It describes my life--including my sense of betrayal and loss of hope when I realized the extent to which I'd been hurt by my entanglement with a charismatic narcissist. My parents were narcissisitic, so I got excellent training. The person I got entangled with engendered my interest in cultic situations. He did not run a cult in the conventional sense; he preferred a private life, and hi
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

before we go to bat to try to stop these groups--which includes writing any feature stories. These LGATS are powerful. Most important thing we can do is post warnings on places like Craigslist.org whenever an LGAT with a troubled track record advertises a training. You could post a warning in the LA craigslist in their 'community' section and give the URL for this discussion thr
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

..but vulnerability is on a continuum. There's the 'ordinary' vulnerablity that comes from being human, from wishing to be connected, and from the ordinary human desire to avoid a painful emotional experience that social psychologists call 'cognitive dissonance.'* (See footnote below) Then there are deeper forms of vulnerability that come from lifestyle disruptions and
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

rather than 'wrong'. It used to be assumed that people who became entangled in cults were neurotic, gullible or lacked intelligence. Not so. What we have come to understand is: 1) Many of these groups now have decades of experience and have developed sophisticated powerful tactics that utilize tried and true techniques derived from marketing, peer pressure, neurolinguistic programm
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

For my own entertainment, I went to went to the LA bulletin board, and then went to 'classes/events'. (The CL for LA has this section, as does NYC.). On the classes/events section I saw this listing It looks like a classic LGAT--little or no info about the trainer or his/her organization. And no information about what will be done during the event. If you ever see something
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

sucked in...another ingredient in the brew cooked up by these trainers is 'transferance'--the ability to foster a rapid, extremely POWERFUL emotional connection between the subjects and the trainer by using emotional intimacy and 'sharing' exercises. In genuine psychotherapy, transferance develops gradually as the counselee trusts the therapist. And the therapist is a trai
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

If you have a website there are ways (I am not familiar with the methodology) that you can track who the domain name is registered to. You can use this method to identify set ups where a single organization is using mulitiple names. But if someone doesnt have a website, that makes it harder to track them down...precisely what some types are after. You might consider writing a courteous 'h
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

...you are referring to? If so, I found this on Google by doing an advanced search and typing the person's name into the 'exact phrase slot' and 'Las Vegas' into 'all words' slot. If this is the person you're referring to (and we need to do more checking as this is a very common name) the KB refered to in Google is (or once was) associated with som
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

If you live in one of the cities where has a bulletin board, you might consider posting a query/warning about this LGAT in the 'community discussions' listing. That way you can 1) warn others about this scam and 2) get further information in case someone reads your posting. You can arrange for your listing to carry an anonymous e-mail address. If anyone does respond, you can arrange to
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

I will go looking for his books! There is another big difference between your experience working on yourself using Dr Burn's books, vs Landmark: you created your own learning enviroment when you worked on yourself using Burns' books. In many problematic LGATs, the social environment is imposed on you, and its not a learning environment--its an indoctrination set up. In the proble
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

is an excellent resource. Registering is easy and they have just about everything that has ever been printed in English. When you verify that they have the edition that you want, check Amazon.com and Barnesnoble.com, do some comparison pricing, and then place your order!
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

It greatly works in your favor that you were able to challenge them before you left. It is much harder when someone has given the best years of their lives to a group and then to be ejected by them--that's worse. Far better to defy them--you take your power back. It sounds like you dont really 'need' recovery because you already have it. It is indeed wrong that they continue
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Recovery goes in 3 approximate steps: 1) Owning your boundaries, your anger at being lied to and manipulated and re-connecting with your health sense of entitlement that you are not supposed to be lied to or used as an object in someone's esoteric project. 2) Stop making excuses for the teacher and group. Feel free to get pissed off. Identify the precise means that were used to lie
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

(Before you read further, make sure you are in a good place and have some Kleenex and/or a good friend you can call. I am offering some ideas that may help clarify what happened to you but you may find some of this very upsetting. If you're feeling fragile you can keep this post for later) The reason I was a bit cautious when responding to your post is that while I have never (Thank GOD!
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

