Posted by Thinker on November 20, 2010 at 08:10:02
In Reply to: Re: help posted by Aunty on November 17, 2010 at 21:27:54:
Everyone's experience in the cult is different, and everyone exits differently, but your niece seems to have some of the classic symptoms of withdrawal from a high-demand cult. It may be that a there's a lot going on inside her, and her she is going haywire because the rules and environment are very different from everything she ever knew. It is tough when you have to be able to set boundaries and teach her that there are consequences for her actions, while at the same time you are afraid to abandon her in time of need. She is probably sensing and using this weakness too. Much of what you can expect from any other person, you can't really expect from her because her thinking and learning processes have been shortcircuited. That's why ultimatums may be a bad idea, especially if she is incapable of making the connection between action and consequence and having it in her to help herself. Her detox and exit process is best handled with the aid of a counselors/therapists experienced with helping cult departees normalize.