Leonard Neff (July 8, 1925 – March 26, 2006) was an American psychiatrist, known for his work with military veterans and adolescents and his work on

post-traumatic stress disorder Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental disorder that develops from experiencing a Psychological trauma, traumatic event, such as sexual assault, domestic violence, child abuse, warfare and its associated traumas, natural disaster ...

(PTSD).Jocelyn Y. Stewart
Leonard Neff, 80; Doctor Diagnosed Vets' Stress
''Los Angeles Times'' (April 9, 2006). Neff was also known for his successful resolution of a high-profile hostage event which took place in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

in 1974 and in which three people were held at gunpoint by a Vietnam War veteran who was experiencing a flashback to his wartime experiences.

Early life and education

Neff was born in

Peoria, Illinois Peoria ( ) is a city in Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. Located on the Illinois River, the city had a population of 113,150 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Ill ...

on July 8, 1925. He studied at the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...

before being drafted in the U.S. Army, where he served in the

Pacific Theater of World War II The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theatre, was the Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the Empire of Japan and the Allies of World War II, Allies in East Asia, East and Southeast As ...

but did not experience combat.

Career

Work with veterans

Neff was a founding member of the Vietnam Veteran's Working Group, a group of mental health professionals who met at a meeting of the American Psychological Association in

Anaheim, California Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States, part of the Greater Los Angeles area. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orang ...

in the early 1970s and who believed that veterans of the Vietnam War often experienced a unique set of psychological problems that were not being addressed by the greater mental health care community. In her 2005 autobiography ''My Life So Far'',

Jane Fonda Jane Seymour Fonda (born December 21, 1937) is an American actress and activist. Recognized as a film icon, Jane Fonda filmography, Fonda's work spans several genres and over six decades of film and television. She is the recipient of List of a ...

describes Neff's work with Vietnam veterans, along with that of fellow psychiatrists Robert Lifton, Chaim Shatan, and Sarah Haley, as "tireless and empathetic".

1974 hostage event

In 1974 a 22-year-old Vietnam veteran named Johnny Gabron escaped from the Brentwood, California Veteran's Administration hospital while having a flashback to his combat experiences in Vietnam. He took three people hostage at gunpoint in Griffith Park, Los Angeles, and subsequently demanded to speak to his psychiatrist, Neff. Neff was flown in by helicopter (police blockades and news coverage caused the area of the city around the park to become gridlocked soon after incident began), and three hours later was able to end the armed standoff without incident. The issue increased public awareness of PTSD.

Later career

In 1995, Neff and his wife Essie, a psychotherapist, established the Child Development Institute in

Woodland Hills, Los Angeles Woodland Hills is a neighborhood bordering the Santa Monica Mountains in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California, United States. History The area was inhabited for around 8,000 years by Native Americans in the United States, ...

Death

Neff died on March 26, 2006, at his home in Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles, at the age of 80, of

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Neff, Robert American psychiatrists 1925 births 2006 deaths University of Illinois alumni United States Army personnel of World War II Deaths from pancreatic cancer in California