Re: Christopher Hansard
Posted by: Dike ()
Date: August 31, 2011 06:42PM

Dear Healing Circle and others,

The solicitor is one Witness Against Abuse put me in touch with. This firm has been involved in similar cases against other rogue practitioners.

Regarding defamation, I do not know the details of Christopher Hansard's training but his actions seem to suggest that if it ever occurred the teacher wasted his time.

More importantly, giving a witness statement to a solicitor cannot be classed as defamation, harrassment or stalking.

If anybody else reading this suffered abuse while paying for healing with Christopher Hansard, please contact Witness Against Abuse, anonymously if you prefer, and get the details of the solicitor I was put in touch with. If you are then able to give a statement to the solicitor, even anonymously, we will be able to paint a picture and show a pattern of abuse over many years.

Winess Against Abuse are an organisation dedicated to assisting clients who have been abused by therapists, and the solicitor they recommend has worked with others who have sought legal redress. You will not need to be interviewed by the police.

It is very difficult to pick up the phone and do this. Remember, you can do it anonymously. You will also find you are not alone. Others have had similar experiences and the staff at Witness Against Abuse will confirm this for you; they have a file on Christopher Hansard. It will be easiest if you ask to speak to someone in the loop about him.

You may be confused as to whether abuse actually occurred. Any "inappropriate sexual relationship" between a therapist and client is classed as abuse. "Inappropriate activity" can range from inappropriately focusing on/talking about sex or inappropriate touching during sessions to a full blown physical relationship with a client or ex-client. This may be combined with other "inappropriate activity" such as threatening behaviour. Witness Against Abuse will be able to confirm whether or not abuse took place and whether it was low, medium or high level.

If you suspect abuse happened to you, please talk to Witness Against Abuse in the first instance to establish if it did, and if it did then please contact the solicitor they suggest.

Even those who are not in the UK can become involved.

Together we can get closure, justice and the cycle of abuse, for both the abuser and the abused, from which we all have something to learn, will be broken. If you can find the courage and strength to act, this is a very effective way to regain your power and move on.

Oh, and we can also get refunds.

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Re: Christopher Hansard
Posted by: healingcircle ()
Date: September 01, 2011 01:24AM

Dear Dike,

Thank you for own courage, for answering many questions and addressing many fears.
I have been given the contact details of the solicitor and will also be in touch shortly with someone whose character statement I know will prove invaluable, alongside my own, yours and others.

Unfortunately Christopher Hansard blurs the lines between client and therapist all too well and he has been doing it a very long time. I want to reiterate what was stated above to current and past patients alike. In some instances because he was crossing the line, he would not charge at all. Whether or not there was a monetary exchange, a trade, in some cases he invited patients to learn from him, or even if you as a patient found your own sympathies drawn on and you found yourself in the position of therapist... if you went for counsel and found anything other than, I encourage you to speak to Witness. Though painfully aware it's an odd tactic, I believe in his own mind it's a form of "consent" from his patient if he gets them to "treat" him, or if he does not take payment. The threatening behaviour mixed with sexual innuendos and inappropriate touching is something all too familiar. The threatening behaviour usually follows direct questions of inappropriateness and unprofessionalism.

Any "inappropriate activity", anything YOU deem inappropriate, are for any reason unsure about, do not question or doubt your feelings or gut instincts - please speak with Witness Against Abuse as Dike and many others have done, and thank you.

Quote
Dike
You may be confused as to whether abuse actually occurred. Any "inappropriate sexual relationship" between a therapist and client is classed as abuse. "Inappropriate activity" can range from inappropriately focusing on/talking about sex or inappropriate touching during sessions to a full blown physical relationship with a client or ex-client. This may be combined with other "inappropriate activity" such as threatening behaviour. Witness Against Abuse will be able to confirm whether or not abuse took place and whether it was low, medium or high level.

If you suspect abuse happened to you, please talk to Witness Against Abuse in the first instance to establish if it did, and if it did then please contact the solicitor they suggest.

