. Whereas cognitive-
behavioral therapists do not think it is necessary to engage in the
more speculative and interpretive work. This at least suggests that
the more speculative work is not a necessary condition for the
therapy, nor a sufficient one.
I anticipate that some readers will argue that there are
similarities between psychodynamic and cognitive-behavioral therapy. I
agree, but I say that the differences are as important -- if not more
important -- than the similarities. For one thing, there is a very
different emphasis in these two therapies and each suggests a very
different approach. For another, it is common for people to use
"similarities" to justify maintaining other ideas that are decidedly
not similar or compatible.
The temptation to give up a few beloved ideas before one realizes
the whole structure has to come down is both human and understandable.
Given the egregious [and documented] harm done to hundreds of patients
in recent years, however, I really cannot understand why there is
still such resistance to a thorough re-examination of psychodynamic
theory and practice. I think upholding psychodynamic theory is harmful
not only patients but to the profession, which has lost -- and
continues to lose -- a great deal of credibility.
Spencer Harris Morfit is an author and business woman. She is a
member of the FMSF Scientific Advisory Board.
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| "While evidence to support the claims of RM "victims" is non- |
| existent, the destruction caused by recovered/false memory is well |
| documented: increased suicidal urges; self-mutilation; hospital |
| admission for mental illness; marriage and family break-up. In |
| America the tide is turning, with successful claims made against |
| therapists sued by "retractors. |
| |
| "Memory can't be stored, ready for retrieval like images on a |
| videotape. Instead, scientists have found that it is dispersed |
| diffusely throughout the brain, and only fragments are retained, |
| so, each time we remember something, we have to reconstruct the |
| moment; in consequence, memory is fallible, dependent on mood and |
| circumstance, and subject to distortion. |
| |
| "Trust me, I'm a storyteller, but so it would seem are we all, in |
| varying degrees." |
| Margaret Murphy, October 20, 1999 |
| The Independent-London |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
B O O K R E V I E W
Editor's Note: As the recovered memory movement retreats, it leaves
debris such as shattered families, books, letters, bibliographies, and
advertisements. How will people in the future piece meaning from the
debris? The book review that follows is such an attempt. What did the
creators of the bibliography intend?
______________________
Doubt the Bibliography
Loren Pankratz, Ph.D.
A couple of days ago I ran across a bibliography in an old file. This
bibliography was produced by Believe the Children,[1] updated
11/15/89. It has seven topics, but the "General Occult Information"
is the longest with 61 references representing 58 authors. What would
one learn about the occult, I wondered, by consulting this
information? I recognized about one-third of the authors, so I set
myself the task of reviewing a sample of these books.
The references, as provided, contained errors and were often
incomplete. The numbered references below were on the list; my
additions and corrections are in brackets.
1) CHRISTIAN, P. History and practices [practice] of magic. [London:
Forge Press, 1952. Two Vols. Originally published 1870] Paul Christian
was a librarian assigned the impossible task of rehabilitating the
libraries of France that had been devastated by the "fifty years of
trouble" that followed the 1790 revolution. During the revolution,
many books were seized from libraries and monasteries throughout the
land and suppressed. While sorting this mess, Christian became
interested in the varieties of occult writing. Thus, his work, which
was originally published in France in 1870, is a fine review of
earlier writing on the mysteries of the pyramids, ancient oracles,
witchcraft, the horoscope, astrology, and the divergent views of the
supernatural during the early Christian era.
The two-volume translation is a fascinating and balanced review
that I recommend. However, I suspect that the compiler did not have
this set in hand when constructing the bibliography because the title
was misstated and the year and publisher were omitted. Further, these
volumes would not have been easily available to the inquiring student
in 1989. Today, however, I found a few copies for sale on the net from
$12.50 to $200. [I'll let you in on a secret worth the price of this
whole article. If you use www.bookfinder.com, you can search multiple
bookselling sites simultaneously.]
2. Crowley, A . Magic [Magick] in theory and practice. Castle Books,
1919. Aleister Crowley is always cited by those wishing to whip up
fear of the occult. Even his friend and biographer, Symonds, attached
lurid descriptions of Crowley. At least he did on the cover of the
books he wrote about him, probably to increase sales. As an example,
see Symonds, J., The Great Beast, Roy Publishers, New York, 1952,
another book listed on the bibliography.
Of the enormous publicity that Crowley generated, one should
always remember that much of his life was a reaction against the
fundamentalist Christianity of his youth. He was trying to shock
people. Rock stars learned their lessons well from him.
Crowley may have been a psychopath, and he had problems of all
sorts. However, one would hardly be enticed into a life of occult
crime by reading Magick in Theory and Practice. Crowley was well
educated, and few teenagers would ever be able to read this convoluted
book.
3. De LAURENCE, L. W. Lesser keys of Solomon. Goetia, 1916. I
experienced difficulty finding information on L.W. DeLaurence.
However, I gather from the several books of his in my collection that
he was one of the many "Professors" at the turn of the century who
hawked his wares to the gullible American public. His books are
transparently commercial and quaint by today's standards. His
catalogue boasts in typical hyperbole that he is the largest seller of
occult and spiritual books in the world. He also advertises imported
temple incense "used in the Hindu Occult Chambers as a powerful
Suffumigation for the Invocation of Spirits; Receiving of Oracles in
Dreams, Conjurations, Exorcisms, Benedictions, Talismanic Operations,
Consecrations of the Bond of Spirits, and Their Adjurations and
Casting Out." This stuff must have been strong!
His book on hypnosis presents him as a lecturer and demonstrator
at the DeLaurence Institute of Hypnotism and Occult Philosophy.
However, his book on crystal gazing and spiritual clairvoyance
pictures him costumed in a turban. Who was he? He was whatever he
needed to be at the moment to sell his product.
4. GIBSON, W. Witchcraft. Grosset & Dunlap, 1973. Walter Gibson was a
prodigious professional writer who authored over 300 novels and 1,500
publications. He used over 30 pseudonyms, including the name Maxwell
Grant for his creation of "The Shadow." He worked extensively as a
ghost writer for magicians, and he compiled some fairly respectable
books on magic under his own name. I have never seen his Witchcraft
book, but certainly it is not a serious scholarly work that one would
consult. At the recent sale of his library, there were no books on
witchcraft evident.
"What evil lurks in the heart of this bibliography?"
5. HAINING, P. Anatomy of Witchcraft. Taplinger, 1972. I do not have
Peter Haining's book on witchcraft, but I do have his Dictionary of
Ghosts, Dorset, 1993, originally published in 1983. In the
introduction he admits that he believes in ghosts because the evidence
is convincing. Haining is a popular writer who is entitled to believe
in ghosts if he wishes, but I think he is writing to sell books. I
looked at a copy of his Witchcraft book at the bookstore and
discovered the center section filled with black and white photos of
witchcraft activities. These pictures were of poor quality, and some
of the naked people dancing around fires were also of poor quality. I
don't think he retired on the royalties of this book.
