Guide to the Betty Grover Eisner papers SC0924

University Archives staff
Department of Special Collections and University Archives
February 2009; January 2024
Green Library
557 Escondido Mall
Stanford 94305-6064
Fax Number: (650) 723-8690
specialcollections@stanford.edu

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Contributing Institution: Department of Special Collections and University Archives
Title: Betty Grover Eisner papers
Identifier/Call Number: SC0924
Physical Description: 10 Linear Feet
Date (inclusive): 1927-2002
Abstract: Papers documenting Betty Grover Eisner's career in clinical psychology and experimental use of LSD and other drugs. Includes narrative reports and audio recordings of drug therapy sessions, articles and conference papers, book manuscripts, journals, legal documents, journals, personal and professional correspondence, and other materials.
Language of Material: English .

Biography

Betty Grover Eisner (1915-2004), a clinical psychologist best known for her experiments with LSD and other psychoactive drugs, was born Helen Elizabeth Grover in Kansas City, MO. After completing high school in Kansas City, she attended Stanford University and earned a B.A. in political science in 1937. She volunteered with the Red Cross during World War II, then spent a year in the late 1940s traveling Europe, Asia, and Africa with her first husband, fellow Stanford graduate Will Eisner. She documented their trip in a series of columns published in the Los Angeles Times.
Eisner earned a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1956. She completed her dissertation on the psychology of infertile women, but by the time she graduated her primary professional interest had shifted to the use of LSD as an aid to psychotherapy. She conducted LSD experiments with Dr. Sidney Cohen at a Veterans' Administration hospital in Los Angeles, and later established a private psychotherapy practice in Santa Monica. After psychiatric research with LSD was banned in the United States in the late 1960s, Eisner experimented with using other drugs to promote psychological breakthroughs in patients, including ketamine and injectable Ritalin. Other treatments favored by Eisner included the inhalation of carbogen (a mix of 70% oxygen and 30% carbon dioxide), hot mineral baths, massage, and "blasting," a technique in which a patient was encouraged to release hostility by yelling while muffled by a washcloth.
In 1976, one of Eisner's patients died following mineral bath treatment and blasting therapy. A wrongful death investigation ensued, as well an ethics investigation by the American Psychological Association. The Psychology Examining Committee of the California Board of Medical Quality Assurance revoked Eisner's license to practice in 1978. Eisner twice attempted to have her license restored in the early 1980s. Both attempts were unsuccessful.
Eisner was the author of The Unused Potential of Marriage and Sex , published in 1970, as well as an unpublished book based on her group therapy work, I Can't, You Can't, But We Can. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, she authored several journal articles and conference papers on her use of LSD and other drugs in psychotherapy In 2002, she wrote a memoir titled Remembrances of LSD Therapy Past. Although unpublished, this memoir is available on the World Wide Web. Eisner also wrote song lyrics in the 1970s under the pseudonym Rev. B. Later in life, she wrote poetry under the name Abigail Bradbury. She and her second husband, Bill Micks, helped to found the Center for Learning, a school for the teaching of English in Mexico.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Betty Grover Eisner papers, (SC0924). Stanford University Archives, Stanford, Calif.

Arrangement

The collection consists of six series: Series 1: Personal and Family Papers; Series 2: Writing; Series 3: Correspondence; Series 4: Legal Files; Series 5: Therapy and Research Files; and Series 6: Audio Materials.

Acquisition Information

Gift of Betty Grover Eisner, 2001.

Publication Rights

Property rights reside with the repository. Literary rights reside with the creators of the documents or their heirs. To obtain permission to publish or reproduce, please contact the Public Services Librarian of the Dept. of Special Collections.

Access

With the exception of Series 2, Series 3 and the world trip materials in Series 1, access to the collection is restricted according to the Department's Access to Health Information of Individuals Policy. Please contact the University Archivist for more information.

Scope and Content of Collection

The papers document Betty Grover Eisner's career in clinical psychology as well as the intersection of her career with her personal life. Included are detailed narrative reports on Eisner's use of LSD and other drugs in conjunction with psychotherapy; audio tapes of drug sessions; numerous articles and conference papers as well as drafts of two books by Eisner; dream journals, free association writing, and other personal writing; legal papers and supporting documents related to an investigation of Eisner for wrongful death and the subsequent revocation of her professional license; and professional and family correspondence. Prominent correspondents include Sidney J. Cohen, Herman Denber, Albert Hoffman, Krishnamurti, Anais Nin, Ron Sandison, and Lewis Terman.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

Group psychoanalysis
Group psychotherapy
Psychoanalysis
Correspondence.
sound recordings
Psychotherapy
Psychologists
Articles.
LSD (Drug) -- Therapeutic use

 

Writing Series 2 1957-2002, undated

Series Description

The bulk of this series consists of journal articles, conference papers, and other professional writing by Eisner. Most of these works have been published, although some are unpublished manuscripts. There is also a copy of a manuscript for Eisner's book The Unused Potential of Marriage and Sex (published 1970) and an unpublished manuscript based on Eisner's experiences with group therapy titled I Can't, You Can't, But We Can.
Later in life Eisner pursued creative writing and composed poetry under the name Abigail Bradbury. Although there are no examples of her poetry in this series, there are manuscripts of a series of fables, titled "New Fables for New Times," written by Eisner in the early 1990s.

