False Memory Syndrome Foundation Vol 02 No 11 1993 dec

12 Pages·1993·0.62 MB·English

FMs
Foundation Newsletter
l1v.fs
December, 1993 Foundation Newsletter page2
You wrote: •No evidence was submitted that a repre- APA? What about the task. force set up to study the ques-
sentatlve complainant was necessary_ because of !ncapac- tion? Has the APA already taken a position?
ity or unavailability of the allegedly affected person.• OUite It's December. We should be making reference to the
the oontrary, our daughter has been i~itated for • •
many years because of emotional instability 8nd she relies holiday season but we do not. We do not want to te1 1 .amt-
on Social Security Disability. Evidence of this was submit- lies how they can cope with the empty chairs, the returned
ted in more than 20 pages of information with letters from presents, the heartache. To us that seems like putting a
lifelong acquaintances Of our family, recountlnq her h~- band-aid on a finger when our hearts have been ripped out
tallzat10ns and therapies with vanous professiOnals. Fol- and left gapm· a. This situation should not exist 1berapisls
!owing the social workers' misdiagnosis of her problems, ~
she was wrongfully subjected to months of intense therapy have advised families to, Get on with your Uves. Most of us
to elicit false memories of childhood sexual abuse. You have done that Enjoy what you can. We travel and indulge
should know that the American Medical Association has ourselves. Have a funeral for your children. Although their
desaibed these techniQues as being "fraught with prob- behavior is thoroughly nmarr~>ntable, our children are alive,
!ems of potential misapplication. • ---r
And finally, you wrote: "Nor did you persuasivelY. held prisoners and crippled by their "recovered memories."
demonstrate that you were personally harmed by the a· These are our children and we love them and we want them
leged actions of the respondents: We find thls statement back. We expect to fill the chairs, embrace our children and
so callous as to be almost unbelievable. Did nothing of restore our hearts and our lives. we will settle for nolhing
what we wrote convey any sense to your Committee oft he
acute agonies suffered by parents, ages 81 and 84, in a less, and we will do whatever it takes to achieve that.
two-year ordeal arising from social workers' uncorroborat- Last year we knew only a handful of families who had
ed Charges that we sexually abused our daughter as a reunited by Christmas. This year we know of hundreds of
child~n conclusion, your Inquiry Corn- families that have taken that first step.
mfttee's refusal to act on our complaint r-,:::,1:-:th-oink-:--a-cbrai:-:-n. -re-searc--,-h-er-at--:thi-o. s--, It is possible. The pattern of return
seems to be based on arguments that without any talk of the accusations is
might be expected from a firm of de- point has little to say about almost universal. How can people ever
fense lawyers on behatf of their thera- repression. There's no pan of the talk about such a monstrous mistake?
pist clients-an attack on the corn- brain that's been demonstrated to If · • 1he sadness and the
plainants rather than an answer to the tt were not JOr
comJ?Iaint. be the part that represses. There's waste of resources, the FMS phenome·
We would not have expected no specific electrical activity that non is almost whimsical in an AUce in
such an insensitive judgment by a has been discovered that's related Wonderland sort of way. We have a
Committee representing a profesSion · Th • th' th whole culture that has .. ,.,..,_..,.,. the no-
dedicated to the compassionate con- to represston. ere s no mg at --Y-
earn of solving human miseries. a brain researcher can do to show tion that the proof that somelhing bap-
Do you not have any answers to me an anatomical place right now pened is that the person forgot it We
the questions we raise? all contribute to a culture in which
or an electrical action right now in credible publishers and academics lake
If a medical product or procedure the brain that corresponds to memories of satanic ritual conspiracies
had received more than 7,C'I.YJ com· repression." and space alien abductions !!Criously
plaints, it would be taken off the mar- Lenore Terr, M.D. but dismiss memories of fairy abduc·
ket. When more than 7,000 complaints Testimony at Akiki trial tions (which were believed in for many
come from families about 1he radical '-----------------' years). SiUy is a word that comes to
untested mental health treatment of a relative for a condi· mind. If we can see the silliness that has affected us all, will
tion that the patient did not have and that resulted in dis- it help families talk about the hurt. the embarrassment and
memberment of that individual, the therapeutic community the love?
response is to accuse families and FMSF. 1bis past week Sex abuse is real and it is tragic. A society that loses its
we listened to two doctors say that it is the FMS Foundation critical thinking ability, however, is not able to remedy the
that is causing a loss of credibility of psychiatry. They borror of abused children. If people really care about help-
seemed to think that if FMSF disappeared, there would be ing children and women, 1hey will demand that care be used
no problem. in everything that pertains to their welfare.
Here are some comments from professionals (Cape Best wishes for the holidays.
Cod Regisrer, November 18, 1993). PamdiJ
Ms. Morosini-Heilman. a psychotherapist from Hyan
nis "cautioned rJwt the FMS Foruukuion should be viewed
with suspicion because U was formed primarily by accused NATIONAL FMSF PROGRAM
parents, some of whom· may themselves have repressed
Memory and Reality
memories."
June 3- 5, 1994
Brewster psychotherapist Lin Hood.(Jlidden described
FMS as u a neat and nifty way for society to contimte the Kansas City
denial ifs held onto so fiercely over the years. 1 don't be Continuing Education Credit Approved
lieve in false memory syndr0111e." Look for details in the January newsletter.
Doilg Frizel, the American Psychological Association's Speakers will include members of 1he FMSF Advisory
media relations manager has said, "It's a name casually ap· Board. Sessions will be held Friday through Sunday noon to
plied to a phenomenon. There is no such thing in science ... be followed with a public lecture Sunday afternoon.