6. HALL, M. P. Secret teachings of all ages. Philosophical Research
Society, 1952, 1975 (Originally published 1928.). Manley Palmer Hall
was born in Canada at the turn of the century but moved to Los Angeles
and became the pastor of the Church of the People. He founded the
philosophical Research Society, which he headed for many years. He was
only 24 when he finished An encyclopedic outline of Masonic, Hermetic,
Qabbalistic and Rosicrucian symbolical philosophy: Being an
interpretation of the secret teaching concealed within the rituals,
allegories and mysteries of all ages, 1928. The many reprints of this
book have become known as "The Secret Teaching of All Ages."
The Secret Teachings is more of a gigantic, well illustrated
coffee-table book than an encyclopedia. However, it is worth reading
and worthy of its popularity.
7. HOLZER, H. The truth about witchcraft, Doubleday, 1969. Hans Holzer
was another popular writer on the occult. My impression is that he
never met an unusual event for which he could not promote a paranormal
explanation. I do not have the book listed above, but I do have his
Encyclopedia of witchcraft and demonology, Octopus, 1974. This is a
lurid coffee-table book (not on my coffee table) salted with
grotesque, titillating, and bizarre pictures.
On page 26, Holzer shows a picture of two trick bodkins or
piercing awls. The blade of one bodkin secretly springs back into the
handle. these false bodkins, Holzer informs the reader, were sometimes
used against the body of a suspected witch. The story here is that a
true witch would show no sign of pain on the devil's mark. This trick
bodkin, he says, was used to convince others that the accused was not
in pain despite (the appearance) of being pierced.
However, Holzer here shows either his ignorance or his willingness
to twist the facts. The false bodkin pictures are reproduced from
Scot's Discoverie of Witchcraft, first printed in 1584. Scot's book
was the first learned volume against witchcraft; he showed that simple
magic tricks were often the explanation of mysterious happenings. The
blade of the second false bodkin has a curved opening to make the
appearance of piercing the tongue or cheek, like an early Steve Martin
arrow-through-the-head. It makes no sense as a tool in the hands of a
real witch hunter for the purpose that Holzer describes. Scot's
explanation does make sense, which is that the trickster can "thrust a
bodkin through your toong, and a knife through your arme: a pittifull
sight, without hurt or danger." The effect will "appeare the more
terrible, if a little bloud be powred thereupon." Holzer's book is
strictly for the gullible or for teenagers who want to shock their
parents. And as a bonus offer if you sign up now, here is a cheap way
to pierce the toong -- bloud not included.
8. JONG, E. Witches. H.A. Abrams, 1981. I had no idea that Erica Jong
had written a book about witches, but I found a copy at the bookstore
in the Mythology section. This is also a large coffee table book, well
illustrated with erotic drawings. Some people believe that witches
often like to get naked, and they look much better in these drawings
than in the actual photos that Haining and Holtzer provided.
9. LaVEY, A. Satanic Bible. Avon, 1969. No, I don't have a copy of the
Satanic Bible. But I have a magician friend who knew Anton LaVey quite
well. LaVey was the San Francisco Satanist that everyone quotes when
trying to whip up fear of the occult. but LaVey began his career as a
circus performer, and he remained an actor and performer. He viewed
his church of Satan and his activities as a joke, but it was a living.
This may have been an unsavory joke, but anyone who takes this
seriously is just one of his suckers.
LaVey died in 1997 following a stroke at the age of 67. He lived
his role right up to the end, meeting visitors in his black painted
Victorian-era house at the stroke of midnight, regaling them with
stories until dawn.
[1] The newsletters and conferences of Believe the Children leave no
doubt about its support for belief in an intergenerational satanic
abuse conspiracy. The group closed its doors in 1998.
To be continued. In the next issue: "Scholars, crackpots, and the
secret of life."
Loren Pankratz, Ph.D. is a Consultation Psychologist and Clinical
Professor, Oregon Health Sciences University, Portland OR. He is
the author of Patients Who Deceive, Charles C. Thomas, 1998.
Dr. Pankratz is a member of the FMSF Scientific Advisory Board.
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| DON'T MISS THIS |
| Featured article about Rutherford Family |
| in Guideposts January, 2000 |
| |
| To request a copy of the January 2000 issue of Guideposts - - - |
| Send a check for $1.20 to |
| Customer Service, Guideposts, |
| 39 Seminary Hill Road, |
| Carmel NY 10512. |
| |
| The customer service department would prefer to handle requests |
| via mail rather than over the phone. |
| |
| Tom Rutherford: "I am very pleased with the article. I believe |
| the Lord had helped during every mile of the journey. Guideposts |
| mentioned that they have never had an article like this one in |
| their publication." |
| |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
MOVING ON
Allen Feld
At a recent small informal gathering of FMS families, I had the
opportunity to speak individually with many parents. I don't believe
that any of the families at this gathering had a specific retraction,
but I am aware that some of these families had their accuser "return"
to the family, while others have had recent contact with the accusing
offspring.
Regardless of the fact that the ranks of reunited families
continue to grow, reunification has yet to take place for most
families. Newsletter readers recognize that reunited families
represent the minority of families in contact with the Foundation. The
majority of families that I've spoken with are not reunited, although
they express hope (or, at least a wish) for a retraction. Failing
that, some have expressed willingness to have some contact with their
estranged offspring, at the very least. However, there are also a
small number of families who have adamantly stressed to me that
contact without a retraction is unthinkable and totally unacceptable.
Families deal with the uncertainty and confusion that result from
false memories and accusations in a variety of ways. While reliable
research is lacking, anecdotal accounts offer a glimpse into how
families who are not reunited contend with their situations.
In those families who say they still have hope, many mention their
relationship with their spouse as the key pillar of their
support. Others report that their other children are a source of love,
support, and strength and, they believe (or hope), a possible link or
path to reunification. A significant number of parents who maintain
hope tell how happy they are that they have each other and/or other
family members.
Some tell me prayer is an important avenue for them in their hope
to reunite the family. Some talk about friends that they rely on.
Meeting with other families is identified as an important source of
support. A few mention being involved briefly in therapy. A number
describe their use of cards, letters, email, etc. in an attempt to
reestablish communication and express their continuing love. For many,
the hope or wish for reunification is ever present and the situation
is often on their minds.
A small number of families at the gathering, however, told me that
they have decided on a course that must have been difficult to reach.
In a culture that places such a heavy emphasis on family unity, it is
a position that does not readily lend itself to public discussion. The
term "moving on," or something quite similar, was often mentioned.
What I mean by that phrase is that the shock and family upheaval
caused by being falsely accused and the false memories of an adult
offspring seem to play far less of a role in their lives.