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically.
Box 5, folder 1

"Current Thinking on LSD Therapy" (with Sidney Cohen) 1957

Box 5, folder 2

"Psychotherapy with Lysergic Acid Diethylamide" (written with Sidney Cohen) 1958

Box 5, folder 3

"Subjective Reports on Lysergic Acid Experiences... " (with Sidney Cohen and Lionel Fischman) 1958

Box 5, folder 4

"The Influence of LSD on Unconscious Activity" 1961

Box 5, folder 6

"Some Psychological Differences Between Fertile and Infertile Women" 1963

Box 5, folder 7

"Notes on the Use of Drugs to Facilitate Group Psychotherapy" 1964

Box 5, folder 8

"Psychedelics and People as Adjuncts to Psychotherapy" 1964

Box 5, folder 9

"The Importance of the Non-Verbal" 1965

Box 5, folder 10

The Unused Potential of Marriage and Sex, original manuscript [1 of 3] 1970

Box 5, folder 11

The Unused Potential of Marriage and Sex, original manuscript [2 of 3] 1970

Box 5, folder 12

The Unused Potential of Marriage and Sex, original manuscript [3 of 3] 1970

Box 5, folder no folder

The Unused Potential of Marriage and Sex 1970

Box 5, folder 13

"The Group as a Means and Matrix for Change" 1971

Box 5, folder 14

See You To-Morrow, by the Children of Mexcales (words by Betty Eisner, pictures by Les McCann) 1972

Box 5, folder 15

"The Use of an Alpha Feedback Machine in a Therapeutic Problem Solving Setting" (with Jonathan D. Melvin) 1972

Box 5, folder 16

"The Two Faces of Man's Problem Today" 1974

Box 5, folder 17

"Networking Provides Realtime Application Upgrade from TRT-11 to VMS" (with Jonathan D. Melvin) 1987

Box 5, folder 18

"New Fables for New Times," manuscripts and drafts [1 of 2] circa 1987

Box 6, folder 1

"New Fables for New Times," manuscripts and drafts [2 of 2] circa 1987

Box 6, folder 2

"New Fables for New Times," manuscripts and drafts [3 of 3] circa 1987

Box 6, folder 3

"Huaulta -- Place Where Eagles Are Born," manuscript and drafts circa 1994

Box 6, folder 4

"Physical and Psychical Loading," paper read at Society for Scientific Exploration meeting 1995

Box 6, folder 5

Response to Daniel J. Benor's comments on "loading" and "telesomatic reactions" 1996

Box 6, folder 6

"The Sick Role Versus the Dying Role," (written with Humphrey Osmond) 1996

Box 6, folder 7

"Body Work and Psychological Healing" 1997

Box 6, folder 8

"Set, Setting, and Matrix" 1997

Box 6, folder 9

Excerpt from Remembrance of LSD Therapy Past 2002

Box 6, folder 10

I Can't, You Can't, But We Can, third draft (final?) [1 of 3] undated

Box 6, folder 11

I Can't, You Can't, But We Can, third draft (final?) [2 of 3] undated

Box 6, folder 12

I Can't, You Can't, But We Can, third draft (final?) [3 of 3] undated

Box 6, folder 13

Living in the Now, foreword, chapter 1, and appendix D undated

Box 6, folder 14

"Observations on Possible Order Within the Unconscious" undated

Box 6, folder 15

"Observations on the Psychotherapeutic Use of Ritalin" undated

Box 6, folder 16

"The Paradox of Carroll John Daly," manuscript and research material (includes manuscript of a Daly short story) undated

Box 6, folder 17

"Parallel Experiences" undated

 

Correspondence Series 3 1946-1998

Series Description

This series consists primarily of Eisner's professional correspondence. However, since Eisner developed close friendships with many colleagues who shared her interest in LSD and other drug research, much of the content is of a personal nature. Some files also include clippings and other materials. Researchers should note the presence of additional correspondence in other series, particularly in Series 1: Family Papers.

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by last name of correspondent.
Box 7, folder 1

Abramson, Harold 1957-1968, 1994

Language of Material: English.
Box 7, folder 2

Cohen, Sidney J. [1 of 2] 1967-1997, undated

Language of Material: English.
Box 7, folder 3

Cohen, Sidney J. [2 of 2] 1967-1997, undated

Language of Material: English.
Box 7, folder 4

Denber, Herman [1 of 3] 1957-1998

Language of Material: English.
Box 7, folder 5

Denber, Herman [2 of 3] 1957-1998

Language of Material: English.
Box 7, folder 6

Denber, Herman [3 of 3] 1957-1998

Language of Material: English.
Box 7, folder 7

Graf, Stanya 1965-1993

Language of Material: English.
Box 7, folder 8

Harman, Willis 1957-1997

Language of Material: English.
Box 7, folder 9

Hoffman, Albert [1 of 2] 1976-1997

Language of Material: English.
Box 7, folder 10

Hoffman, Albert [2 of 2] 1976-1997

Language of Material: English.
Box 8, folder 1

Hubbard, Al 1957-1965, undated

Box 8, folder 2

Jung, Carl 1952-1972

Box 8, folder 3

Krishnamurti, J. [1 of 3] 1946-1986

Box 8, folder 4

Krishnamurti, J. [2 of 3] 1946-1986

Box 8, folder 5

Krishnamurti, J. [3 of 3] 1946-1996

Box 8, folder 6

Martin, Joyce 1957, 1963-1970

Box 8, folder 7

Naranjo, Caludio 1965, 1981

Box 8, folder 8

Nin, Anais, correspondence and clippings 1958-1992

Box 8, folder 14

Osment, Humphrey 1961-1970

Language of Material: English.
Box 8, folder 9

Powers, Tom and Zip Riley 1957-1995

Box 8, folder 10

Sandison, Ron and Margaret [1 of 3] 1958-1997

Box 8, folder 11

Sandison, Ron and Margaret [2 of 3] 1958-1997

Box 8, folder 12

Sandison, Ron and Margaret [3 of 3] 1958-1997

Box 8, folder 13

Terman, Lewis 1946-1956

Box 8, folder 15

Miscellaneous correspondence