Try to Remember: Psychiatry's Clash Over Meaning, Memory, and Mind

The average person, reading "Try to Remember", would probably not have a clue as to why this book brings such a profound sense of relief to those who have suffered from the decades-long misadventures of "repressed memory" therapists. Using unscientific theories and backed by a society trying to help children from abusing parents, too many psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers were caught up in a self-righteous, but uncritical, labeling of innocent people as incestuous "perps". The accusers -- those who had gone to professionals for help with their problems -- were betrayed by the methods used, and their families were often devastated. The huge numbers of family members involved are usually grossly underestimated, since for the accused to speak up (against general societal sympathy for the "victim") could mean leaving question marks in the minds of their friends and acquaintances -- "where there's smoke, there's fire!". McHugh, a well-respected leader in the field of psychiatry, cuts through this web of passionate, but unscientific, theory and practice in a very lucid and readable book. He shows how it fits within a larger framework of the two main theoretical "camps" among psychiatric professionals, including the compromise between them in agreeing on superficial symptomatology, rather than underlying etiology, as the basis for the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual). This is no minor matter, since the DSM, the official classification of mental/behavioral disorders, is the basis for the treatment prescriptions arising from these diagnoses, as well as payment for the professionals. On top of all this, he gives a clear recommendation about how to go about choosing a therapist. It is a superb book, tying together how the main streams of psychiatric thought produced an unscientific DSM, how the "repressed memory" craze arose from one of those streams, and how to find a more realistic therapist in a sometimes nebulous field.

As a lawyer I recommend McHugh's latest book to any attorney who takes a case involving recovered memory that will turn on "expert testimony." Over one hundred years ago, common law judges observed that "experts come into court speaking of some profession or science in which they are supposed to have more skill and knowledge than the average judge or juror." (Ferguson v. Hubbell, 97 N.Y. 511) Dr. Paul McHugh is the former director of the Department of Psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. McHugh is recognized as an expert in the field of "recovered memory." Over the last 17 years he has testified against the widespread use of the therapy to bring out the patients' subconscious memories of some sexual abuse perpetrated by adults at a time when they were children. There are formidable defenders of this practice and theory of "recovered memory," both in the medical community and the popular media. McHugh, however, is appalled and disgusted by the bullying and demeaning practices that are used to bring out forgotten trauma. Patients are repeatedly instructed to "try to remember," and sometimes their memories are aided by hypnotism and auto-suggestion. The description of these practices reminds me of the Hubbard Electropsychometer used by the Church of Scientology, in which the person who is wired to the meter talks to the auditor and follows his directions. A typical result of this "auditing" is the case of a woman who remembered that she was in the crash of a rocket ship 2000 years ago on another planet. Eureka! The cause of her mental illness is found and she is now "cleared" to live a normal life. Lawyers might want to Shepardize the US Supreme Court decision in Daubert v. Merrell Dow (509 US 579 [1993] "the most important Supreme Court case you never heard of.") A judge cites Daubert when he dismisses a case which affords a significant triumph to Dr. McHugh's side. Read the book - it's a legal thriller.

This is a brilliant book by one of this country's foremost psychiatrists. Doctor McHugh exposes some of the "quacks" behind "recovered memories" scam that plagued the the fields of psychiatry and psychology in the 1980s and 1990s by providing an historical account of similar scams. Drawing on his own experience as a clinician, he then goes on to explain how this technique caused irreperable harm to both patients and to other victims who were falsely accused of sexual abuse. If McHugh stopped here, he would have written another good expose. But he goes further. He offers the reader rock-solid guidelines on how to avoid the pitfalls of psychiatry--how to avoid the "quacks" who are always out there ready to ensnare the unwary. This is a MUST-READ for anyone concerned with finding a psychiatrist who can truly helped to heal them or anyone who has already fallen into the clutches of a "quack" and seeks to escape from them. I have learned from this book an invaluable lesson in how to navigate the confusing healthcare system for qualified psychiatric care. Prior to reading this book I was completely in the dark as to how to find a truly good psychiatrist who could help me with my problems rather than the "phonies" that I had dealt with in the past. A patient in Massachusetts

"Try To Remember" is a devastating indictment of the recovered memory and multiple personality disorder fads that infected psychiatry in the 1980s and 1990s. The book describes psychiatric theory and practice in an engaging and understandable way, and contains numerous case studies and historical examples that provide a human context. It is a page turner. This book has a personal relevance for me because my mother was diagnosed with multiple personality disorder when I was about 10 years old. I did not see any evidence of alters before she entered therapy, but the longer my mother was in treatment, the more personalities she developed, until she had dozens that created chaos in our lives. This went on until we moved to a new location, my mother stopped seeing doctors, and the alters just disappeared. They went away on their own, never to return. Prof. McHugh describes this exact treatment path in numerous case studies in his book, and notes the common catchphrase that multiple personality disorder patients need to "get worse before they can get better." I remember those exact words from my mother's doctors, but she just got worse and worse, becoming delusional, abusive, and suicidal. The only thing that made my mother better was getting away from psychiatrists. My mother now believes that she was brainwashed with drugs and hypnosis, and I agree completely. So, how did this all happen? Why was my family put through all of that misery? My mother saw many doctors in three states, so no one bad-apple practitioner was responsible. There was some widespread, systematic problem with psychiatry. "Try to Remember" provides some answers, explaining how poorly tested psychiatric theories and patients' assumptions about the limitless power of psychiatry led to disaster for families like mine. The most interesting discussions for me were those describing the use of deductive vs. inductive reasoning in psychiatry and the fact that recovered memory doctors failed to see patients as individuals. Prof. McHugh describes how recovered memory doctors thought and how cultural forces made patients vulnerable to abuse. Although some of the material is technical, it is presented in a very understandable way, and the book is never boring. I am very grateful for this book, although it brings up extremely painful memories for me. I hope that "Try to Remember" helps bring honesty and change to psychiatry.

"Paul McHugh's `Try to Remember' is the most important record yet published of the "recovered memory" scandal. That was the exploitation of pathetic patients, and the perjury-poisoned criminal persecution of parents and caregivers, that tore at the hearts of American criminal justice and psychiatry from the 1980s onward. The perps were a deluded subspecies of psychologists and social workers, enrapt by an exaggeration of Sigmund Freud's perception of repressed memory. Their malpractice ranged from irresponsible to maniacal. They wrought incalculable -- and still ongoing -- horror on ostensible `victims' and utterly innocent `exploiters' alike. Dr. McHugh, chief of psychiatry at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and its hospital for 25 years until 2001, is one of the most distinguished psychiatrists living today. This book is obligatory reading for anyone connected with criminal justice, with psychological social work, or with education concerning the human mind and behavior. Beyond that moral mission, the book is an immensely readable and revealing tour of the state of cutting-edge, responsible psychiatry in America and beyond today." ---Michael Pakenham (former book editor and literary columnist, The Baltimore Sun)