As I thought about these brief exchanges, I felt that this group
represented a variety of avenues to "moving on." Although coming to
terms with a crisis is a usual occurrence, I believe moving on
differed from what one might anticipate. Some clearly indicated that a
conscious decision was made to move on. These parents seemed to
believe it offered a path to increased happiness and emotional health
and demonstrated that they accepted the reality that they also could
not control (or influence) a retraction any more than they had been
able to control the false accusations. Moreover, I believe that this
type of decision also served to affirm their strength.
Oversimplifying these families' journeys and collapsing variations
into a single sample scenario, one essential common characteristic
becomes evident: this group made the decision to get on with their
lives. They believe a retraction is unlikely, and importantly, they
arrived at the conclusion that a retraction and their accuser
rejoining the family, while desirable, are unnecessary for their lives
to be fulfilled. These parents know that the accusations against them
are false and accept their inability either to control or change the
situation. At the gathering one mother mentioned, for example, that
her family has decided to accept the reality and move on. She believes
that other families like hers would not readily disclose this kind of
decision. I told her that I thought this might be so. My hunch is that
this may be a more difficult course to make public.
The perseverance of fragmented families is remarkable. These
people show their ability to find avenues to display their care and
love for their other children, family and friends. Many have helped
and continue to help other families deal with the consequences of
false accusations without imposing their path on others. Their efforts
and contribution have made it more likely that this particular sad
debacle will destroy fewer families in the future. Moving on is one
more example of the strength of FMS families.
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| "But most of his book is an attack on what is commonly called |
| political correctness: university speech codes, repressed memory |
| syndrome and the like. For the author, every self-described North |
| American victim group indulges in the language of paranoia -- and, |
| inevitably, falls into its traps. When some University of British |
| Columbia graduate engineering students accused their professors of |
| racism, and then warned 'the first symptom of racism is denial,' |
| they were engaging in classic closed-loop paranoid thinking. There |
| is no room for dialogue, for a solution based on compromise, in a |
| situation so defined. |
| Brian Bethune, Maclean's, August 2, 1999 |
| Look who's paranoid now |
| Review of The Triumph of Paranoia in Everyday Life |
| (Macfarlane Walter & Ross). Written by Ian Dowbiggin |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
F R O M O U R R E A D E R S
________________
Tears of Apology
Our family was caught up in so-called recovered memories for almost
three years. Typical of such cases, only the most limited contact with
our accusing daughter was possible.
As the father, I yearned to have her crawl back to me on bleeding
knees and tearfully ask for forgiveness. When she did show up at our
front door about three years later, she was obviously weak and
vulnerable. At that point what seemed important was not an apology but
her regaining a sense of confidence and poise.
The return took place in March 1995, over 4 1/2 years ago. Shortly
following her return she acknowledged to her mother she knew that
neither of us ever did anything hurtful to her. Until recently,
however, she gave no recognition she had any idea of the hurt she had
inflicted.
As the holidays approached two wonderful things happened. I
introduced the subject of recovered memories. She responded that she
didn't remember what they were. She could only recall feelings.
The final closure came when we were standing side by side waiting
to welcome someone. I looked over at her and saw that her eyes were
tearing. I asked what was wrong. She smiled and said simply, "Dad, I
am so very sorry about the years of hell that I put you through." When
those words came, I found that I really no longer needed to hear them.
I had already gained a sense of peace. The episode, so horrible at the
time, was a distant memory.
At that point what was important is that she recognized the wrong
done and had the opportunity to express regret in my life time. This
spared her a terrible burden of guilt and sadness had that awakening
only occurred after my life had ended. Our family has much for which
to be grateful!
A Grateful Dad
_____________________________
Feelings of an Accused Father
Every room he was in screamed his daughter's accusation, the air
hissed it, the world heard it as it flew into the morning mist, the
afternoon sunshine, the evening and night sky. The dual afflictions of
terror and rage were to be his partners every day for years. He would
go to bed with them and wake up with them and they would haunt him in
the interim hours with sleeplessness and nightmares. Terror was his
partner every day, terror that he would lose everything, his house,
family, past reputation and present dignity, even his soul. The cost
of supporting a years-long litigation was sending the families with
such allegations into poverty, having to sell their homes. Stan knew
that in the final analysis he would win a court battle, but in paying
lawyer costs his home and savings would be lost forever...
Four years ago my daughter returned to us completely sane,
recanting her accusations entirely both orally and in writing. It took
me two years to return to normal after the retraction.
Stan Ciesinski
___________________
It's Still Going On
I received a call from my accusing daughter last week, the first I had
heard from her since the "confrontation" in 1993. She demanded we
admit what we had done to her. Screaming at me, she said for 9 years
she has been suffering from flashbacks, PTSD, bipolar disorder and
body memories. She said I was in denial, needed a psychiatrist and to
read Courage to Heal. It was like she was in a time warp, still the
same stuff. She said 6 therapists have treated her for this. It was
sickening, but I told her I loved her. I tried to stay on the phone
but she hung up after I tried to tell her my opinion. Later, I
realized that in spite of all the lawsuits, some therapists are still
doing what they did 8 years ago.
A Mom
_________________
No Reconciliation
You saved my sanity in 1992 when I thought my husband and I were alone with
such horrible accusations from a beloved 40-year-old daughter. There will
be no reconciliation for us, barring an absolute miracle. My husband died,
as I believe, prematurely due to grief over the loss of our daughter and
granddaughters. I have now regained our granddaughters due to the efforts
of our ex-son-in-law in whose home I am welcomed quite frequently. The last
I heard from my daughter was a very hateful letter last summer.
A Mom
____________
All I Can Do
I am disabled...do not work...have no spouse (any more) and live on a
very small income. But I believe your work is so very important.
Please accept my little gift... It is all I can do and I am glad to do
it.
A Member
________________
After the Return
At Christmas time in 1998, I decided I had had enough. I was no longer
going to try to keep in touch with my three lost daughters because it
was too disturbing to me. I had made it a point of telling them the
news of our family get-togethers and the funny things that happen,
hoping that it made them feel left out!
Then in April, the oldest of the three daughters called and asked
if she and our two grandchildren could come and spend the night with
us. They did and my husband and I focused all our thoughts on the
grandchildren. Everything went well and I was glad she could get to
see how weak her father was.
The next day as she was fixing her hair and getting ready to leave
I decided enough is enough. I went into the bathroom and put my arm
around her and said "You are not going to like what I am about to say,
but you can see that time is running out for your Dad. I am tired of
this whole mess and being upset by it."
She turned to me, put her arms around me, laid her head on my
shoulder and cried and cried. She said that she had known since before
Christmas that none of the accusations were true but she had been too
scared to say anything. I told her she didn't need to say anything
because I understood how it all happened. A simple "I am sorry Mom"
would be sufficient, I said. She burst into tears again and said she
was sorry.