As media relations manager. does Frizel speak: for the
FMs
llocember, 1993 Foundation Newsletter
page3
FMSF ADVISORY BOARD MEETING the office, this is the most important step they have taken to
Where do we go from here? bel~ cope with the loss and accusation. it is through the col
On the weekend of November 20th, eleven members of lecuve effi>rts of local groups that change is talting place.
the FMSF Scientific and Professional Advisory Board met . •Pay your dues. FMSF is a small organization that re
"?th Directors an~ Staff. The pwpose of the meeting was 10 li~ on dues and contributions. Take advantage of matching
discuss the direction of Foundation effons. The executive gtfts from employers. Some families have sent us donations
director opened the discussion with the suggestion that per that would have gone for holiday gifts to accusing children.
haps it was time for FMSF to close its doors since it has Let us know if there are any organizations with which you
achieved se~e~ of.its initio! goals: understanding the prob have contact that might help us increase the level of support
lem and bnngmg tt to nauonal attention. This idea was 10 families. Organizations that help the elderly (yes that's
unanimously and vigorously defeated. us!) and organizations concerned with mental health issues
'The day and a half discussion covered many topics. must be informed about the desperate situation of families
The consensus of the meeting was 1bat FMSF should in affected by FMS.
crease the level of support to families and initiate profes •Wr~te letters. This is some~g that every person
sional education efforts. In addition, the members of the must do if olhen are to know what ts going on. Letters to
Advisory Board said that they would invite the more than the media are essential-not just letters of complaint but
3,000 professionals wbo have contacted the Foundation 10 also letters of thanks when a job is well done. Infomt doe~
tors, lawyers, educators and professional organizations in
take an active and formal role in support of the Foundation.
We ~ working on the best mechanism for achieving this. your community and also local and national representatives.
Arrange for a talk by yourself or a professional at other or
Ad~tsory.Bo!lfd members also set some research and publi
cation objeCtives for themselves. ganizations you belong to. Unless you tell them, people will
The June 3-5 Memory and Reality Conference in Kan oot be aware of this nighnnare.
sas City is a concrete result of this meeting. Increased sup •Spend a vacation in the FMSF office. The help that
port to families will require intense increased fund-raising we have received from volunteers who come to Philadel
phia is fantastic. Frank, who recently retired and whose
efforts.
We thank the members of the FMSF Scientific and daughter has retracl<d, has spent three months helping with
bookkeeping. He returns to his home in Massachusetts for
Professional Advisory Boanl for their outstanding suppurt.
long weekends. Maljorie, recently widowed, is coming
In some survivor newsletten it has been stated that FMSF
puys the members of its board. To the contrary, boanl mem south (!) for three months to help us coordinate Canadian
families. Carol and Milt came from Maryland for two days
bers make substantial donations to the Foundation both in
time and money. While professionals are aware of the awe last week. Otris has come from Michigan several times to
help and we've had visitors from as far away as Utah and
some reputations of memben of the FMSF Board. some
Arizona Many many people come for the day. 1bere is
families may not realize that we are supported by the most
work for everyone. We could not function without the help
prestigious memory researchers and clinicians in the world.
of our volunteers OOth in the office and across the country.
It is the presence of the Advisory Board that has given our
•Send us articles, tapes, fliers. The library 1bat we are
efforts credibility.
building is in almost constant use by reporters and students.
WE NEED YOUR HELP While it is often difficult to see what is happening from one
At one year and nine months, FMSF is still a new orga vantage point. when we put together all the brochures and
nization. With the number of families and professionals anicles that you send. we begin to see the scope and direc
doubling on a regular basis, daily operations can be quite tion that this phenomenon is taking. Some people hesitate to
challenging. An organization such as ours which relies so send things that are critical for fear of hurting our feelings.
much on volunteer help needs to plan carefully to maintain Don•t worry. Critical material is vitally important. It Jets us
a level of professionalism. An organization in which most know what the concerns are. We do not have a clipping ser
of the members don't want to have their predicament made vice. We depend on you. In fact. clipping services would
public has unique hwdles and problems. Our strengths far oot examine free material at places like supermark:et.r-a
outweigh the problems. The phenomenon has affected espe great place to gauge opinion. Please remember to include
cially 1alenl<d and caring people who see beyond their own the date and source of anything that you send.
personal tragedy 10 the need 10 goad a change in the mental more on WITCH HUNTS
health system. Following are some suggestions:
Are we experiencing a witchhunt'l If we define a
•Send us your story. 1bese are archived as documen
tation of this phenomenon. witch hunt as a situation in which accusations are made and
the accused cannot defend themselves, the answer must be
•Make yourself known to your state contact. If you
"yes."
don't know who that is, call us for the infonnation. ;
•Become an expert. Read. ,-,:::;-------,----,------~ The incident at McGill is an ex-
Study. lnfonn yowself. lnfonna- "In every new and smart disease, treme example of witch hunt behav-
tion is power. From housemaid's knee to heart disease, ior. Dr. Harold Lief was invited by
•Attend meetings with fami- She recognized the symptoms as her the Deparunent of Psychiatry 10
lies, professionals and retrac- own!"" give a public lecture on FMS to be
tors. A~~riliesthe. ~al~rscalltell us Guy Wetmore Carry I (1873_1904) followed the next day with profes-
1bat iUu:; uu.u .,.....,._ 10 sional seminars. Impassioned by
FM;s
December, 1993 Foundation N Pwsletter page4
headlines such as "Hospital brings 'incest lobby' to Mont- MEMORY BUSINESS
real" (Peter Scowen, November 11, 1993, Mirror) letters AlawyerinMinoesutacalledtosaythatherepresented
and phone calls protesting his visit flooded the Department a 90 year old man being sued by his 63 year old daughter
of Psychiatry at McGill. Dr. Lief even received threats at for alle~ abuse taking place 57 years ago. The lawyer
his home. On the night of the scheduled lecture, protesters asked, 1s this what the prople who changed the staJute of
in the audience yelled, waved noisemak.ers and set off a limitations hod in mind?"