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Re: Christopher Hansard
Posted by: corboy ()
Date: September 01, 2011 01:59AM

Here is a classic way to blur the boundary between therapist and client:

* Deny that there is, in reality an actual power imbalance

* Deny that clients are actually vulnerable in relation to healers, first by having a condition that leads the person to seek a healer and two, the vulnerability that arises when one meets a healer who promises assistiance.

* make it seem that boundaries betweeen clients and healers are oppressive, that clients and healers are actually supposed to be friends, or that it is permissible, even desirable to socialize outside of the surgery or consulting office.

*If anyone tries to tell clients they are vulnerable due to the psychological and social dynamics of the client/healer dyad, such warnings are dismissed as 'infantalizing the client, 'insulting the clients adult autonomy' and that whoever tries to offer these warnings is the one who is oppressing the client, and that the healer who violates boundaries is the one who actually respects and protects the clients adult autonomy and offers true 'liberation'.

Persons who dislike accountability, boundaries and objective guidelines are the ones who distort the healer role by invoking such arguments.

And...persons whose trust and boundaries have been violated by pseudo healers will have a burden of unpleasant emotion. Their bodies protest, their minds suppress.

So they may invoke these same arguments as a way to suppress doubts and misgivings they fear to face.

Anyone trying to tell a truthful report about boundary violations will also be shamed and shouted down, because this kind of truth telling upsets others who have been misused and cant yet bear to face how they actually feel about what has been done to them.

To recognize the reality clients vulnerability means admitting responsiblity for ones own behavior and power as a healer--and thats exactly why abusive people do everything possible to shout down any mention of vulnerability and do all they can to shift blame and responsiblity onto clients the instant anything goes wrong.

Final note: Here is a thought experiment. This is to help readers get a safe, small taste of how it feels to discover ones trust has been violated.

You are going to use your imagination.

Imagine this:

You are a man. For years you have had problems with your prostate or your piles. Youve had to go to the surgery and your physican, over the years has examined your testicles, prostate, and when necessary, your piles.

Suppose you're a woman. And you've been going for years to to the same physician for your pelvic examinations.

You read the newspaper and learn that Dr X, the one whom youve trusted for years to examine your private parts, has been arrested.

This person turns out not to be a physician at all. No medical degree from anywhere. No record of medical training.

Imagine how you'd FEEL.

You'd want that feeling to go away.

You'd want to prove that the news has to be wrong.

Anything to keep from feeling that way.

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Re: Christopher Hansard
Posted by: Dike ()
Date: September 01, 2011 03:22AM

I am glad others are visiting this site, and that others are talking with the solicitor.

Thank you Healing Circle.

Another problem is, you might believe that what happened to you is "not serious enough" to report. If it "wasn't rape" for example. Please don't think that way. It is only by collecting numerous statements that a pattern of behaviour can be established. This then aids the credibility of those alleging more serious abuse.

So if anything inappropriate at all occurred during your sessions, please get in touch with Witness Against Abuse, discuss your situation, and if advised to, contact the solicitor they recommend.

You can disclose as much or as little as you wish. You can retract your statement at any time. You do not need to go to Court. You do not need to be interviewed by the Police. You will be supported by Witness, by the solicitor and by me and others like me, others like you.

Together we can get closure, justice and the cycle of abuse, for both the abuser and the abused, from which we all have something to learn, will be broken. If you can find the courage and strength to act, this is a very effective way to regain your power and move on.

Oh, and we can also get refunds.

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Re: Christopher Hansard
Posted by: Dike ()
Date: September 02, 2011 05:07PM

Lack of fees for some sessions

The use of gifts, whether it be money, mobile phones, sweets or "healing" is a classic technique used in grooming.

[www.bbc.co.uk]

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Re: Christopher Hansard
Posted by: corboy ()
Date: September 02, 2011 10:37PM

In an article by Temerlin on boundary problems in psychotherapy cults, he found in interviews that very often there was no clear cut "clean" fee-for-service arrangement.

Money is like a radio active tracer than can be used to trace whether boundaries are being maintained or compromised in what are supposed to be fee for service fiduciary relationships.

Examples of breakdowns in the fee structure:

*Gifting sessions. This creates a sense of obligation in the client and can make it difficult for the client to refuse unwelcome overtures from the malfeasant therapist later on.

