A Three-Part Assessment of the Work of Elnora Van Winkle

[Written in 2006.]

I was introduced to the work of Elnora Van Winkle, the originator of Redirecting Self Therapy (RST), by members of my original website’s now-defunct bulletin board.

Van Winkle, who passed away in 2001, was a scientist and psychological theorist who wrote about healing one’s traumas and mental illness through redirecting one’s buried anger back to one’s original traumatizers, primarily one’s parents. She claims to have discovered a foolproof method for recovery – which of course piqued my interest.

I have provided a link to websites about her work. Although some of her writing is disjointed and difficult to follow, it is worth perusing nonetheless in order to get a background for the three critiques that follow:

Oddly enough, I discovered that I had read Van Winkle’s work years ago. A close friend and colleague of mine in New York City, Frederick Timm, had been friends with Van Winkle for years and knew her well. Because the biographical information on her websites is limited, and is all based on self-reporting, I asked Fred Timm if he would grant an interview about Van Winkle, and he agreed. It provides a fascinating – and penetrating – view into her character, background, and work.

VAN WINKLE CRITIQUE #1

By her own account, Van Winkle’s self-therapy methods hinge on her neurochemical theories, but as I am no neuroscientist, I could not assess their accuracy myself. I contacted Grace Jackson, M.D., a prominent psychiatrist who publishes and lectures widely about the dangerous effects of psychiatric medications, and she agreed to assess Van Winkle’s scientific findings. Her paper, which is not too difficult to read and doesn’t mince words, is quite surprising – and shows us a thing or two about good science!

First, a bio of Dr. Jackson.

VAN WINKLE CRITIQUE #2

And finally, to wrap it all up, I wrote an overall assessment of Van Winkle’s work.

VAN WINKLE CRITIQUE #3

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