stink bomb. Dr. Lief was not allowed to speak even though. "Advanced estate planning, that s what it is," said an-
when asked, a majority of those present said they wanted 10 other lawyer. If the child gets the money through a court
hear him. The prevention of the free exchange of ideas is judgment, there will be no estate taxes.
totalitarianism, nothing less. Is the idea that some memories An article in Long Island Newsday, November 28 by
are true, some a mixture off act and fantasy and some false Glenn Kessler is the first we have seen that addresses some
such a threat'? of the economic issues. Kessler noted, "Insurance compa-
The next day protesters again entered the hospital, nies report an astonishing rise in claims for post-traumatic
blocking its hallways and thus the onlerly management of stress disorder or multiple personality disorder, almost all of
the hospital. The banner they cartied read, "Lesbians and which cite childhood sexual abuse as the cause." According
Dykes against DR. LIEf." An overreaction? To anyone who to Allen Savitz, senior vice president of Human Affairs In-
knows the accomplishments of Dr. Lief in the area ofl.esbi- temational, the mental health anm of Aetna. "claims for
an and Gay rights, a more inap- ,-------------------, post-traumatic stress disonler have
propriate target could not hsve The Fundamental Truths of Psychiatry. risen fivefold in the past five years,
been selected. The unthinking and 10 times as many multiple per-
absurdity of the Lief incident is a The most valuable lesson psychiatry has sonality disonler claims are re-
terrible embarrassment 10 taught me is the importance of listening to ceived than 10 years ago."
women, McGill, and Canada. my instincts, of reading between the lines. Kessler also described a siwa-
To give an indication of the This basic lesson takes on profound signif- tion in one managed health care
climate in Canada, the McGill icance in view of a second fundamental group in which thirty percent of the
Daily, the student newspaper truth of psychiatry: People will not always mental health costs were used by
(Nov 10, 1993) had the follow- tell you the whole truth. less than one percent of the partici-
ing headline, ''False Memory s an .~.... n~1 13er, M ,0 • pants. Two group-practitioners
Syndrome, an evening of back- Third-year resident the Menninger Sclwol of racked up nearly $2 million in costs
81
lash and questionable science." Psychlatry. in just a year. Most of this was for
In the article by Marie-Josee "False Memoty Syndrome Furor" repressed memories and multiple
Johnston, which actually slan- PsvchiatricTimes personality.
dered the FMSF director, the fol- November 1993, page 11 'The court records of the suit by
!owing appeared: "Don't be Dennis Schwiderski against his
We are relielled lhaJ the author of these centred insighls
fooled, says the FMSF-the real inlo her profession is a critic of FMSF. A represenltllive fonner therapist show that the oil
victims are not abused children, of the Menni,er School w senJ a kllU 10 PsychWric executive and his insurance carrier
but innocent parents accused of Times 10 say thol Dr. Prager' s views tJbouJ FMS do nm spent more than $2 million over 10
heinous crimes." 1be author representtheviewsofthaJinstillllion. years for treatment for repressed
states that "FMSF is directed memories of being involved in sa-
specifically at the media, and is tanic cults.
dedicared ID disseminating disinformation on incest ID sup- We wonder if and how the financial aspects of FMS
port their cause." (McGill Daily, 3490 McTavish St. Mont- will intersect with sevencurrent Federal Bureau of lnvesti-
real, QC, H3A IX9) gation investigations of private mental hospital chains.
Another example this month of a witch hunt climate
comes from testimony of Lenore Terr, M.D. in the Akiki
Incest Support Network Closes
case. Under oatb, Dr. Terr testified tha~ ''The False Memo According 10 an AP report on November 11, Marilyn
ry Syndrome Foundation is a political action group out of
Van Derbur Ader's incest support network which once
Philadelphia run by a woman whose own chil<fhas accused
claimed to help 500 incest victims a week, is closing its
her of sexual abuse.·· 'The False Memory Syndrome Foun
doors because it camtot raise needed funds. According to
dation is a 501 (c) (3), not a political action group (PAC).
Ms Atler, "People want to give money to children, but
The executive director of FMSF, has no knowledge that she
many adults--even if they don't say these words--think, 'It
had ever been accused of sexual abuse. What is the accusa
happened a long time ago, get on with your life.'"
tion exactly? What a strange way to find out about it. Per
haps the organization S.O.U.P.! that we mentioned last
lgNobel Prizes
month is busy at worlc. For $10.00 S.O.U.P.! will infonm
On October 7 at MIT the lgNobel prizes were awanled.
employers. neighbors and others that a person is a '"perp."