Then she said, "What about dad?" I replied "sorry" would be fine.
Soon her dad walked by the bathroom wondering what all the noise was
about. She said "I'm sorry Dad" and went into his arms and they both
cried.
She had not accused us of sexual abuse but rather of beatings and
neglect. Her therapist had tried in vain to help her remember sexual
abuse. Nevertheless, she had been very cruel and vindictive to us.
This is where the newsletters have been so helpful about how fragile
and frightened returners can be, making it hard for them to come
back. We parents must try to walk in their shoes. Think of all the
humiliation and fear and guilt they must suffer from what they have
done to us.
The two other accusing daughters have since been flirting with
return since they visited their Dad when he was very sick in the
hospital. They have not retracted. In fact, I would not have let them
come into the home if it were not for our grandchildren. We are
concentrating on them.
Our children who stuck by us have had difficulty understanding our
acceptance of the accusers. They are worried that their sisters could
repeat this horrible nightmare. I explained, "So what! The worse has
been done."
A Mom
________________________________
Avoiding Challenging Information
A situation that occurred to me might interest you. I had registered
with "Who's who in Mental Health on the Web" and was accepted.
Information concerning my site was listed under "Louisiana therapist."
About two weeks after it was listed, it was gone. I emailed the site
manager and asked why my listing had been removed. The manager said it
was removed because of my article on "False Memory." I responded by
asking her if all therapists were supposed to think alike and she
answered no, except for material concerning false memories!
Being on that website was nice, but certainly not needed for my
wellbeing physically, emotionally or spiritually nor would I remove my
articles to remain on it.
Paul Durbin
Website:http://www.pdurbinhypnosis.webprovider.com/
________________________
Strange, Yet Not Strange
Our daughter first unexpectedly returned for a family reunion several
years ago. It had been three years since we had seen her and
everything went well. This was followed by E-mail letters and calls. A
year later she came home on Thanksgiving. She chose to stay at a
nearby hotel but that was O.K. with us. We were just happy to have her
with us. It was the first time we had had a holiday together in six
years and everyone in the family was thrilled to have her back.
A little before Christmas she E-mailed that she would be coming
home and a day or so before she E-mailed again and asked if she could
bring her laundry. She came and it could not have been more normal.
Lots of fun and laughter and sharing. It could not have been better.
She had planned to leave the day after Christmas but decided to stay
over another day. Since then we have had lots of phone calls about
various and sundry things, normal family things. -
What seems strange and yet not strange -- is the lack of tension
between us. Our hearts have truly forgiven the hurts, and we are
happy to pick up and go forward, so we have not talked about the past.
I doubt that we ever will. It has never been easy for our daughter to
say she was sorry, but we know by her actions that she is -- and that
is sufficient. We truly believe that our family is whole again, and we
thank God for that blessing.
We cannot express enough thanks to the FMS Foundation and the
newsletter. Because of the work all of you have done and the
information you have shared from other families, we have made fewer
mistakes than we might have otherwise and because we felt the support
of "kindred souls" and knew that we were not alone in this dilemma, it
was easier to bear. We will continue our support of the FMS Foundation
so that others will have the same benefits that were available to
us. Indeed, our cup runneth over!
A Happy Mom
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| Excerpts from "I Contain Multitudes" |
| New York Times Book Review, November 21, 1999 |
| Peter Kramer's review of Joan Acocella's book, Creating Hysteria |
| |
| "The recovered memory movement is a case of a host of good |
| intentions paving a precipitous road to hell. In the early 1960s, |
| pediatricians breached decades of silence by naming the battered |
| child syndrome. The same years witnessed a revival of feminism and |
| a new willingness to speak frankly about sexual molestation. |
| Meanwhile, psychotherapy was moving from old ideals of neutrality |
| to treatments based on empathy and even advocacy for patients." |
| |
| "Each of these changes was important and necessary. But America |
| has trouble with proportion, and by the 1980s the melding of child |
| protection, politics and clinical zeal had produced outsize claims |
| -- that a third of all girls are sexually abused, for example, and |
| that women's personalities are largely, even universally, shaped |
| by early sexual trauma. One corner of this hell was a 10-year |
| epidemic of multiple personality disorder." |
| |
| "[MPD] has always been controversial, doctors disagreeing as to |
| whether it even existed. In the 1980s, however, it came to be |
| understood as a consequence of child abuse. Enough cases were |
| diagnosed to support a new profit center in mental hospitals, the |
| dissociative disorders ward. Credulous news reports spread the |
| craze." |
| |
| "By now, both recovered memory and satanic abuse have been |
| debunked repeatedly." |
| |
| (Peter D. Kramer's most recent books are Listening to Prozac and |
| Should You Leave? He practices psychiatry in Providence, R.I.) |
\____________________________________________________________________/
+-----------------------------------------------------+
| THOUGHT FOR THE DAY |
| "The reason people blame things on the previous |
| generations is that there's only one other choice." |
| Doug Larson |
+-----------------------------------------------------+
**********************************************************************
L E G A L C O R N E R
FMSF Staff
________________
Wenatchee Update
In December, Rev. Robert Roberson and his wife, who were acquitted of
charges in the Wenatchee trials in 1995, settled a civil rights
lawsuit against the state for $850,000.[1] The lawsuit alleged that
state social workers violated the plaintiffs' civil rights and
interfered with their family relationships. Roberson also alleged that
the social workers' actions led to his false arrest and imprisonment.
Robert Van Siclen, who represented Roberson, said "They violated
the constitutional civil rights of these people -- the right to
confront witnesses. CPS and their agents and the police through
Detective Bob Perez and others allowed and did coerce the children
into false statements, using suggestive questioning, leading
questions, repeated interviews, over-length interviews, refusing to
believe the children when they said nothing happened." In settling the
lawsuit, the state admitted no liability.
On December 10, Innocence Project Northwest reported that the
prosecution announced that it will not retry Doris Green. Her
nightmare is over. Green had rejected a plea bargain in November.
The Washington Court of Appeals ruled that Manuel Hidalgo Rodriguez
is entitled to a new trial. The court wrote that Hidalgo "presented
newly discovered evidence that established constitutional error that
resulted in his actual and substantial prejudice."
On December 2, 1999 Cherie Town was the fifth person convicted in
the Wenatchee sex abuse cases to enter an Alford plea and has been
released from prison.[2] (In an Alford plea defendants maintain their
innocence but concede it possible they would be convicted at trial.)
Although pretrial plea agreements are common, it is unusual for
prosecutors to offer plea agreements after a conviction. Richard
Tassano, director of the State of Washington Appellate Project noted
that: "Prosecutors tend to feel that once they have a conviction there
is no point in letting it go because the burden is on the defendant."
