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Synanon: Therapeutic Methods and Lifestyle
Dederich had spent time in Alcoholics Anonymous and used that organization's group-therapy methods in treating drug addicts, as well as aspects of a psychodrama approach. The Synanon Prayer and many Synanon sayings came from the point of view of Ralph Waldo Emerson in "Self-Reliance." The foundation of Synanon's approach was a group therapy technique known as the 'Synanon Game,' in which members could say anything to one another. The leaders of the group, known as the 'Elders,' made decisions through public Games. Especially successful or contentious Games were often recorded and used as teaching tools.

Synanon did not offer drugs to ease the withdrawal process, but left addicts to their own devices. Early on, Synanites were encouraged to smoke tobacco as it was thought to ease their cravings, but in 1968, the community went smoke-free. Incoming members went through a 48-hour process known as "The Trip" in order to acclimate them into Synanon. The Trip involved sleep deprivation, hard physical labor, and verbal abuse. It was designed to be a cathartic experience. Dederich often employed "tough love" methods to shame those who relapsed into their addiction or committed other infractions. The most famous of these was head shaving, which originally involved only men but expanded in the early 1970s to include women. When some women requested to grow their hair back, Dederich is said to have replied, "If you put long hair on a dog, you get a long-haired dog."

Synanon discouraged the formation of the traditional family unit. Children were raised communally and separated from their parents, often in different states. Synanon owned facilities in Marin County and Oakland in California as well as in Lake Havasu, Arizona, Chicago, Illinois and Kerhonkson, New York. He eventually ordered male members to have vasectomies, and it was alleged that at least one pregnant woman was forced or coerced into having an abortion. In 1978, he instituted a practice called "changing partners," in which marriages were forcibly broken up and adults were assigned new spouses.

Synanon: Notable members
Matthew "Stymie" Beard, actor Bruce Gilbert, rock musician Bill Goodson, choreographer John Maher, founder of Delancey Street Joe Pass, jazz guitarist Art Pepper, jazz saxophonist and clarinetist Arnold Ross, jazz pianist Deborah Swisher, writer of That's So Raven and a one-woman show about growing up in Synanon Lewis Yablonsky, sociologist and author