You could consider going to Google, going to 'groups' and signing on to one of the alt groups. In the cluster alt.consciousness there is a 'Fourth Way' group. A number of members appear to have escaped from bogus Fourth Way groups. You could post your inquiry there and see if you get any replies. Be prepared to demonstrate that you are a safe, kind person and have integrity
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Even though he was white, JJ gained a huge following from the black community. One thing that has wounded many black churches is that so many congregations hunger for a leader, and personality cults so easily crystallize around the minister, who has traditionally been the most educated, articulate member of the community. The black communities desperately need to examine why, historically they h
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

the group are 'where the action is'. You have to look past the beauty of the music, the dancing, and see exactly what that beauty is serving. Beauty can serve a deceitful, ugly agenda. It takes great discipline to retain discriminating intellect when you're being blissed out and swept off your feet by ravishing music. But, if you value your liberty, you must be willing to stay sob
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

...if you're curious, Leo Booth has a superb book entitled When God Becomes a Drug---it examines how many of us are led into using spirituality as an addiction. Hope has been reading it and got a lot out of it. It is an especially valuable book for people who have been wounded by unhealthy interpretations of Christianity. Two rules of thumb: look for a church or tradition that balances wi
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

it appears that you've been fortunate enough to find excellent congregations that foster a healthy emotional/intellectual climate. There are healthy churches and there are sick churches--just ask your pastor!. It appears you found a healthy church--and a vibrant one, too. It isnt just emotionally oriented people who are vulnerable. Any of us can become vulnerable if we are in crisis, bere
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

there's such a thing as balanced spirituality and unbalanced spirituality. Anything can mess you up if it isnt integrated into your entire life--just look at people who go crazy using addiction to gambling, jogging, football on TV, overwork...and yes, spirituality. If you have a personality where you tend to take things to extremes, you can be at risk of overdoing matters--including spiritua
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

These New Age teachers and cults always, always start with a kernal of truth, a glimmer of beauty. Very often they appropriate wonderful teachings from a variety of valid spiritual traditions, then take the teachings out of context (usually by discarding the moral guidelines and humble daily disciplines that were supposed to accompany the teachings. For example, some of the most advanced Tibetan
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

This forum exists to serve the specific needs of persons who have looked carefully at their lives and have reached the reasonable conclusion that their experience with a teacher, leader,group or a problematic LGAT left them in worse shape financially and psychologically than before they participated. Just as there are resources for persons who have suffered from physician malpractice, this forum
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

in evaluating situations like this: go to go to the section on cults and read 'Evaluating Spiritual and Utopian Groups.' It is commonplace for untrained healers to argue that the functioning ego is a trap. The thing is, the functioning ego is like our skeletons. We need it in order to function on a day to day basis. Genuine spiritual growth preserves the integrity of your ego, bu
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

the key thing is whether the use of psychology is conducted honestly or deceitfully, whether it is in the best interest of the client, and whether there is accountability to something objective that is outside of the client practitioner relationship--eg laws, a standard of care that a group of practitioners have arrived at by consensus, professional codes of ethics, etc. The problem with mave
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

My therapist specializes in working with severely traumatized people--he is an expert on dissociative disorders--PTSD, the spectrum of dissociative reactions, even multiple personality disorder. His philosophy is to create a safe but boundaried environment so that people can slow down, feel safe, and their stuff surface on its own schedule--like a midwife who assists a mother through the natural
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Some random thoughts: I agree 100% that it is out of order to convene a 'meditation group' then turn it into a forum for a medium to channel some entity, whether real or bogus. Here are some issues: 1) It is common for many people to equate the spiritual with the psychic. (the two domains are different. Spiritual practice involves transcending the ego while staying grounded in ord
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

This URl will give you a list of news flashes from East Bay Express in columnar format. Keep scrolling down and you will find Duby. Gives intriguing information about his background. All hail, Google!
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

of the citation from 'metroactive'--it was originally published in October, 2001 in East Bay Express.
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

I hear it involves trance induction, but I am unsure of the precise details. Am curious: 1) what was taught & were they honest with you about what it would involve? 2)how it affected you (for better, for worse, or both?) 3)would you do it again, knowing what you know now 4) if you stopped using Silva, why you chose to do so.
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Rick Ross may be able to point you in their direction if you cant find contact info on the net. They are: Margaret Thaler Singer Ph.D, emeritus professor of psychology at UC Berkeley and Janja Lalitch Ph.D, Dept of Sociology, Cal State Chico. Singer is one of the foremost authorities in the world on cults, and Janja Lalitch is also coming into her own as a first class scholar on the subject.
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"