How to be happy though human / by W. Béran Wolfe.

in their cure while they are still in the plastic stage. Mental hygiene must begin with the nursing bottle. The pre-school kindergarten and the child guidance clinic are the bulwarks of the society of the future. How a Neurosis is Cured The last question, “ How can we cure a neurosis once it is established ? ” is more difficult to answer. There is no certain and guaranteed method. Some neurotics cure themselves by suddenly realizing, quite of their own insight, that the neurosis does not pay, and they then assume a normal expressive life. Others, as we have seen, “ dump ” their neuroses when they are no longer useful, without ever actually curing themselves of them. Some neurotics actually outgrow their neuroses in the course of a delayed maturation. Others relinquish neurotic behaviour in the course of business or marital experiences which demand greater objectivity. Some disappear with greater economic security. Some neuroses are dispelled by insight gained through reading or study, and it is our belief in the efficacy of this method which has prompted the writing of this book. But most neuroses get pro¬ gressively worse, and lead to greater and greater isolation and conflict unless some trained outsider can clarify the picture for the neurotic, redirect his energies and re-educate his point of view. Let us compare the average neurosis with the following situation. A foreigner sets out from Paris with the avowed intention of driving to Athens. His goal may or may not be within the powers of his endurance or the dependability of his motor-car. Let us suppose that, early in the course of his journey, he misreads a number of road signs because of his ignorance of the language or of the map. On the sixth day of his journey, when he should be in Jugoslavia, he finds himself lost in the Carpathians. He tours around vainly, attempting to find a landmark which will bring him back to the road