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strategic interactive approach

Errant Belief #4: “He’s an Adult. We Have No Right to Interfere.”

2018-12-15T20:04:50-05:00March 1st, 2018|Blog|

Undue Influence Undermines Autonomy It is completely understandable that people might resist any request to help a person who has been unduly influenced. The person might say, "Why should I? They are an adult. I don't think it is right to interfere with their decision." If the person isn't asking for help, why get involved? Americans generally have great respect for privacy and expect that people are functioning of one's own volition. In fact, the law states that once people reach the age of majority (usually eighteen but in some countries twenty-one), they are responsible for their own [...]

How Can I Rescue My Child From a Cult?

2018-12-16T19:49:18-05:00January 18th, 2018|Blog, Resources and Support|

How Can I Rescue My Child From a Cult? Whether you are looking for help for your son or daughter, your brother or sister, mother or father, or husband or wife, my advice is to do your homework, first. In the coming weeks, I plan to share the errant beliefs I wrote about in my book, Freedom of Mind: Helping Loves Ones Leave Controlling People, Cults and Beliefs. In this digital age, make sure you are not signaling online that you are worried or seeking to help someone to reevaluate their involvement. Protect Your Identity Change all of [...]

2018: Looking Forward to Helping People to Help Themselves and Others

2018-12-16T20:12:03-05:00January 4th, 2018|Blog, News and Updates, Resources and Support|

Combating Cult Mind Control For over forty years, I have endeavored to help people understand my own cult experience- being recruited into a front group of the Moonies in 1974 while a student at Queens College in New York.  This year, on November 18th, 2018, my book Combating Cult Mind Control will be 30 years old.  That hardback volume was originally published with the British spelling, Combatting, and featured a bald-headed man with a padlock and chain around his bald head.  I fought with my then publisher and told him the cover was a total turn off for all [...]

Recovery from Spiritual Abuse and Healing Oneself to Trust Again

2018-12-13T21:09:21-05:00August 9th, 2017|Blog, News and Updates, Resources and Support|

This past weekend, I attended and spoke at a conference at the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth. This one-day event was sponsored by MeadowHaven, The Protestant Chaplaincy of the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, Dartmouth Bible Church, and International Cultic Studies Association. The title of my talk was "Spiritual Abuse: Strategies to Help Someone to Exit, Heal and Trust Again," which was quite a large topic to cover in forty-five minutes! However, many people have told me that they really got a lot from it. I was invited to speak there by my colleague and friend, Rev. Bob Pardon who along with [...]

How Understanding Mind Control Can Prevent Future Terrorist Attacks

2018-12-13T20:48:13-05:00September 9th, 2016|Blog, Current Events|

This coming Sunday marks fifteen years since the 9/11 terrorist attacks. On the morning of September 11, 2001 our nation was changed forever. Many lives were lost, and many of us were left in shock and disbelief as we helplessly watched the scenes of horror on our TV screens. We spent the next few days learning that these attacks were committed by a group called Al-Qaeda, led by Osama Bin Laden. This led to invading Afghanistan and the mistake of Bush’s insistence to invade Iraq- which destabilized the region and led to the formation of ISIS. As soon as I [...]

An Introduction to Steve Guziec

2018-12-16T20:42:20-05:00July 8th, 2016|Blog, Guest Blogs, News and Updates|

Guest Blog by Steve Guziec Update: As of January 2018, Steve Guziec is no longer working with Freedom of Mind Resource Center. He wished to take his life in a new direction and we wish him the very best in his academic and life pursuits. I'm so excited to be working with Steven Hassan and the Freedom of Mind team. It's a wonderful cause and a truly worthwhile line of work. As someone who understands just what it's like to be involved in a cult, I am often asked to share my story. So, here it is. I was [...]

Reaching Out: Communicating After Cult Exit

2018-12-16T19:52:42-05:00April 22nd, 2016|Blog, Resources and Support|

I am often approached by concerned family members of adult cult members who need help. I work with the family by coaching them to use my Strategic Interactive Approach. This involves teaching them how to employ an ethical influence campaign based on compassion, and designed to help the cult member question the group’s leader, doctrine, and policies. If all goes well, the approach works and the cult member “wakes up.” As that happens, they are surrounded by loving people who are educated about all the key issues and ready to help them move on with their life. Family and [...]