Re: Wondering about my post-cult therapy
Posted by:
hellocat
()
Date: February 12, 2013 02:46AM
Figlady,
Another interesting read is "What you can change and what you can't." by Martin Seligman. Really anything by Seligman is going to be good. He is appropriately critical of much of what passes for "therapy" which has little to no evidence of working.
Another interesting read is "What you can change and what you can't." by Martin Seligman. Really anything by Seligman is going to be good. He is appropriately critical of much of what passes for "therapy" which has little to no evidence of working.
Re: Wondering about my post-cult therapy
Posted by:
corboy
()
Date: February 18, 2013 11:58PM
A Therapist is a Fiduciary
[forum.culteducation.com]
A true therapist understands and accepts that persons consulting him or her do so because they are in pain or confusion and therefore are vulnerable.
A true therapist, especially one who is licensed, understands and accepts he or she is a powerholder in the relationship and has, in legal terms, duty to protect the client from further harm and also ensure the client does not lose whatever agency and autonomy he or she already has. Confidentiality of the clients communications must be protected, as well.
New Age therapists very often refuse to face that they are powerholders and will instead foster the unrealistic belief that their clients are their friends, and ignore that their clients are vulnerable and in need of protection. This stance can initially give a suffering client a sense of false empowerment and feel quite nice, but long term, the clients actual experience of powerlessness, of victimhood of being done to is denied by such a therapist, and actual therapeutic process cannot take place.
Here are some quotations from Lilienfeld and Lohr.
What is a problem is that most of us dont know the rules by which real therapists operate.
The average American knows something about the rules of baseball, and can see when an umpire is failing to identify and call out foul balls.
But most of us dont have an equivalent awareness of the basic rules of psychotherapy and that leaves us quite vulnerable when in need of help. It was just sheer dumb luck that I stumbled in to work with a therapist who was trained on the scientist practitioner model and who did not expect me to take care of his emotions.
First, concerning Core Energetics:
Core Energetics--a discussion here
[forum.culteducation.com]
[forum.culteducation.com]
and here
[forum.culteducation.com]
[www.skepdic.com]
You are under no obligation to meet your therapist in person if you want to end the relationship. Sending a letter by registered mail is fine.
Two, you are under no obligation to respond to phone calls, emails or letters.
No is a complete sentence.
If you are up to it, you can even go whatever department in your state that oversees licenses and disciplinary hearings for therapists and research your therapist, just in case he or she has a track record. Doesnt need you have to make a complaint, but it can be very interesting just to do the research and find out if your therapist has had trouble before. And even to see if your therapist is licensed, and in good standing.
(quote)
By the way...Core Energetics is a marriage of Bioenergetics & The Pathwork- so it's a mish mash of body oriented psychotherapy and channelled teachings of the pathwork.
Lielienfeld, Lynn and Lohr have a chapter on New Age Therapies that is worth looking at.
Lielienfeld, Lynn and Lohr have an overview on problems raised by New Age Therapies. These are not tested using double blind methods, and too often are tied to the mere personal charisma of the therapist.
[books.google.com]
A licensed therapist has to minimize potential risks and maximize potential benefits.
That means a licensed therapist cannot use therapies that are not tested.
A licensed therapist offers the chance of incremental change and modest relief, but not of massive transformation.
Duties of Licensed Therapists
A licensed therapist's legal and professional duty is to provide treatment modalities that have a tested track record of being beneficial significantly greater than can be accounted for by placebo effect.
Two the benefit of the therapy must exceed current therapeutic methods.
THree the benefit must exceed the risks
Four, it has to be appropriate to the needs of the counselee.
[forum.culteducation.com]
A true therapist understands and accepts that persons consulting him or her do so because they are in pain or confusion and therefore are vulnerable.
A true therapist, especially one who is licensed, understands and accepts he or she is a powerholder in the relationship and has, in legal terms, duty to protect the client from further harm and also ensure the client does not lose whatever agency and autonomy he or she already has. Confidentiality of the clients communications must be protected, as well.
New Age therapists very often refuse to face that they are powerholders and will instead foster the unrealistic belief that their clients are their friends, and ignore that their clients are vulnerable and in need of protection. This stance can initially give a suffering client a sense of false empowerment and feel quite nice, but long term, the clients actual experience of powerlessness, of victimhood of being done to is denied by such a therapist, and actual therapeutic process cannot take place.
Here are some quotations from Lilienfeld and Lohr.
What is a problem is that most of us dont know the rules by which real therapists operate.
The average American knows something about the rules of baseball, and can see when an umpire is failing to identify and call out foul balls.
But most of us dont have an equivalent awareness of the basic rules of psychotherapy and that leaves us quite vulnerable when in need of help. It was just sheer dumb luck that I stumbled in to work with a therapist who was trained on the scientist practitioner model and who did not expect me to take care of his emotions.