According 10 Steve Nadis in the October 14 issue of Sci
The person requesting this service may remain anonymous.
ence, .. These prizes, which are as feared as their Stockholm
9 p.& (USA) Dybtg toR_,..-,. A WOmM 4/seoNrs druins lr.yp counteip311S are coveted, are awarded for research that
IUJiiNITip:J dull sM WGI __,.mllll•fonur Ufe.ls 11 • good ilhtJ 'cannot or should not be reproduced."' Nadis went on to
for Mr 1111 try to sobe lite crlllleT Stan MeUssa Gllbm. Ted Shtul note that "the prize for psychology went to Joho Mack of
elfonltuld CluistopMr Stotw. UZO lllln.) TV Weea-. No• 28. the Harvard Medical School and David Jacobs of Temple
FMs
December, 1993 Foundation Newsletter
pageS
University for lending credence to the notion that thou- "Multiple Personalities: The Experts are Split" by
sands, if not millions, of people have been abducted by Oli Oli Sileo in Insight, October 25, 1993. This article
aliens from outer space. Neither Mack. not Jacobs was there gives a concise review of the issues dividing the mental
to accept the honor, but an alleged assistant attorney general health community about MPD. An interesting observation
took the stage, reminding the audience that "lddnaping is in Ibis article is that "Almost everyone who is an ovid be-
still a federal offense." /iever in the prevalence of multiple pers01wlity disorder is
also an avid believer in satanic cults." What would this
CWCAGO PICKETS mean if confinned by empirical evidence?
In November, families and professionals in Chicago "Defming Deviancy Up" by Charles Krauthammer
held a meeting. People attending had 10 go past pickets November 22, 1993, in The New Republic. Thia article ex-
from the Northwest Action Against Rape. The protesters amines our changing definitions for "deviancy .. both over
were invited to attend the meeting and at least two did ven- time and Within populations. Some of the article directly
ture in. We wonder if what they heard matched with their addresses issues of abuse.
preconceptions. We noted that the women left when Laura. "Child abuse is both a crime and a tragedy, but is it
a retractor, staned her speech by saying that her experience nineteen times more prevalent today
was not about child abuse, but rather r-=:---.,:-;:---;--;--;--:--1 than it was thirty years ago? That is
bad therapy. "Oh, and I'm an incest survivor, what the statistics offer. In 1963:
The signs that the pickets carried you know. I haven't remembered 150,000 reported cases. in 1992: 2.9
held the following messages: any specific instances yet, but million."
ALL of my therapists agree that "Now, simply considering the
Memories are real.
something happened." hisoorical trajecoory of the tteatment of
Memories are not fantasy. from the film Single White Female children since the nineteenth century,
FMSF fanatics mistreating sllTVivors . ____________. ....J when child labor-even child sla-
Incest is not imagination. L
very-was common, it is haRl to be
Try Truth. lieve that the tendency toward improved treatment of chil
dren has been so radically reversed in one generation. ••
SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE "Plainly it hasn't What happened then? The first thing
What is the type of evidence that mental health professionals that happened was an epidemic of over-reponing. Douglas
will accept about the validity of repression? Who can conlribute Besharov points out that whereas m 1975 about one-third of
to this debate? We found the following courtroom testimony or child abuse cases were dismissed for lack of evidence,
today about two-thirds are dismissed. New York state au
interest:
Q. In tenns of false memory, are there professional psychol thorities may have considered it a great social advance that
between 1979 and 1983, for example, reported cases of
ogisiS and psychialrists wbo are debating the actuality of
child abuse increased by almost 50 percent But over the
repressed memory. yes or no?
same period, the number of substantiated cases actually de
A. Yes.
clined. In other words, the 22,000 increase of reported cases
Q. And among that debate is there some question about the
yielded a net decrease of real cases.
scientifiC validity of the theory of repression, yes or no? "Note the contrast For ordinary crime, to which we
A. Yes. But I think that they are wrong. They are not clini have become desensitized, we have defined deviancy down.
cians, and they are not entided to make that decision. One measure of this desensitization is under-reporting:
Q. Is it your position that only clinicians can make a decision nearly two out of every three ordinary crimes are never
concerning the scientific foundation of psychiatric or psychologi~ even reported. Child abuse is precisely the opposite. For
cal principles? child abuse to which we have become exquisitely over-sen
A. Not aU principles, but repression is a clinical principle, sitized, deviancy has been correspondingly defined up. One
of the measures of over-sensitization is over-reporting:
and 1 thought we were lalking about repression.
whereas two out of three ordinary crimes are never report
Q. Is it your position that repression can only be addressed
ed. two out of three reponed cases of child abuse are never
by clinicians and not by researchers? shown to have occurred."
A. The kind of researchets that are bringing this to question, '"The helping professions, committed to a belief in en~
sociology researchm. researchers who are doing cognitive psy demic abuse, have encouraged a massive search to find
chology experiments, are not the ones who can make a value cases, and where they cannot be found, to invent them."
judgment on repression. It is the clinicians who can. "If your life shows the symptoms. In a popular culture
Lenore Terr, M.D. saturated with tales of child abuse paraded daily on the air
Akiki Trial Testimony waves, it is not hard to suggest to vulnerable people that
their problems-sympooms-are caused by long-ago abuse.
VALUABLE ARTICLES indeed, even unremembered abuse. Hence the reductio ad
There were too many insightful articles about memory, absurdwn of the search for the hidden epidemic: adults who
FMS and our culture this month to even attempt to list present themselves suddenly as victims of child abuse after
them' all now. We will add them to our article order as decades of supposed amnesia-the amnesia reversed and
quickly as we get permission to do so. We will mention just the memory reclaimed thanks to the magic of intensive psy
two: chotherapy."