According to Irwin Schwartz, vice president of the National
Association of Criminal Defense lawyers, the prosecutor in Wenatchee
"would love to close the book on those cases. They've been
appropriately embarrassed. The last thing the prosecutor wants to do
is go back and relive all the mistakes and missteps."
[1] Associated Press, Kansas City Star, January 1, 2000 "Minister,
wife and teacher accused in sex ring settle suit"and Midvalley-
Corvallis News, January 9, 2000 "Child sex allegations leave scars
on community 5 years later."
[2] Maher, S., Wenatchee World, Dec 2, 1999, "Woman cuts deal to win
her freedom." and Dec 11, 1999 "Prison Plea Bargains Are Rare --
Everywhere But Here."
____________________________
Arizona Citizens' Initiative
for Truth and Responsibility
in Mental Health Practices Legislation
In early December, the Arizona Legislature held hearings about the
problems in the Arizona mental health and family court systems.
Testifying were Christopher Barden, Ph.D., J.D., Tana Dineen, Ph.D,
author of Manufacturing Victims and Margaret Hagen, Ph.D, author of
Whores of the Court. The experts, along with some Arizona families,
testified that citizens of the state have been subjected to fraud,
waste and abuse in both the mental health and family court systems.
Dr. Barden is the author of model legislation known as the "Truth
and Responsibility in Mental Health Practices." Under this bill,
therapy providers would not be reimbursed until they meet the minimal
standards set for scientific methods by the U.S. Supreme Court in
Daubert v Merrill Dow Pharmaceuticals. Only therapy that has been
found safe, effective and reliable based on scientific research would
receive government tax dollars. The bill also requires that patients
be honestly informed of the strengths and weaknesses of the procedures
to be used and of alternative treatments.
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall |
| one by one, an unpitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle. |
| Edmund Burke |
| Thoughts on the Cause of the Present Discontent Vol. i. p.526. |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
**********************************************************************
MENTAL ILLNESS HITS the MONEY TRAIL
Joe Sharkey, New York Times, 6/6/99
In this article Joe Sharkey informs readers that approximately "$80
billion (10% of total annual health care spending) now goes to
mental-health treatment, according to Center for Mental Health
Services, a Federal research agency. About a third of that amount,
mostly from Medicaid, Medicare and other Government sources, pays for
clinical treatment of the severely mentally ill, whose illnesses often
render them poor and unemployed."
Sharkey notes that "Few seriously question the need for clinical
treatment for those with the worst mental illnesses." The debate is
"focused on those whose treatment consumes the remaining two-thirds of
the $80 billion total, most of which is paid by employer provided
health insurance. This segment includes the 'worried well' as they are
called by those who question the employment of psychiatric therapy to
address many less severe emotional distress and addiction problems.
According to Sharkey, "For the past 25 years, most of the
increases in mental health spending have gone to this group of
patients, who are the easiest and most profitable to treat."
+----------------------------------------------+
| "Any attack on intellectual liberty, and on |
| the concept of objective truth, threatens in |
| the long run every department of thought" |
| George Orwell |
| "The Prevention of Literature" |
+----------------------------------------------+
**********************************************************************
M A K E A D I F F E R E N C E
CALIFORNIA - A member writes: "Fight FMS by Writing Online Book
Reviews! The books like The Courage to Heal that helped spread the
FMS epidemic continue to be sold and to mislead unwary readers. You
can warn book purchasers about the danger by writing online book
reviews at Amazon.com and BarnesAndNoble.com. You can also promote
responsible books by writing positive reviews.
At http://www.stopbadtherapy.com/main/review.html, you'll find
links to the "submit a review" pages at each site for forty-five
books. It's easy -- Just click the link and type! Reviews may be
submitted with or without a name and with or without an email address.
ILLINOIS-WISCONSIN - Members of the Illinois-Wisconsin False Memory
Society are in the process of a "Public Library Project" to get books
that present an accurate picture of the FMS problem into libraries.
With the help of a librarian, they have put together a set of reviews
and recommendations for approaching libraries. The group would be
happy to see other states use their materials. If you would like a
free copy of these materials, contact the Illinois-Wisconsin FMS
Society at 877-985-7693 or www.IllinoisFMS.org.
ILLINOIS - A member compiled a list of things that families can do. He
writes: "When you lose an adult child to FMS, most people say there's
nothing you can do. I disagree. There are many things a parent can
do. For a four-page list of them mailed to you free, write to David P.
Hunter, 2511 Bedford Drive, Champaign, IL 61820 or email
d9it@aol.com."
MICHIGAN - A member made a video for public access cable. He writes:
"Anyone who visits the coast sees the tall piers which stretch out
from the beach into the ocean. Imagine being pushed without warning
from that pier into the water below. False accusations of sexual abuse
can be like a surprise push from a pier. From safety, we fall into
uncertainty. From peace we fall into turmoil. From the known, we fall
into the unknown.
"Attorney Martha Churchill, mental health professional Sharla
Kimmel, and Chaplain (Rev) Clarence Reyneveld deal with the experience
of false accusations from first hand knowledge. They have created an
80 minute video tape that answers questions that arise after "the push
from the pier."
"The video is entitled 'Contemporary Issues #1 -- The False
Memory Syndrome.' The video is appropriate for viewing by all
people. It has been formatted for use on public access cable channel.