First, concerning Core Energetics:
Quote
The Pathwork Teachings « Personality & SpiritualityThey were channelled in the 1950s, 60s and 70s by a woman called Eva
Pierrakos, and ... Eva's husband went on to develop the Institute of Core
Energetics.personalityspirituality.net/articles/the-pathwork-teachings/ - 89k - Cached - Similar pages
Core Energetics--a discussion here
[forum.culteducation.com]
[forum.culteducation.com]
and here
[forum.culteducation.com]
[www.skepdic.com]
You are under no obligation to meet your therapist in person if you want to end the relationship. Sending a letter by registered mail is fine.
Two, you are under no obligation to respond to phone calls, emails or letters.
No is a complete sentence.
If you are up to it, you can even go whatever department in your state that oversees licenses and disciplinary hearings for therapists and research your therapist, just in case he or she has a track record. Doesnt need you have to make a complaint, but it can be very interesting just to do the research and find out if your therapist has had trouble before. And even to see if your therapist is licensed, and in good standing.
(quote)
By the way...Core Energetics is a marriage of Bioenergetics & The Pathwork- so it's a mish mash of body oriented psychotherapy and channelled teachings of the pathwork.
Final benefit of doing this research is--by doing it one is taking an active, adult stance in relation to an authority figure. That by itself is a great thing to do. It can be anxiety provoking so make sure you have good friends for support. (I did this myself when researching my family.)Quote
'"Core" is relatively small and has mostly flown under the radar. But I think it needs to e looked at. They charge big bucks and some of the main therapists have no credentials , (other than their own CCEP- Certified Core Energetic Practitioner)and are engaging in dangerous psychological practices
Lielienfeld, Lynn and Lohr have a chapter on New Age Therapies that is worth looking at.
Lielienfeld, Lynn and Lohr have an overview on problems raised by New Age Therapies. These are not tested using double blind methods, and too often are tied to the mere personal charisma of the therapist.
[books.google.com]
A licensed therapist has to minimize potential risks and maximize potential benefits.
That means a licensed therapist cannot use therapies that are not tested.
A licensed therapist offers the chance of incremental change and modest relief, but not of massive transformation.
Duties of Licensed Therapists
A licensed therapist's legal and professional duty is to provide treatment modalities that have a tested track record of being beneficial significantly greater than can be accounted for by placebo effect.
Two the benefit of the therapy must exceed current therapeutic methods.
THree the benefit must exceed the risks
Four, it has to be appropriate to the needs of the counselee.
Re: Wondering about my post-cult therapy
Posted by:
corboy
()
Date: February 19, 2013 12:07AM
If you disagree with your therapist, dont allow the person to pathologize you.
You are a citizen, free, paying your taxes, being civil to others.
Again, you owe the person no explanation.
And...a true therapist, that is one who is mature, will never, ever pathologize someone who disagrees or decides to leave.
It is not your job and was never your job to take care of this persons feelings.
Real therapists actually make conscious arrangements to avoid clients feeling obligated to take care of the therapist. One method is for therapists to become members of 'consultancy groups' of other therapists so they can give each other emotional support and share insights on each others work.
When interviewing therapists, you are entitled to ask if the person is a member of a consultancy group. A therapist might show suprise, but only because you are alert enough to know about consultancy groups. The therapist should never be defensive if asked.
Two, you are entitled, especially as a cult survivor, to quiz your therapist about background, where he or she studied, and whether he or she has ties or has once had ties to any guru or group.
And if the therapist is a member of a consultancy group, you are entitled to ask if everyone in the group shares the same background in a religous belief system or are all members of the same human potential group.
A therapists consultancy group should consist of persons from different intellectual and social backgrounds not all be members of the same church or ashram or human potential set up.
Asking those questions is a powerful stance of agency, all by itself.
You are a citizen, free, paying your taxes, being civil to others.
Again, you owe the person no explanation.
And...a true therapist, that is one who is mature, will never, ever pathologize someone who disagrees or decides to leave.
It is not your job and was never your job to take care of this persons feelings.
Real therapists actually make conscious arrangements to avoid clients feeling obligated to take care of the therapist. One method is for therapists to become members of 'consultancy groups' of other therapists so they can give each other emotional support and share insights on each others work.
When interviewing therapists, you are entitled to ask if the person is a member of a consultancy group. A therapist might show suprise, but only because you are alert enough to know about consultancy groups. The therapist should never be defensive if asked.
Two, you are entitled, especially as a cult survivor, to quiz your therapist about background, where he or she studied, and whether he or she has ties or has once had ties to any guru or group.
And if the therapist is a member of a consultancy group, you are entitled to ask if everyone in the group shares the same background in a religous belief system or are all members of the same human potential group.
A therapists consultancy group should consist of persons from different intellectual and social backgrounds not all be members of the same church or ashram or human potential set up.
Asking those questions is a powerful stance of agency, all by itself.
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