Psychotherapy with Former Cult Members / by Patrick O'Reilly

Patrick O'Reilly, Ph.D., who unlike Chuck Spezzano is a real accredited and licensed psychologist, outlines in this excellent article the challenges faced both by victim and clinical psychologist when attempting to help the client step back into real life.

https://www.psychotherapy.net/article/cult-members

Naturally his essay brought Psychology of Vision and their long-term followers to mind. O'Reilly's "six stages of cultic recruitment and retention" is pure POV:

1. Keep the person unaware of what is going on and the changes taking place.

2. Control the person’s time and, if possible, physical environment.

3. Create a sense of powerlessness, covert fear, and dependency.

4. Suppress much of the person’s old behavior and attitudes.

5. Instill new behavior and attitudes.

6. Put forth a closed sense of logic; allow no real input or criticism.

The stages of being groomed for a cult is one thing, but the stages of recovery from being victimized by a toxic group like Psychology of Vision is quite another, and I suspect a much more complex process.