Public access cable stations will air programs for free. It's a great
way to educate people about the problem of FMS. To order this video
write to:
A&B Color Video, 7783 Lilac Drive, Jenison, MI 49428
Cost includes shipping and handling
$14.95 for American orders, $19.95 for Canadian orders"
**********************************************************************
* N O T I C E S *
**********************************************************************
* *
* www.MEMORY AND REALITY.org *
* or *
* http://www.FMSFonline.org *
* *
* Check out the new sections on hypnosis available late January 2000 *
* *
**********************************************************************
* WEB SITES OF INTEREST *
* *
* www.StopBadTherapy.com *
* Contains phone numbers of professional regulatory boards *
* in all 50 states *
* *
* www.IllinoisFMS.org *
* Illinois-Wisconsin FMS Society *
* *
* www.forensicptsd.com *
* This site is run by Gerald Rosen, University of Washington *
* *
* www.afma.asn.au *
* Australian False Memory Association. *
* *
* www.bfms.org.uk *
* British False Memory Society *
* *
* www.geocities.com/retractors *
* This site is run by Laura Pasley (retractor) *
* *
* www.geocities.com/~therapyletters/index.htm *
* This site is run by Deb David (retractor) *
* *
* www.chordate.com/therapys_delusions/index.html *
* Website about book Therapy's Delusions. *
**********************************************************************
* *
* If you are having trouble locating books about the recovered *
* memory phenomenon because bookstores tell you they are out of *
* print, try the *
* Recovered Memory Bookstore *
* www.angelfire.com/tx/recoveredmemories/ *
* *
**********************************************************************
* ESTATE PLANNING *
* If you have questions about how to *
* include the FMSF in your estate planning, *
* contact Charles Caviness 800-289-9060. *
* (Available 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM Pacific time.) *
**********************************************************************
* *
* AVAILABLE NOW *
* *
* Recovered Memories of Child Sexual Abuse: *
* Psychological, Social and Legal Perspectives *
* on a Contemporary Mental Health Controversy *
* *
* Publisher: Charles C. Thomas *
* Hardback $44.95 *
* Paperback $31.95 *
* ISBN 0398070059 *
* *
* Foundation? What were they accused of and by whom? Who has been *
* sued? And what was the outcome? *
* *
* This book contains articles on memory, clinical treatment and *
* social context, based on talks presented at a conference in the *
* fall of 1997. Authors are: Sheila Taub, J.D., Arthur Taub, M.D., *
* Ph.D., Mark Pendergrast, M.L.S., David K. Sakheim, Ph.D., Jerome *
* L. Singer, Ph.D., Jonathan Schooler, Ph.D., D. Stephen Lindsay, *
* Ph.D., Pamela Freyd, Ph.D., Anita Lipton, B.S. *
* *
* Of particular interest to FMSF members may be chapters on the *
* "History of the FMS Foundation" and on the FMS legal history, *
* "Rise and Fall of a Social Problem." *
* *
**********************************************************************
* FREE *
* "Recovered Memories: Are They Reliable?" *
* Call or write the FMS Foundation for pamphlets. Be sure to *
* include your address and the number of pamphlets you need. *
**********************************************************************
* *
* DID YOU MOVE? *
* Do you have a new area code? Remember to inform the *
* FMSF Business Office *
* *
**********************************************************************
_____________________________________
F M S B U L L E T I N B O A R D
Key: (MO)-monthly; (bi-MO)-bi-monthly; (*)-see Notices above
Contacts & Meetings:
_____________
UNITED STATES
ALASKA
Kathleen 907-337-7821
ARIZONA
Barbara 602-924-0975; 602-854-0404 (fax)
ARKANSAS
Little Rock
Al & Lela 870-363-4368
CALIFORNIA
Sacramento
Joanne & Gerald 916-933-3655
San Francisco & North Bay - (bi-MO)
Gideon 415-389-0254 or
Charles 415-984-6626 (am); 415-435-9618 (pm)
East Bay Area - (bi-MO)
Judy 925-376-8221
South Bay Area
Jack & Pat 831-425-1430
Central Coast
Carole 805-967-8058
Central Orange County - 1st Fri. (MO) @ 7pm
Chris & Alan 714-733-2925
Orange County
Jerry and Eileen 909-659-9636
Covina Area - 1st Mon. (MO) @7:30pm
Floyd & Libby 626-330-2321
San Diego Area
Dee 619-941-4816
COLORADO
Colorado Springs
Doris 719-488-9738
CONNECTICUT
S. New England
Earl 203-329-8365 or
Paul 203-458-9173
FLORIDA
Dade/Broward
Madeline 954-966-4FMS
Boca/Delray - 2nd & 4th Thurs (MO) @1pm
Helen 561-498-8684
Central Florida - Please call for mtg. time
John & Nancy 352-750-5446
Tampa Bay Area
Bob & Janet 813-856-7091
GEORGIA
Atlanta
Wallie & Jill 770-971-8917
HAWAII
Carolyn 808-261-5716
ILLINOIS
Chicago & Suburbs - 1st Sun. (MO)
Eileen 847-985-7693 or
Liz & Roger 847-827-1056
Peoria
Bryant & Lynn 309-674-2767
INDIANA
Indiana Assn. for Responsible Mental Health Practices
Nickie 317-471-0922; fax 317-334-9839
Pat 219-489-9987
IOWA
Des Moines - 2nd Sat. (MO) @11:30 am Lunch
Betty & Gayle 515-270-6976
KANSAS
Wichita - Metting as called
Pat 785-738-4840
KENTUCKY
Louisville- Last Sun. (MO) @ 2pm
Bob 502-367-1838
MAINE
Bangor
Irvine & Arlene 207-942-8473
Rumbold
Carolyn 207-942-8473
Protland - 4th Sun.(MO)
Wally & Boby 207-878-9812
MASSACHUSETTS/NEW ENGLAND
Andover - 2nd Sun. (MO) @ 1pm
Frank 978-263-9795
MICHIGAN
Grand Rapids Area-Jenison - 1st Mon. (MO)
Bill & Marge 616-383-0382
Greater Detroit Area
Nancy 248-642-8077
Ann Arbor
Martha 734-439-8119
MINNESOTA
Terry & Collette 507-642-3630
Dan & Joan 651-631-2247
MISSOURI
Kansas City - Meeting as called
Pat 785-738-4840
St. Louis Area - call for meeting time
Karen 314-432-8789
Springfield - 4th Sat. (MO) @12:30pm
Tom 417-883-8617
Roxie 417-781-2058
MONTANA
Lee & Avone 406-443-3189
NEW JERSEY
Southern
Sally 609-927-5343
Northern
Nancy 973-729-1433
NEW MEXICO
Albuquerque -2nd Sat. (bi-MO) @1 pm
Southwest Room - Presbyterian Hospital
Maggie 505-662-7521 (after 6:30 pm)
Sy 505-758-0726
NEW YORK
Westchester, Rockland, etc.
Barbara 914-761-3627
Upstate/Albany Area
Elaine 518-399-5749
NORTH CAROLINA
Susan 704-538-7202
OHIO
Cincinnati
Bob 513-541-0816 or 513-541-5272
Cleveland
Bob & Carole 440-356-4544
OKLAHOMA
Oklahoma City
Dee 405-942-0531
HJ 405-755-3816
Tulsa
Jim 918-297-7719
OREGON
Portland
John 503-297-7719
PENNSYLVANIA
Harrisburg
Paul & Betty 717-691-7660
Pittsburgh
Rick & Renee 412-563-5509
Montrose
John 717-278-2040
Wayne (includes S. NJ) - 2nd Sat. (MO)
Jim & Jo 610-783-0396
TENNESSEE
Nashville - Wed. (MO) @1pm
Kate 615-665-1160
TEXAS
Houston
Jo or Beverly 713-464-8970
El Paso
Mary Lou 915-591-0271
UTAH
Keith 801-467-0669
VERMONT (bi-MO)
Judith 802-229-5154
VIRGINIA
Sue 703-273-2343
WASHINGTON
See Oregon
WISCONSIN
Katie & Leo 414-476-0285 or
Susanne & John 608-427-3686
_____________
INTERNATIONAL
BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA
Vancouver & Mainland
Ruth 604-925-1539
Victoria & Vancouver Island - 3rd Tues. (MO) @7:30pm
John 250-721-3219
ONTARIO, CANADA
London -2nd Sun (bi-MO)
Adriaan 519-471-6338
Ottawa
Eileen 613-836-3294
Toronto /N. York
Pat 416-444-9078
Warkworth
Ethel 705-924-2546
Burlington
Ken & Marina 905-637-6030
Penetanguishene
Paula 705-549-1423
QUEBEC, CANADA
Montreal
Alain 514-335-0863
St. Andre Est.