FMs
Ebundation Newsletter page&
November 1993
From our Readers home by my son's PTA Auction. Suddenly I notieed that
for only $50, I can purchase ~ugh my son's sehool ~w,
If my daughter were sexually sssaulted or raped by 1he services of a hypuodterap•st. I called her up, asking
anyone, I would prosecute 1he peq>etrator to 1he fullest what I might get for my fifty bucks and it's a loL She will
extent of the law~ If a therapist using introspective !like me into my past lives, where I will identify people who
therapeutic techniques created a memory in my daughter bave abused me; I can 1hen rid myself of 1hese people, ss
that never happened, then that therapist is guilty of a crime 1hey bave reappesred in my present life. I will learn how I
equal to a real perpetrator, and justice would demand 1hat chose my gender, how to become successful in my chosen
dte dterapist be prosecuted to 1he fullest extent ofdte law. or another career, and how to rid myself of blocks. Half.
AFadter kidding, I said, 'I just read an ad in a magazine which
offered to certify me as a hypnotist after only one weekend
In January of 1990, our daughter called us and asked if of training.' She responded 1hat she bad bad four weekends
we would meet widt her and her ~---...,----,-..,.,...-..,.----, of training; eight whole days instead of
husband after church. We knew 1hat We quite literally "make up just two, and 1hat she bad pe=nally
1hey bad been baving marriage stories" about our lives, 1he world, gone beyond 1hat by atrending many
problems. My daughter wss seriously and reality in general. Often it is workshops. "Altlwugh," she added," I
overweight and her husband bad bad know a lot of people who started right
an affair. They had been seeing a the story that creates the memory, up after the jour weekends and are
Christian marriage counselor and we rather than vice versa. doing -very well." The $50 is only the
1hought that she wss going to let us Robyn Dawes,December 1993 beginning; it really !likes at lesst 1hree
know 1hat things were improving. Mirabella, hours at $50 an hour to get going, after
We said 'Yes,' of course, and whicblshouldanticipate6-71hreebour
made plans to meet them. My sessions to really get into il All this in my small, bucolic,
daughter bad always been very close to me and her dad. In New England town."
fact, she bad recendy nominated her dad ss 'Fadter of 1he
Year' in our town. One of 1he problems I bave wi1h 1he concept of meutal
Imagine our shock wben instead of talking about her illness is that if suggestion is as universal and pervasive and
current life, she sat reading from a paper 1hat she bad been as strong as the theory of implicit memory suggests, then
sexually abused from age S to 13 by ber dad and 1hat I bad dealing with a person as if he or she is 'mentally ill' may
failed to protect her. She read 1hat she wanted x amount of mean 1hat we begin to see iatrogenic illnesses. In this
dollars for 1he past 1herapy and x amount of dollm for 1he regard, I am interested in how quickly the retractors start to
next two yean; 1hat she would need for 1herapy. turn around as soon ss 1hey begin to reject 1heir identity ss
AMom mental patients and to rely upon the truth of their own
experience.
I get so depressed. I bave lost over 30 pounds, my hair I think that 'mental illness' does not have to do with an
hss turned quite gray, I have developed high blood pressure 'unconscious' in the sense that the client is blacked out and
for 1he fir.;t time in my life, I can't sleep, I am up pacing totally unaware. I think it does have to do with the
much of every night I bave no appetite. I have almost acquisition of HABITS of 1hought and interaction whicb
become a hennit because I find it hard to be widt people may become so automated (and reactive) that we have lost
recently. Even though everyone in my family thinks my the connection between the inciting incident/S and the
daughter needs serious help we are still caught in this reactions we have now.
nighbnare which is compounded by a lawsuit. It is ss AMom
1hough her therapist hss turned what at one time, not too
long ago, wss love, into bate. In a letter she wrote, 'If dad While I am thrilled to hear 1hat 1he 'tide' hss turned for
died, I wouldn't even go to his funeral, except to spit on his many families, there are still many of us who have
ugly, old, wrinkled corpse.' It is han:l to live with statements absolutely no contact with the FMS victim and grow more
like that, when 1hey come and more hopeless every day.
from someone 1hat you bave ~-Wb-y_w_o_u_ld_so_m_eo_n_e"'"be-,lie_v_e_t"'"h_ese_m_em-o-ri""es~if,......, While my brolher and 1 used to
raised, nurtored, did write often. I bave not heard
everything that you could for. tbey were not true? from him since last March."
sometimes I get up in the When you fust remember your abuse or ac-
moming and wonder why the knowledge its effects, you may feel tremendous Waves of Emotion
hell 1 should even bo1her. relief. Finally 1here is a reason for your pro!>- Time alone brings 1he tide in •
Wbat can be good in 1he day !ems. There is someone, and some1hing to blame. rsshin
ahead that can override the p.l73, Cowage to Heal. Bass and Davis ~atin&'~n my mind and
hell that I am going 1hrougb L ________________. J drowning my soul.
in my mind during every First anger, 1hen shock and disbelief.
conscious moment? Next. sonow and tears -as if he were no more.
A Dad
Trapped in an ocean, often rippling and unexpected.
This week I was glancing idly through a booklet sent One moment is calm while the next is stomty.
