WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 2012 Four young men have taken the rare step of suing a facility that provides so-called “reparative therapy,” and the individuals who run it, claiming that the techniques used to “cure” their homosexuality included ones that inflicted psychological damage. The suit was filed yesterday in Hudson County (N.J.) Superior Court…
Understanding and Coping with Triggers
Carol Giambalvo; Joseph Kelly Dissociation is a disturbance in the normally integrative functions of identity, memory, or consciousness. It is also known as a trance state. It is a very normal defense mechanism. You’ve all probably heard of how a child being abused—or persons in the midst of traumatic experiences—dissociate. Those…
How Meditation May Change the Brain
New York Times Sindya N. Bhanoo January 28, 2011 Over the December holidays, my husband went on a 10-day silent meditation retreat. Not my idea of fun, but he came back rejuvenated and energetic. He said the experience was so transformational that he has committed to meditating for two hours…
Deprogramming: A Case Study Part II: Conversation Analysis
Steve K. Dubrow-Eichel, Ph.D. RETIRN Philadelphia Abstract This article continues the examination of a successful deprogramming of an International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) devotee (cultist) described in Cultic Studies Journal Special Issue Vol. 6, No. 2. The deprogramming was observed and audiotaped. A sample consisting of 1,938 speech fragments…
Cult Formation
Cult Formation Robert J. Lifton, M.D. John Jay College Abstract Cults represent one aspect of a worldwide epidemic of ideological totalism, or fundamentalism. They tend to be associated with a charismatic leader, thought reform, and exploitation of members. Among the methods of thought reform commonly used by cults are milieu…
Post-Cult Problems: An Exit Counselor’s Perspective
Classification of Ex-Members There are several classifications of ex-members, based on how they left the cult. Former members usually fit into one of the following: 1. Those who had interventions. 2. Those who left on their own, or walkaways 3. Those who were expelled, or castaways Walkaways and castaways need…
Deprogramming, Exit Counseling, and Ethics: Clarifying the Confusion
Langone, Michael D., Ph.D., and Martin, Paul, Ph.D., “Deprogramming, Exit Counseling, and Ethics: Clarifying the Confusion,” Christian Research Journal, Winter 1993 (Reprinted with permission.) In the late 1960s and early 1970s increasing numbers of parents began to observe and report striking and frightening changes in their young-adult children. Formerly serious, high-achieving, well-adjusted students…
From Deprogramming to Thought Reform Consultation
Presentation by Carol Giambalvo, Thought Reform Consultant Panel of Discussants: Joseph Kelly, Thought Reform Consultant; Patrick Ryan, Thought Reform Consultant; Hana Whitfield, Thought Reform Consultant AFF Conference,Chicago, ILNovember 1998 Deprogramming Early on, according to what some “old-timers” have told us, groups such as the Children of God allowed parental access — even visits to…
How can I get my kid out of a cult?
Families and friends of a cult-involved person tend to ask the second question. Former group members and others interested in cults tend to ask the former question. However, since the answer to the latter question requires an understanding of the answer to the former question, we will first explain why…
Coming Out of the Cults
Excerpted from “Coming Out of the Cults,” Psychology Today, January, 1979 Margaret Thaler Singer, Ph.D. Most ex-cult members we have seen struggle at one time or another with some or all of the following difficulties and problems. Not all have all of these problems, nor do most have them in…