Mavis 450-537-8187
AUSTRALIA
Mike 0754-842-348
fax 0754-841-051
ISRAEL
FMS ASSOCIATION fax-(972) 2-625-9282
NETHERLANDS
Task Force FMS of Werkgroep Fictieve
Herinneringen
Anna (31) 20-693-5692
NEW ZEALAND
Colleen (09) 416-7443
SWEDEN
Ake Moller FAX (48) 431-217-90
UNITED KINGDOM
The British False Memory Society
Madeline (44) 1225 868-682
______________________________________________________
Deadline for the March/April Newsletter is February 15
Meeting notices MUST be in writing
and should be sent no later than TWO MONTHS PRIOR TO MEETING.
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Do you have access to e-mail? Send a message to |
| pjf@cis.upenn.edu |
| if you wish to receive electronic versions of this newsletter and |
| notices of radio and television broadcasts about FMS. All the |
| message need say is "add to the FMS-News". It would be useful, but |
| not necessary, if you add your full name (all addresses and names |
| will remain strictly confidential). |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
**********************************************************************
The False Memory Syndrome Foundation is a qualified 501(c)3 corpora-
tion with its principal offices in Philadelphia and governed by its
Board of Directors. While it encourages participation by its members
in its activities, it must be understood that the Foundation has no
affiliates and that no other organization or person is authorized to
speak for the Foundation without the prior written approval of the Ex-
ecutive Director. All membership dues and contributions to the Founda-
tion must be forwarded to the Foundation for its disposition.
**********************************************************************
Pamela Freyd, Ph.D., Executive Director
FMSF Scientific and Professional Advisory Board, January 1, 2000
AARON T. BECK, M.D., D.M.S., University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia,
PA; TERENCE W. CAMPBELL, Ph.D., Clinical and Forensic Psychology,
Sterling Heights, MI; ROSALIND CARTWRIGHT, Ph.D., Rush Presbyterian
St. Lukes Medical Center, Chicago, IL; JEAN CHAPMAN, Ph.D., University
of Wisconsin, Madison, WI; LOREN CHAPMAN, Ph.D., University of Wiscon-
sin, Madison, WI; FREDERICK C. CREWS, Ph.D., University of California,
Berkeley, CA; ROBYN M. DAWES, Ph.D., Carnegie Mellon University,
Pittsburgh, PA; DAVID F. DINGES, Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania,
Philadelphia, PA; HENRY C. ELLIS, Ph.D., University of New Mexico,
Albuquerque, NM; FRED H. FRANKEL, MBChB, DPM, Harvard University Medi-
cal School, Boston MA; GEORGE K. GANAWAY, M.D., Emory University of
Medicine, Atlanta, GA; MARTIN GARDNER, Author, Hendersonville, NC
ROCHEL GELMAN, Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles, CA; HENRY
GLEITMAN, Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA; LILA
GLEITMAN, Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA; RICHARD
GREEN, M.D., J.D., Charing Cross Hospital, London; DAVID A. HALPERIN,
M.D., Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY; ERNEST HILGARD,
Ph.D., Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA; JOHN HOCHMAN, M.D., UCLA
Medical School, Los Angeles, CA; DAVID S. HOLMES, Ph.D., University of
Kansas, Lawrence, KS; PHILIP S. HOLZMAN, Ph.D., Harvard University,
Cambridge, MA; ROBERT A. KARLIN, Ph.D., Rutgers University, New
Brunswick, NJ; HAROLD LIEF, M.D., University of Pennsylvania, Phila-
delphia, PA; ELIZABETH LOFTUS, Ph.D., University of Washington, Sea-
tle, WA; SUSAN L. McELROY, M.D., University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati,
OH; PAUL McHUGH, M.D., Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD; HAROLD
MERSKEY, D.M., University of Western Ontario, London, Canada; SPENCER
HARRIS MORFIT, Author, Westford, MA; ULRIC NEISSER, Ph.D., Cornell
University, Ithaca, N.Y.; RICHARD OFSHE, Ph.D., University of Califor-
nia, Berkeley, CA; EMILY CAROTA ORNE, B.A., University of Pennsylvan-
ia, Philadelphia, PA; MARTIN ORNE, M.D., Ph.D., University of Pennsyl-
vania, Philadelphia, PA; LOREN PANKRATZ, Ph.D., Oregon Health Sciences
University, Portland, OR; CAMPBELL PERRY, Ph.D., Concordia University,
Montreal, Canada; MICHAEL A. PERSINGER, Ph.D., Laurentian University,
Ontario, Canada; AUGUST T. PIPER, Jr., M.D., Seattle, WA; HARRISON
POPE, Jr., M.D., Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA; JAMES RANDI,
Author and Magician, Plantation, FL; HENRY L. ROEDIGER, III, Ph.D.,
Washington University, St. Louis, MO; CAROLYN SAARI, Ph.D., Loyola
University, Chicago, IL; THEODORE SARBIN, Ph.D., University of Cali-
fornia, Santa Cruz, CA; THOMAS A. SEBEOK, Ph.D., Indiana University,
Bloomington, IN; MICHAEL A. SIMPSON, M.R.C.S., L.R.C.P., M.R.C,
D.O.M., Center for Psychosocial & Traumatic Stress, Pretoria, South
Africa; MARGARET SINGER, Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley,
CA; RALPH SLOVENKO, J.D., Ph.D., Wayne State University Law School,
Detroit, MI; DONALD SPENCE, Ph.D., Robert Wood Johnson Medical Center,
Piscataway, NJ; JEFFREY VICTOR, Ph.D., Jamestown Community College,
Jamestown, NY; HOLLIDA WAKEFIELD, M.A., Institute of Psychological
Therapies, Northfield, MN; CHARLES A. WEAVER, III, Ph.D. Baylor Uni-
versity, Waco, TX.