How dare he ignore me! as if he is in control, then
FMs
Nowmber 1993 Foundation Newsletter
shock that this could happen A Survivor Who
to someone like him. WHERE DO 5,757 FAMILIES LIVE? DEC 3, '93 Never Forgot
As the tide washes the sand away, not including
I know I'm loosing him. 1,676 Potential families and 94 retractor Families Recently I anended a
Memories of our closeness seem seminar given False
to sift away to the unknown. AK (11) AL (20) AR (19) AZ (176) CA (893) Memory Syndrome. while
For moments at a time, I feel CO (102) CT (56) DE (20) FL (251) GA (63) there, I related a personal
banlened to it all. m (10) lA (45) ID (32) IL (241) IN (64) experience I had with a
For my parents in more pain KS (52) KY (23) LA (22) MA (138) MD (93) thernpisL At the end of the
m
than I, I graciously accept this ME (28) MI (178) MN m(160 ) MO (106) MS seminar, a man asked if I
loss.· MT (33) NC (75) ND NE (TT) NH (26) would write to you about
A sense of urgency then splashes NJ (132) NM (39) NV (22) NY (256) OH (224) it. At firs~ I wasn't sure,
on me without warning, OK (54) OR (141) PA (289) RI (17) se (27) but I bave given it some
The water is becoming glass and I SD(I4) TN(42) TX (222) UT(16S) VA(86) thought and after realizing
can no longer see inside, who you are and what
VT (24) WA (259) Wl (167) WV (13) WY (11) you're trying to do, 1 am
I feel panic and continue to
DC (8) VI (3) PR (I) Canada: AB (19) bappy to share this with
reach towanl him,
knowing I must light my own BC (65) MB (40) NS (11) ON (163) PQ (8) you. Please feelfree to use
SK (7) Ausualia (9) Fmnce (2) Germany(2) Ireland (I) this anyway you see lit
despair.
Israel (2) Netherlands (I) NZ (I) S. Africa (I) UK (230) "I am 45 years old. I
With greater force each day, the
Each family represen1s many people. am a survivor of incest and
currents pull at my heart
I struggle to breath, I struggle to '-------------------' systematic torture, not to
mention gross neglect and
free myself.
emotional abuse. All my memories are intact I remember
Is he letting go or am I letting him go?
them from the time the events took place lill presently. My
Is there a right thing to do?
abusers were not Satan worshipers. I never forgoL
Waves of emotion inside of me yield their own speechless When I was 24, I had many problems (as you can
reality,
imagine) and I found a psychiatrist wbo helped me get my
as I know this tide will be rough and forever changing. head together and through the years, we worked out my
I can only search to keep my own peace and problems. I became very interested in mental health and got
hope that his will come with time. some education and training and am presently employed by
A Sister a non-profit agency dedicated to helping people who are
mentally ill. I've been doing this for the last 10 years. I
Re: MulUple Personality Disorder (MPD) work as a counselor in community support.
"Do you believe in MPD?" is a legitimate question, and I bave many friends who know I do this and many lalk
I fear ynu bave not understood it At le~ on page 10 of to me about their problems. They also tell me about their
your November, 1993 Newsletter you state "we do not nor friends' problems.
bave we ever questioned the reality of MPD," but the About I 1(1. years ago, I first heanl of people going to
following sentence makes it clear that you are referring only thernpists and being diagnosed with MPD and accusing
to the symptoms. various people of cult abuse. I didn't think I knew anyone
As you will be aware. the diagnostic and statistical with Ibis problem but it seemed rather odd to me. Also 3
manual of the American Psychiatric Association grants years ago, my sister called me and told me of an incest
"stabJS.. to a collection of symptoms, under the term survivor group in her area who used a book called ..C ourage
"Disonler."The question, "Do you believe in MPD7" really to Heal" as a "Bible" for the group. She was thinking of
means do you feel that this collection of sympcoms is in fact getting involved and asked if I had heard of this book. I
a separate disorder, distinct from other psychiatric badn 'L I purchased the book and by the time I got to page
disorders, with its own prognosis and treatment 93, I couldn't stand to read another page. It was the biggest
requirements. piece of trash I"ve ever read. It mead me angry to think
In the light of this, I think you do "question the reality lhink that two underqualified women were passing
of MPD." At I~ I bope you do7 themselves off as experts and getting rich on the misery of
A.C. Carr, M.D. incest viclims. I told my sister of my feelings and she
declined the group.
Dr. Carr is co"ect. It is the symptoms of MPD that we do Late this spring, a young man called to talk about some
not question. We leave the issue of whether the collection of flashes of thought he was baving. By this time I heard
symptoms is in/act a separate disorder to professionals and many stories of different people who say they found out
professional organizolions. In the case of False Memory they were ritually abased. We talked at length and he told
Syndrome, we also have recognized a coUection of me of a mutual friend who was seeing a therapist in NY and
symptoms. WhetMr this is something professionals wiU ever how he was helping her to see she was a victim of ritual
consider a separate disorder is not clear. abuse at the hands of family members. 'This is the same
therapist the others went to. It happens I know the young
woman's family (our mutual friend) and there is no way her
FMs
November 1993 Foundation Newsletter pageS
family could be involved in anything like this! I didn't want syndreme," which sounds to your child like you 're calling
to invalida1e her feelings but I felt I must get to the bottom them an originator of falsehoods. If instead you were to say
of this. they have a "suggested memory syndrome" or an
I made an appointtnem with the therapist myself. I ''iatrogenic memory syndrome,'' then you and your child are
didn't mU him I worked in mental health, but that I was a on the same side, against the outside source or person that
survivor of incest and brutality. I decided to focus on a real plan1ed the seed of the false memories.
nighttnare I bad as a child and see where be would go with I'm not saying that a name chaoge would be a panacea.
it In the short run, it might not make any difference. But it
What an amazing experience! After I lfl hows be told would plant a seed for reconciliation.