*Doing jobs for the therapist in exchange for sessions. Too often this means socializing with the therapist outside of sessions. It also means creating a potential conflict of interest in the form of a dual relationship--you cannot be someones therapy client and their employee or intern at the same time.

_psychotherapycults_abs.htm+temerlin+fee+for+service&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&strip=1

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Temerlin and Temerlin. In 1982 Temerlin and Temerlin reported on

five bizarre groups of mental health professionals which were formed when five teachers of psychotherapy consistently ignored ethical prohibitions against multiple relationships with clients. Patients became their therapists' friends, lovers, relatives, employees, colleagues, and students. Simultaneously they became "siblings" who bonded together to admire and support their common therapist. (p. 131)

The improprieties of role violations by the therapists were compounded by their use of indirect, deceptive, and coercive influence techniques which led patients to comply with therapists' wishes.

These therapists violated ethical prohibitions against forming exploitative relationships with clients, misusing therapeutic techniques, and manipulating therapeutic relationships to the advantage of the therapists.

These cults were formed when professionals deviated from an ethically based, fee-for-service, confidential relationship with clients and brought clients together to form cohesive, psychologically incestuous groups. Leaders were idolized rather than transferences studied and understood. Corboy italics

Instead of personal autonomy being encouraged, patients were led into submissive, obedient, dependent relationships with their therapists. Their thinking eventually resembled what Hoffer saw in the "True Believers" (1951) and what Lifton (1961) termed "totalistic." That is, the clients were induced to accept uncritically their therapists' theories, to grow paranoid toward the outside world, to limit relationships and thinking to the elite world created by the cult-producing therapists, and to selflessly devote themselves to their therapists. The groups studied by Temerlin and Temerlin varied in size from 15 to 75 members and existed from 10 to 15 years.

This article by Margarent Singer, can be read in its entirety here

[webcache.googleusercontent.com]

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Re: Christopher Hansard
Posted by: healingcircle ()
Date: September 10, 2011 05:08AM

Dear Dike and others,

For the first time ever, Christopher Hansard is part of a regulating body, several in fact.

Though it does not mean much, they are supposed to uphold certain standards and regulations.
First and foremost in many of those mentioned below are clear patient/ practitoner boundaries.

For those concerned, sending a form letter of complaint to all the governing bodies listed below is also an option.
This action may only be a temporary solution however as it may only cause a pause in practice while he simply regroups and gains credentials from another weekend workshop.

Although he has practiced previously for 20 years completely unregulated and unchecked it may prevent someone else from falling victim. I sincerely wish there was more information like this made public before my introduction.

I wanted to offer it as an option as even this simple act alone may help others to build a case and to be honest writing a letter, or just telling your story may offer some reprieve.

I have included a direct email link to each and verified that Christopher Hansard is a member. Not all allow access to members, therefore as a client one can not even confirm that he is a member.

Furthermore, most of these governing bodies are offering help to victims of psychological and emotional trauma and are the very places many of Christopher Hansard's own victims would seek for help the trauma inflicted on them.

Christopher Hansard is a member of the following organisations appropriate to his areas of work:

United Kingdom Association of Humanistic Psychology Practitioners;
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UKAHPP
4.4 UKAHPP Members avoid exploiting the trust and dependency of clients, students, supervisees, research participants and subordinates. In particular:
4.4.1 Every effort is made to avoid dual relationships that could impair professional judgment, increase the risk of exploitation or otherwise confuse the existing relationship.
4.4.2 Sexual intimacies with clients or past clients are unethical.
4.4.3 Non-professional relationships with former clients are avoided whenever possible.
4.4.4 Potential conflicts of interest that might arise are made clear to all parties concerned.
4.4.5 Where there is any risk of exploitation or other harmful dual relationship either during or after a working relationship, UKAHPP Members demonstrate their professional commitment to the welfare of their clients by invoking the UKAHPP Ethical Review Procedure before taking any possibly unethical action.
*This is the main regulating body allowing him to practice and receive insurance converage. Without insurance coverage, Christopher Hansard can not legally practice.

International Association of Cognitive Psychotherapy - You can email them at IACPMembership@yahoo.com
"proof of moral turpitude, or conviction for criminal or other serious legal offenses."

