I have never read beyond the first page of the MindFields promotional leaflets. Any therapeutic approach that seems to offer itself as ‘the way, the Truth and the Light’ I tend to bin. In my eyes, MindFields leaflets appear to offer quick fixes that pander more to funders than any serious attempt to help people in psychological distress. Michael Soth’s criticism (Therapy Today, February 2010) that the Human Givens (HG) approach ignores the ‘giants on whose shoulders we all have the benefit of standing’ certainly rang true for me. Therefore, it was most interesting to read Ivan Tyrrell’s robust defence of the HG approach in response to Michael Soth. In his letter, (Therapy Today, March 2010) Tyrrell acknowledges other ‘giants’, outlines the way the HG approach has developed and presents a case for the effectiveness of working from the HG model. If the promotional literature reflected more of this, it might be more appealing.

I hope that Ivan Tyrrell as Principal of MindFields College reflects on the feedback from Michael Soth and Ian Stevenson (March 2010). I can’t speak with their authority about the HG approach, but it’s clear to me that MindFields’ promotional publicity lacks humility. The MindFields College message might reach me and others if they ditched the evangelical style and produced less irritating, grandiose promotional material.

Anita Tedder
MBACP (Snr Accred) counsellor and supervisor