me I had MPD. Even one of my alternate personalities came Another thing that antagonizes pomntial allies of the
out while he was talking to me and my parents were Satan FMSF is that a few vocal members make alienating
womupen and I bad been gang raped by the cult When I pronouncemems. In purticular, while having little or no in
refu1ed this be told me I was in denial and would not be depth nonforensic experience with multiple penooality
whole again until I remembered all these things and worlred disorder, they say derogatory things about it This
through them. He also said that was the reason I was so antagonizes all the good therapists of bona fide multiple
overweight. he told me that inside me there was a lovely 4 penonality who would like only too well to rid their field of
1{2 year old girl waiting to gmw up and become the very the small number of misguided therapists who hurt the
best penon she could be! reputation of multiple penonality. If the good therapists of
Had I not had my education and training, I could bave multiple personality did not get the impression that FMSF
bought into nonsense. It bothers me to think what these throws the baby out with the bath water when it comes to
people are doing to their clients and their families. multiple penooality, they would be natural allies. Likewise,
He didn't hypnotize me. But be "walked" me through there are many real abuse survivors who would be natural
my dream pushing and prodding until I actually saw weird allies against false survivor stories, if only FMSF did not
pictures in my mind. I realize what he did was coach my have such an anti-survivor aura, however inadvertent and
imagination and then label the fantasy a memory. How understandable it may be.
frightening to think how much of this going on around the Kenneth A. Nakdimen, M.D.
world.
If in anyway I can be of service to you, please feel free The August 30th newsletter just arrived with news of
to contact me. I wish you the best in your work. cbange! The day before, one of our daugh1en spoke to her
Survivor father on the telephone for 15 minutes after two years of
refusing to bave anything to do with him. Sbe bad pboned
Believers in the false memory syndrome do not believe the house -just that is a big change - to make a supper date
that false memories sprout up from nothing, but that seeds with me. I was out and my husband took the opportunity to
are planted in fertile minds by one or more of the following: try to chat with her about ordinary non penonal things, and
cultural myths, misleading limrature, charistnatic speaken, it worked. Sbe even asked him about the garden -
peer gmup influence, custody battle pressure, police something they both used to work on.
interrogation, or misguided therapists. Therefore, a more AMom
appropriate tenn would be "suggested memory syndrome"
or, when misguided therapists are the source, "iatrogenic My prayers have been answered! My son no longer
memory syndrome." 1bese terms, by indicating the outside believes we sexually abused him. He arrived unannounced
instigation of false memories, avoid moral condemnation, last evening. We talked for three hours.
whereas "false memory syndrome" inadvertently labels the However he is very confused and full of mixed
carrier as being the originator of falsehoods. feelings. His anger and outrage at us are still there and also
If you've been falsely accused by your child, the last toward others. It seems he was taught to hate. It will take a
thing you want to do is label your child in such a way as to long time, as you know, but it's a start.
promote an adversarial relationship. Yet that is what you do AMom
when you label your child as having a "false memory
I J.s:)'ffi. ~~
0Jli1J9.E O'f
.,.KnM.w;x>O.
This article appeared in The Los Angeles 1fmes, November 18, 1993.
PERSPECTIVE ON PSYCHIATRY
Reprinted with permission of the author.
'Recovered' Memory's Real Victims
pitiful human problems: It's they underwent distressing events that
Most traumas are all someone else's fault. never occurred.
literally unforgettable. Not quite. Here are the While there are a few well·trained
facts: psychiatrists and psychologists who
Why would only sexual
• Memories of emotionally subscribe to the notion of recovered
abuse be buried, for charged events are among the memory, many of the "experts" promot
least forgettable memories we ing these treatments are counselors with
recovery years later?
have. Consider the "Vietnam a master's degree or less, who were
syndrome" where ex·Gis are never required to scientifically study
By JOHN HOCHMAN
still haunted by unwanted memory as part of their training. In fact,
"flashbacks" of combat expe· the most popular self ·help book pushing
A man in Philadelphia says that riences that intrude into their daily these· ideas (with sales of more than
two priests molested him numer· thoughts. Similar symptoms occur in 1 million) was written by two women
ous times in the mid·1970s, when individuals months after experiencing with no formal training in memory,
he was a high·school seminarian. Now, horrible aceidents or crime victimiza· psychology or psychiatry.
in 1993, he sues for $10 million. Because tion. People who sincerely believe that
one of the accused priests went on to • Barring fiood, fJre and electromag · hidden memories are making them sick
become Chicago's cardinal, the story is netic disruptions, computer disks retain understandably want to get better, and
national news. rapidly gain convic·
The claim of mo tion that their "re
lestation by 34·year covered memories"
old Steven Cook are true. Unfortu
comes years after-the nately, the results,
alleged events be· whether obtained
cause, he says, he lost through "medita·
all memory of the tion," dream inter·
acts shortly after pretation, hypnosis or
each occurred, and "truth serum," are
only in 1992 did he likely to be ,visions
"recover" the "mem· that seem to be mem·
ories" that are the ories but never in fact
grounds for his law. occurred.
SIDL And there is more.
Cook's charges are Many memory thera·
similar to recent pists urge their pa
claims of childhood tients to believe that
sexual victimization their "recovered
by roughly 10,000 memories" are the
adults in America. only proof needed
These claimants that long·trusted
(mostly women) al· friends and family are
most always say that actually perverts and
the "perpetrators" perpetrators, never to
were trusted adult figures, very often all the data you enter, and videotapes be trusted again.
their own fathers. They further claim keep all the TV programs and birthday One interesting wrinkle is the trend to
that they lost all memory for each and parties you recorded. But the human sue the "perpetrator" in order to aid the
every molestation shortly after each brain forgets most of what it experienc· "victim" in "healing" and to "educate
event occurred. Such claims were at. es-f<.~r good. society." And you can, according to this
most unheard of five years ago. And • Sexual molestations of children do theory, ignore the "perpetrator's" side
almost everyone complaining is white, occur, but so do othe~ overwhelming of the story since all of them are "in
as opposed to Latino, black or Asian experiences, such as witnessing fathers denial" and won't tell the truth, anyway.
