From: lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady)
Subject: Re: Unpleasantness re: inner child discussion
Followup-To: sci.psychology
Summary: No videotapes are not evidence.  But you can learn from them. 
Organization: University of Hawaii (Mathematics Dept)
Distribution: sci
Date: Fri, 10 Apr 1992 20:25:51 GMT

In article <1992Apr9.150451.21431@Princeton.EDU> roger@phoenix.Princeton.EDU (Roger Lustig) writes:
>In article <167C4936A.JHARTLEY@cmsa.gmr.com> JHARTLEY@cmsa.gmr.com writes:
>>In article <1992Apr9.013224.19962@news.Hawaii.Edu>
>>lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady) writes:
>
>>>NLP claims, for instance, that a simple phobia can be cured in one
>>>session.
>
>Cynical aside: what's their definition of a "simple phobia"?  Is it one
>that can be cured in a single session?

You should have asked your wife about this one.  I learned the term
"simple phobia" from a psychiatrist, not from NLP.  A simple phobia is
any phobia other than agoraphobia.  Agoraphobia is closely associated
with panic attacks, and in fact many people use the term agoraphobia as a
synonym for panic attacks.  I wanted to make it clear that the Fast
Phobia/Trauma Cure is not claimed as an effective treatment for
agoraphobia.  

It is interesting to me that you are not a psychologist, and yet you have
made the most intelligent comments and raised the most intelligent
questions (in my opinion -- which is never humble!) that have ever been
posted in this newsgroup on the subject of NLP.  I may comment more
later, but I think almost all the issues that you raise are things that
require serious investigation.  

Nobody whose opinion is worth anything is going to be convinced of the
validity of NLP approaches or techniques simply on the basis of my own
personal experiences.  Nobody should be convinced simply by reading books
or watching videotapes.  But I do hope that a few serious psychologists
will be moved to at least send for the catalog from NLP Comprehensive (it
costs nothing!) just to see what sorts of things NLP is offering.  

What one can learn from books and videotapes is that there is something
extremely interesting being done by NLP people, whatever its ultimate
validity.  It one watches the Connirae Andreas tape on "The Swish
Pattern" (once reviewed by me in this newsgroup) or the Steve Andreas
tape on changing beliefs, one will find not only a very different
approach to therapy, but a fascinating approach to the teaching of
therapy.  These videotapes by themselves certainly do not constitute
evidence that the approaches shown are effective, but I don't see how
anyone can watch them and not believe that the approaches are
fascinating.

If one watches the two tapes made by my teacher, Leslie Cameron
Bandler, or the tape on "Core Change" by Connirae Andreas, one will have
the chance to see master therapists at work.  This is like hearing John
Coltrane play the saxophone or Jimi Hendrix play the guitar.  These are
tapes a therapist can study to learn the art of therapy, whether or not
they find that particular style of therapy something that suits them.
And anyone who watches Leslie's analysis of her own work in the second
sections of these tapes cannot fail to be convinced that they are seeing
a master teacher of therapy.  

Of course neither Leslie nor Connirae are typical of the average
practitioner using NLP.  But they are both master teachers that one can
learn from.  

And by reading books and watching videotapes, a therapist can actually
learn techniques which s/he can try out himself with his clients.  I
know, you guys believe in statistics.  I don't  -- I have to teach the
subject.  :-)   To me, if I were a therapist, the ultimate question would
*not* be  Does the approach have statistical validity?  but  Does this
approach work for me, with my particular skills and style, when I use it
with the sort of clients I deal with?  And the best way to find this out
is simply to try it out.  

--
Lee Lady                                               
Dept of Mathematics                      lady@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu   
University of Hawaii                     lady@uhunix.bitnet
Honolulu, HI  96822                     
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