Lynne Finney


Lynne D. Finney was a lawyer and psychotherapist in Utah who specialized in repressed memories. She identified as a survivor, but was not aware of her own childhood abuse until she underwent hypnotherapy in her 40s. "I figured out that something terrible had happened to me."
Finney offered self-help workshops to the general public as well as specialized workshops for therapists on childhood abuse and psychological trauma. Finney also provided workshops for attorneys and judges on topics including sexual abuse, the psychology of enabling parents, and the reliability of testimony acquired through hypnosis. She became a popular speaker, appearing on over 100 radio and television shows, including Larry King Live.
Finney believed that repression of memories was the only way children can maintain sanity amidst abuse, explaining "Our minds... protect us from what we are unable to bear." Her technique involved embracing our negative emotions, advising clients, "ask yourself gently in your mind, 'When did I feel this way before?' Do your best to connect the feeling with something that happened in your childhood. Connecting the feelings with the abuse provides a permanent release." She encouraged those going through intense negative emotions to remind themselves: "What I am feeling now is coming from the past. These are old feelings. I can feel and survive them. I already have."
Finnie was consulted by Martha Beck, who practiced self-hypnosis under her guidance. Beck alleges she was sexually abused by her father, a claim her family vehemently denied and some claimed was the result of a constructed memory.

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