American. What's going on here? beating up mothers, or seeing family And if anyone tells you that you might
Welcome to the strange world of members killed, or having a broken bone be having "false memories" don't talk to
memory recovery therapy. This is a set without sufficient anesthesia. them either, because they are hindering
pseudoscience based on the notion that These horrible events in childhood be· your "recovery."
tens of thousands of Americans were come literally unforgettable. However, People desperate for "recovery" are
repeatedly molested as children and people undergoing memory recovery finding "proof' of "forgotten" crimes in
don't know it. therapy seem to only talk about sexual therapists' offices and in the revival-like
People involved in memory recovery abuse. atmosphere of "survivor support
therapy have been convinced by mis· • Even accurate memories fade or groups." But in order for Steven Cook to
guided self· help books or therapists that alter With time, more than we think. get $10 million, the courts will have to
they are "survivors" of totally forgotten Often people's absolute convictions that decide whether he is a victim of pedO·
sexual crimes. They are told that their their meniories are accurate have failed philic priests or whether the priests are
eating or sexual or marital problems will to stand up to scientific scrutiny. Sub· victims of "recovered memories.''
clear up once the "lost memories" are jects in laboratory studies can be
found The real message being sold by coached into distortion of memories John Hochman is a for~ psychia·
these new therapy messiahs is the without their realizing it, and even trist in Encin.o with a special interest in
ultimate crybaby solution to everyone's children can be taught to believe that therapy cuUs.
FMs
lleoember 1993 Foundation Newsletter page10
FMSF MEETINGS SOUTHWEST MAINE
F'REEPORT
JANUARY ARIZONA 3rd Sun. monthly - 1:30 pm
TEMPE call Wally (207) 8654044
FAMII.JES &
Saturday, January 29, 1994
PROFESSIONALS 9am-4:30pm
WORKING TOGETHER Embassy Suites Hotel FMSF NOTICES
fMS - Understanding the Crisis
Please note: In crdcr to list your
Paul Simpson, Ph.D, Eric Nelson,
February meeting nctlce in the MICHIGAN
& an AZ retractor and her mother
January newsletter, pi esse ob Michigan Information Newsletter
RSVP Barbara [phone]
serve the early deadline· PORox15044, Ann Arbor, Ml48106
by Monday, January 24th
Wednesday, De::em'OOr 22, 1993. [phone]
Mall or fax your annooncemcnt COLORADO Meeting notices & state-related
topics appear in this newsletter.
to Nancy's altenlion. Thank you DENVER
.. and Happy Hdiday~ 4th Sat. monthly 8 I :00 pm
Cherry Creek Bmncb, WISCONSIN
MIDWEST Dcnvcr Public Library Attention Wisconsin!
REGIONAL MEETING 3rd & Milwaukee To participate in a phone tree,
Contact Roy [phone] call Katie/I.co [phone]
May 21-22, 1994
Michigan State University CENTRAL TEXAS
LANSING, Ml Call Nancy or Jim
[phone]
APA CANADA
American Psychiatric AssocilltWn
MIDWEST
ANNUAL MEETING
BRITISH COLUMBIA
Doublctrcc Hotel KANSANS & MISSOURIANS
V AN<..."'VVER ANU MAINLAND
PHILADELPHIA, PA KANSAS CITY For information. call Ruth
Wednesday, May 25, 1994 2nd Sunday each month [phone]
2-5:00 pm Seminar Speakers: '"Help educate professionals"
Drs. Green, Uer, Contact Pat [phone]
VICTORIA & VANCOUVER ISI.AND
McHugh, Singer or Jan (816) 276-8%4 Jrd Tues. monthly - 7:30pm
KENTUCKY Contact John [phone]
LEXIN<iTON
WEST COAST Dixic [phone] MANITOBA
WINNIPEG
CALIFORNIA* MICHIGAN
I st Sunday each month
RANCHO CUCAMONGA GROUP GRAND RAPIDS AREA • Jealson Call Joan [phone]
Upland- 1st Monday, 7:30pm 2nd Monday each month
Call Marilyu [phone] Call Catbarine [phone]
ONTARIO
NORTII COUNTY EscoNDmo MINNESOTA TORONTO
Contact Joc or Marlene January 15, 1994 Call Pal [416) 445-1995
[phone] For time and location, contact
Terry/Collelle [phone]
CENTRAL COAST MEETING
Call Carolc (805) %7-8058 OHIO
UNITED KINGDOM
CiNCINNATI AREA
VALENCIA Contact Bob (.502) 957-2378 AFFII.JATED GROUP
NOTE; NO DECEMBER MEETING Adult Children Accusing Parents
4th Sat. each month - 10 am Parents with relatives in the UK
NORTHEAST
Call Jane/Mark [phone] contact Roger Scotford at
PHILADELPHIA ACAP OD (0) 225 868682
NORTHWEST SO. JERSEY & DELAWARE
Sat., Jan. IS, 1994 • 1·5:00 pm
IDAHO Valley Forge Hllton AUSTRALIA
Saturday, January 8, 1994 King of Prussla, PA
Call Richard {208) 357-7194 Call Jim or Jo (215) 783-03% Group forming.
for details for infonnation & details Contact FMSF office.