**********************************************************************
Y E A R L Y FMSF M E M B E R S H I P I N F O R M A T I O N
Professional - Includes Newsletter $125_______
Family - Includes Newsletter $100_______
Additional Contribution:_____________
PLEASE FILL OUT ALL INFORMATION
___VISA: Card: #________-________-________-________ exp. date ___/___
___MASTER CARD: #________-________-________-________ exp. date ___/___
___Check or Money Order: Payable to FMS FOUNDATION IN U.S. DOLLARS.
______________________________________________________________________
Signature
______________________________________________________________________
Name (PLEASE PRINT)
______________________________________________________________________
Street Address or P.O.Box
______________________________________________________________________
City State Zip+4
(_____)_____________________________(_____)___________________________
Telephone FAX
* MAIL the completed form with payment to:
FMS Foundation, 3401 Market ST, Suite 130, Philadelphia, PA 19104-3315
This address and the phone numbers have changed as of July 15, 2000
* FAX your order to (215) 287-1917. Fax orders cannot be processed
without credit card information.
**********************************************************************
MEMORY AND REALITY: RETURN TO REASON
Family Conference sponsored by the FMS Foundation
Saturday April 8 and Sunday morning April 9, 2000
Crowne Plaza Hotel
White Plains, New York
PRELIMINARY PROGRAM NOTES
GENERAL
Registration: 8:15 A.M. Saturday
Welcome: 9:00 A.M.
Celebration Dinner: 7:00 P.M.
Sunday Brunch: 8:30 A.M.
Closing: 1:00 P.M. Sunday
PANELS
Retractors: From False Memories to Reality
Families: Many Paths Taken
Siblings: Caught in the Middle
Authors: Telling the FMSF Story
Attorneys: From Spectral Evidence to Science and Reason
ROUNDTABLES
(Always a highlight of past conferences)
SPEAKERS INCLUDE:
Elizabeth Loftus, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology,
University of Washington
Paul McHugh, M.D., Phipps Professor of Psychiatry,
Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions
Christopher Barden, Ph.D., J.D.
Terence Campbell, Ph.D.
Martha Churchill, J.D.
Pamela Freyd, Ph.D.
David Halperin, M.D.
Harold Lief, M.D.
August Piper, M.D.
Susan Robbins, D.S.W.
Ralph Slovenko, Ph.D., J.D.
and many more.
Programs will be mailed to all FMSF members and
Newsletter subscribers.
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| Dinner Celebration Planned for FMSF Conference |
| |
| An evening of appreciation and celebration is scheduled for |
| Saturday April 8, 2000 at the family conference MEMORY AND |
| REALITY: RETURN TO REASON. How does one begin to say "thank you" |
| to all the people -- professional therapists, scientists, |
| attorneys, teachers, authors, families, and lay people -- who have |
| made important contributions. We will introduce members of the |
| Professional and Scientific Board, authors, teachers, volunteer |
| state contacts/group leaders among many others. Lee Arning will be |
| our toastmaster for this special event and Pamela Freyd will be |
| the featured speaker. Please join us for the dinner. |
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**********************************************************************
FALSE MEMORY SYNDROME: NEW PERSPECTIVES
Friday April 7, 2000
Professional conference sponsored by New York Medical College
With funding from
Eleanor and Elliot Goldstein
and with the support of the FMS Foundation.
Westchester Country Club
99 Biltmore Ave, Rye, NY 10580 Phone: 914-967-6000
FOR PROGRAM/REGISTRATION INFORMATION CONTACT:
(When available, registration will be mailed to FMSF members)
Ruth G. Shaker, C.S.W.
New York Medical College
Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Science
Behavioral Health Center
Valhalla, New York 10595
Phone: 914-493-7120 Fax: 914-493-1015
SPEAKERS INCLUDE:
Joseph English, M.D.
David Halperin, M.D.
Wendy Kaminer, Ph.D.
Paul Kymissis, M.D.
Elizabeth Loftus, Ph.D.
Paul McHugh, M.D.
Ralph Slovenko, J.D., Ph.D.
The cost for this program will be $75.00 and
includes breakfast and lunch.
CONTINUING MEDICAL EDUCATION CREDITS AVAILABLE.
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| HOTEL INFORMATION: |
| |
| A special conference room rate for the FMSF Family Conference of |
| $110 plus tax (Single or Double) per night at the Crowne Plaza |
| will be in effect only until 4 weeks before conference -- March 6, |
| 2000. To make your reservation call 1-800-PLAINS2 or 914-682-0050. |
| |
| The Crowne Plaza is about 30 miles north of Manhattan. The |
| Westchester County airport is approximately 10 minutes away from |
| White Plains and La Guardia airport is approximately 40 minutes |
| away. White Plains can be reached by train and is easily |
| accessible by automobile. It is close to the New York end of the |
| Tappan Zee Bridge. The hotel provides complimentary shuttle |
| service from Westchester County airport and White Plains Metro |
| North. Shuttle service to the New York Medical College meeting. |
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**********************************************************************
FMSF FAMILY CONFERENCE
MEMORY AND REALITY: RETURN TO REASON
Saturday April 8 and Sunday April 9, 2000
Crowne Plaza Hotel White Plains, New York
NAME__________________________________________________________________
Please print
ADDRESS_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
PHONE # _________________ FAX #_________________ EMAIL_________________
REGISTRATION
EARLY REGISTRATION DISCOUNT UNTIL MARCH 15, 2000.
Member
Early Regular
1st Family Registrant $ 90 $ 115
2nd Family registrant $ 50 $ 75
Each additional Fam. Regist #__times $ 30 #__times $ 55
Retractor $ 30 $ 55
Student (Copy of ID required) $ 30 $ 55
* Dinner #__times $ 60 #__times $ 60
NON-Member
Early Regular
1st Family Registrant $150 $ 175
2nd Family registrant $ 75 $ 100
Each additional Fam. Regist #__times $ 40 #__times $ 65
Retractor $ 30 $ 55
Student (Copy of ID required) $ 30 $ 55
* Dinner #__times $ 65 #__times $ 65
TOTAL ENCLOSED (US $ Please) $ ____________________
REGULAR PRICE IN EFFECT AFTER MARCH 13, 2000
Please Print the Name of Each Registrant
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
CREDIT CARD (PLEASE CIRCLE): VISA MasterCard DISCOVER
NAME ON CARD (print) _________________________
CARD # _________________________
Expiration Date _________ Signature ________________________
AMOUNT _______
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| *A dinner celebration is planned for Saturday night, with Pamela |
| Freyd speaking. RESERVATIONS ARE REQUIRED. The cost of dinner at |
| the hotel is $60.00 per person ($65 per person for non-members). |
| If the cost of the dinner for a member is prohibitive, we ask that |
| you pay what you would expect to spend for a very special Saturday |
| evening dinner. |
| |
| CUT-OFF date for dinner reservations is APRIL 1, 2000. |
| You may pay for the dinner separately |
| anytime before the cut-off date. |
| Circle A or B |
| A. I will be attending the dinner._____ reservations |
| B. I will not be attending the dinner. |
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MAIL Registration and Dinner Reservation to FMS Foundation,
3401 Market St. Suite 130, Philadelphia, PA 19104.
This address and the phone numbers have changed as of July 15, 2000