FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:                             

CONTACT: Chuck Lakin

                                                                                    (602) 956-6196

marnie@erickson-foundation.org

PROCESS, PRACTICE, AND MAGIC – CONTINUING THE EXPERIENTIAL APPROACH OF CARL WHITAKER EXPLORES AND CONTRASTS TODAY’S “EMPIRE OF OVERREGULATION” IN THE FIELD OF PSYCHOTHERAPY TO A WHITAKER PARADIGM.

As a case for re-humanizing family therapy, as opposed to numbly accepting its soulless “medicalization” in the name of safety and profitability, author David Keith scrutinizes an interview conducted more than 35 years ago by Carl Whitaker and highlights why Whitaker’s unconventional ways worked. Bravely challenging the status quo, Keith rallies for renewed freedom of language and developing a therapeutic Self, and explains how spending time with a “Crazyman” can be good for all concerned.

PHOENIX, Ariz. – June 12, 2014 – Carl Whitaker, one of the most influential family therapists of the 20th century, had his loyal following, including David Keith with whom he was a longtime friend, teacher, mentor, co-therapist and collaborator. He also had naysayers, such as one therapist who shortly after Whitaker’s death in 1995 called him a “Crazyman.” But, if a Crazyman means a “full-fledged human being: thoughtful, imaginative, down-to-earth, curious, spiritual, smart, playful, inconsistent, tough, tender, ironic, supportive, rebellious, self-deprecating, loving, and generous,” then a Crazyman is exactly who Keith had chosen to spend a 33-year relationship with – and, he recommends it for other therapists.

For Keith, Whitaker embodied therapeusis, “that elusive complex, energetic, and abstract core of psychotherapy.” And due to his relationship with Whitaker, Keith calls for a higher order — the reshaping of clinical minds. He proposes that therapists learn to listen more carefully, and that they playfully and energetically use language in all its forms — irony, syntax, metaphor, etc. — as opposed to relying on evidence-based methods. Irony, especially, commands Keith’s full attention because the Empire of Overregulation he states leads to a squelched spirit; spirits often high in ‘irony deficiency.” Keith instead champions semiotics, offering an analogy of a forest: “alive, recycling, blossoming, growing, consuming.” He considers semiotics the enigmatic soul of the art of psychotherapy, its heart being caring and empathy. If not for the evil Empire with its bloodless language of “business-eze,” bureaucracy, and bottom-lines, therapists could be free to pursue the passion of truly helping others.

Carl Whitaker took giant steps in this direction, and David Keith is in for the long-haul. Like a marathon runner, Keith has taken up the torch of therapeutic freedom, redefining what it means to really care for patients. Godspeed!

For more information visit: http://erickson-foundation.org/

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Jeffrey K. Zeig, PhD Director: The Milton H. Erickson Foundation Telephone: 480-389-4342 Web site: www.evolutionofpsychotherapy.com Email: jeff@erickson-foundation.org

Location: Anaheim Venue: Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim Hilton, and Anaheim Marriott Dates: December 11-15, 2013

THE EVOLUTION OF PSYCHOTHERAPY: A CONFERENCE

International experts assemble to describe state-of-the-art methods to solve problems in behavioral health and relationships.

Master practitioners in the field of human psychology will present their latest research on a wide range of topics to an audience of more than 7,000 registrants at the largest psychotherapy conference in the world. The topics include post-traumatic stress disorders, depression, anxiety disorders, marital problems, stress and its consequences, personality disorders, and major mental illness.

Special keynote speaker of this year’s Conference include, Alanis Morissette, a singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer and actress who has won 16 Juno Awards, seven Grammy Awards, and was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards; Aaron Beck, MD, an American psychiatrist who has been widely regarded as the father of cognitive therapy; Gerard Edelman, MD, Ph., Director of The Neurosciences Institute in La Jolla, California and Professor at The Scripps Research Institute who received the Nobel Prize for his work on the structure and function of antibodies; and James Foley, a filmmaker of complex themes highlighted by finely-tuned performances coaxed from a wide range of actors. His movies include Glengarry Glen Ross and Perfect Stranger. He also directed the award-winning series House of Cards, and Twin Peaks.

Invited keynote speakers include, Diane Ackerman, MFA, PhD, the author of 23 books of poetry and nonfiction; Daniel Amen, MD, a psychiatrist, brain-imaging specialist, teacher, and New York Times best-selling author; Paul Ekman, PhD, author of 13 books including Emotions Revealed & Emotional Awareness, coauthored with the Dalai Lama and one of TIME magazine’s 100 most influential people; and Michael Gazzaniga, PhD, a Professor of Psychology and the Director for the SAGE Center for the Study of Mind at the University of California Santa Barbara who oversees an extensive research program investigating how the brain enables the mind.

All Conference faculty members are experts who have written best-selling, popular books, and who frequently appear in the national media. Other keynote speakers are: Martin Seligman, Salvador Minuchin, and Irvin Yalom. The primary faculty is comprised of Albert Bandura, David Barlow, John & Julie Gottman, Jean Houston, Otto Kernberg, Marsha Linehan, Cloé Madanes, Donald Meichenbaum, Erving Polster, Ernest Rossi, Francine Shapiro, and Jeffrey Zeig.

The state-of-the-art faculty includes Judith Beck, Claudia Black, David Burns, Jon Carlson, Nicholas Cummings, Robert Dilts, Stephen Gilligan, Steven Hayes, Harville Hendrix, Sue Johnson, Jack Kornfield, Harriet Lerner, Peter Levine, Scott Miller, William Miller, Bill O’Hanlon, Violet Oaklander, Christine Padesky, Mary Pipher, Daniel Siegel, Derald Wing Sue, Bessel van der Kolk, Michele Weiner-Davis, and Michael Yapko.

Tabbed by Time magazine “the largest gathering ever devoted to the practice of psychotherapy,” the Evolution of Psychotherapy Conference is held every four years. As the “Woodstock of Psychotherapy,” registrants come from every state and more than50 countries worldwide. Currently, there are 400 registrants from Canada, 300 from Australia, and 50 from China. Registration is limited to health/mental health professionals and graduate students from accredited institutions. Commencing in 1985, the greatest minds in psychotherapy have served on the Conference faculty.

This is an unparalleled opportunity for in-depth interviews on any mental health topic.

For more information visit: evolutionofpsychotherapy.com

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For additional information or interviews, contact Jeffrey K. Zeig, PhD.