Hi Jim
I'm glad you're finding the list useful - even if it is its capacity to deliver bad news! The list seems to have settled down again (at last) into some interesting and useful discussions
Rowdy,
But for your email, I wouldn't have known of Albert Ellis's death.
Albert gave the keynote address at the WFTC's New York Conference in1980, on Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy. At question time, some self-righteous sounding TC colleagues became sarcastic about his use of IB's (Irrational Beliefs) and other abbreviations, and ended by saying that in the TC they dealt with real people. Completely unphased, Ellis took time to repeat his description of the REBT process and concluded by asking them, "Who do you think are in our groups but real f.... ing people?" Then, to my amazement, he said that he wanted us to join him in singing some Rational Emotive songs. Pages were quickly passed around the very large audience and Ellis started singing in his really awful voice and amazingly most of the audience joined in. The songs were intended to do what NLP people would probably call "changing the context" from problems that are "terrible and awful, and I can't stand it" to laughable awfulising. One verse ending that I remember was "Maybe if you make life easy I'll get off my ass." Another ended with "whine, whine, whine."
I subsequently studied REBT and took part in an Ellis Group, very laid back and, of course, disputational. All were free to intervene.
Dealing with a person who laid perfectionist demands on himself and also heavily criticized himself, Ellis also offered him a mantra,"I'm a normal f.... ed up fallible human being, and that's okay!" for ongoing use. He also grouped "should, "must" and "ought" under the heading of "must," and in the institute's hallway was a big sign which read "MUSTERBATION IS SELF ABUSE." That got your attention. I was subsequently told by a New York psychotherapist that the Institute's groups provided the cheapest therapy in NY. I have to say that I admired his guts and determination, to say nothing of his vast output in books, tapes and CDs. I also added training in the method for our TC staff, subsequently merged in Multimodal Therapy and introduced by Ellis's former chief trainer Richard Wessler.
Thanks again. Sad news!
Jim Cumberton
DPA, Dublin
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