Quoteandyb4I just wanted to say that I am not still "gung ho" (and I would never want you to think that I wanted to encourage people to do any more courses or anything) (and I didn't mean to defend any of it) and I am so sorry that anything that I said caused you more pain in remembering DC. It's been such a long time since I've done any "enlightenment courses".
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Quoteandyb4I've been reading over the posts here and I just wanted all of you to know that I didn't quit Direct Centering/LGAT without a backup plan (i finally figured out what LGAT stands for). One of the things Gavin asked us to do pretty early on was the Est training. For his own personal reasons... He wanted us to enroll more people in the course and those unsuspecting people at Est
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Nice to hear more from you, Andy and Larrabee! It's interesting to hear that in exploring your memories in writing, you remembered a lot of cherished things, as well as negative. I can't say that, really, but I'm looking forward to reading about your experiences. I wrote a little more, myself, which I forgot to post. This passage is about the after-effects of leaving the groups
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Hara (thanks for your last post!), Larrabee, all: Here's a passage in the short story I'm still working on, about post-withdrawal states, and about the metaphysical implications of it all: *** Living at Flynn’s seemed at first to bring another kind of lift, too. It gave me a “family” outside the Bayard Hora network. On the strength of these new bonds, I completely severed al
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

For a short story I'm writing, of which my time at Bayard Hora & Associates is but one part, I tried to remember more specifics of my experiences there. Can anyone comment or add more? Thanks. *** The next morning we gathered at 10 AM in the Course Room, which was behind the hall room we’d been in the previous evening for registration. Bayard sat on a dais, a small table beside him b
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Does anyone know what's with all the names? The man's given name is Gavin Barnes, isn't it? Where did "Bayard Hora" come from? When I Google the name, I find a famous scientist shares the name. Is that just a coincidence? I looked at something recent, which identified him as "Bayard Barnes"... Anyone know about this?
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Oops, Cordoy! I see you already anticipated the "destructive" and "cultic", or non-destructive differences in small groups. I don't know about Lifton's criteria...can you give me a link, or a paste-in?
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Very interesting, Corboy. Are the small groups, fitting introverts' profiles, abusive, though? Certainly (at least in my opinion) not all esoteric study groups are abusive. I don't even know that the word "cult" necessarily has perjorative connotations. I think that when I looked up the word in the dictionary, the first definition was something like "a small g
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Thank you, Saneagain. I feel validated by the things you say. I've read a little "highly sensitive person" material (some time ago). I will check out all the links you embedded
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

I "did" a number of Lifespring and also Bayard Hora courses a number of years ago. Both groups were extremely traumatic for me, but fifteen years after my last participation, I'm still wondering about some things: What is the relationship between the values of such groups and real, healthy values and growth? I took part in the groups because they promised to help me be a more ef
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Thanks, you two, for your replies. Good to feel part of a community, of sorts. I think these groups are confusing mixes, as you suggested, hara, of the healthy and the unhealthy. I admit that I tend to eschew confrontation, and the idea of "move toward your fear" terrifies me. It would be good, I think, if I could practice that more. However, trying to force such habits through these
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

It's been a long time since my contact with Gavin/Bayard. It was in 1987. Some writing I'm doing, a story that involves that general time period, occasioned me to bring to consciousness the old experiences and the old pain, and I realize that I still have not resolved everything. In fact, I seem to have blocked out of memory most of the actual workshop sessions, possibly because I foun
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"