"You ended up losing your family over this?” “I did.” Genesis Associates was an Exton, PA-based counseling practice which crashed and burned in the late 90's, leaving a long, scorchingly-painful trail of destruction in their wake. Founded by Pat Mansmann and Pat Neuhausel, Genesis employed the then-controversial,
now-largely-discredited
recovered memory therapy. Genesis also urged patients to "detach" (cut off contact) from their alleged abusers, as well as any individuals to whom they had become "addicted" - including their own
children. In a long, harshly critical
article in the Philadelphia Inquirer, a former patient is quoted as saying, "They had me brainwashed ... they get you so worn out, so confused, you can't think straight." A patient estranged from her children wrote, “The Genesis therapists were not only out to implant memories - they were out to destroy families and lives.” (“Betrayed” by Carol Diament; 3/4 of the way down
this page). The group's use of
detachment and
"rage therapy" were also prominently featured in the Frontline special "Divided Memories". Genesis was sued by dozens of former patients (
1,
2,
3); at least nine cases were
settled out of court. In 1999, Mansmann and Neuhausel
surrendered their licenses to practice in Pennsylvania. Unlike their patients', Mansmann and Neuhausel's relationship has remained tight... they're partners in an entity named
"WIC Enterprises", they co-own property in Key West (manual search
here) and,
as of 2008, they were both members of the "National Center for Crisis Management". Their attorney has since been
disbarred. The
book they co-authored is still available used on Amazon.
posted by julthumbscrew
on Oct 12, 2012 -
36 comments
