This week we read about this man over here to the left. A Viennese medical practitioner who employed techniques of talk therapy to his (largely female) clientele. In this day and age it is very popular to vilify the man - but is that really fair? He smoked cigars, shot a whole pile of coke and treated some patients. Sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn't. Not only did he treat others but he attempted to analyze himself. (bizarre, right??) Its always easier to throw rocks with the benefit of hindsight. The guy was a little weird but he did put some names and words to intuitions that still hold true to this day. Moms and Dads affect kids' lives... (or do they) The anal/oral/phallic stuff is a little creepy/crappy. The therapeutic value of his interventions is suspect; they are more than a little clunky and archaic, but let us not forget that he was a bonafide seminal figure in the world of psychology and counseling!! And really, how different is contemporary therapeutic practice from Freud’s. Practitioners do what they think is best and in the way they think might help someone. The research hasn’t cleared too much up. At least it doesn't really seem so yet.
