Anyone out there ever do Lifespring or EST during the '70's?

[absyntheNsugar]

I went through Lifespring as a kid and looking back I remember how much of a mind control cult this thing was! The program was part tent-revival, part Gestalt therapy. The whole goal in the end was to experience a bunch of extreme emotions with a bunch of people you barely knew, and then would pay to take the next level.

Really kooky - but then again so were the '70's. Anyone else do this?

[absyntheNsugar]

1. <bump> i really wanna know :)

nt

[smirkymonkey]

2. I did EST in the '80s

but it was know as the Forum. Kind of freaked me out - they kept trying to get me to recruit my friends. I have to admit, it was very creepy and cultlike.

Did nothing for me in any positive sense.

[Cassandra]

3. I did the Forum in 1987

and did a lot of other courses there, including the IFLP and the 6-day. I found it useful for shaking up my way of thinking, which really needed shaking up. I did find their emphasis on enrollment to be heavy handed. That's what can happen to even the most positive program when the size of the organization makes it dependent on increasing sales. I moved on about the time that Werner left.
I know tons of people who've done the Forum and/or Lifespring and they are all normally functioning, nice people (OK, they aren't all nice but most are).