United Kingdom Psychological Trauma Society; You can email them directly at UKPTSinfo@googlemail.com


European Society for Traumatic Stress Studies;
*not a regulation body - can not verify membership but anyone can join after basic training.

International Society of Traumatic Stress Studies;
*not a regulation body - can not verify membership but anyone can join after basic training

Association of Traumatic Stress Specialists;
*not a regulation body - can not verify membership but anyone can join after basic training

Society for Clinical Mindfulness and Meditation;
*not a regulation body - can not verify membership but anyone can join after basic training

Association for Contextual Behavioural Science;
*not a regulation body and not offering credentials - can not verify membership but anyone can join after basic training
International Society for Mental Health Online;
*not a regulation body and not offering credentials - can not verify membership but anyone can join after basic training. Basic Networking.

International Association of Coaching; ** They have a referral service so it may be advisable to contact them.

International Association of Facilitators;

Association for Death Education and Counselling;

Royal Institution of Great Britain;
Fellow of Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures & Commerce (RSA)

Royal Society of Medicine; ** They have a referral service so it may be advisable to contact them.

Fellow of Royal Society for Tropical Medicine and Hygiene;

British Holistic Medical Association, ** They have a referral service so it may be advisable to contact them.


International Association for the Study of Pain
The Worshipful Society of Apothecaries of London (Faculty of Crisis and Catastrophe Medicine)


Most if not all of these, save the top (United Kingdom Association of Humanistic Psychology Practitioners), are NOT regulating bodies, nor do they offer any form of credential to Christopher Hansards practice.
Sadly they do appear to offer a fascade of credibility to those searching for help who will either be met with an unfortunate referral or find his services online offering this long list as a means of adding credibility. It's not

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Re: Christopher Hansard
Posted by: Dike ()
Date: September 11, 2011 05:43PM

To report Christopher Hansard to therapy regulating bodies is another option.

However, I personally would rather see him facing more serious consequences. As you point out, he is only a weekend workshop away from another "qualification".

To bring a successful court case would hit him financially and expose his rottenness to the world.

If others, a minimum of one but ideally more, come forward with similar stories of abuse I can take the lead. The timescale of the abuse is not important. All that is needed is to paint a picture so that my own story is credible.

If anyone is willing to support this action, please contact Witness Against Abuse and ask to speak to someone who knows about Christopher Hansard. They have a file. Witness Against Abuse can then put you in touch with a solicitor they have recommended for similar cases against other rogue theraists. This solicitor has my details, and can coordinate a case.

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Re: Christopher Hansard
Posted by: healingcircle ()
Date: September 14, 2011 02:08AM

You're absolutely right Dike.

That is more than likely what has happened on many occasions before this.
People were trying to do something about it on too many varying fronts.

I agree with you, and hope I have not added confusion. My apologies.
I too want to encourage others to contact Witness Against Abuse in a more united, and supported way in order to have a permanent outcome, which is no more abuse and ultimately closure.

Contact Details
49 - 51 East Road
London
N1 6AH
0203 468 4194
info@professionalboundaries.org.uk


On a side note, I have been in contact with Witness myself, and was given details of the solicitor involved, however keep getting an error message. I am looking in to this and hopefully will be in touch shortly. I just wanted to offer some explanation for the delay and will let you know once I've made contact.

Thanks corboy for the helpful information and links!

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Re: Christopher Hansard
Posted by: Dike ()
Date: September 16, 2011 12:42AM

Yes, thank you Corboy and everyone contributing to this thread. The end is in sight, and it wouldn't have been without this forum. We wouldn't have known where to go or what to do, or that there were dozens of others who could stand beside us.

I have spoken again with Witness Against Abuse, who are now called Professional Boundaries, and double checked that they are still recommending the same solicitor. They are, so it is only a matter of time before you make contact Healing Circle.

Please, please, please, is there anyone else who will also make a statement? I would particularly welcome imput from the Canadian ex, if anyone is able to get in touch with her, as there may be similarities between my experience and her's which would be damning.

Have no fear. This man is all smoke and mirrors. There is no spiritual power. Everyone who knows him, knows this.

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