Hassan's "Releasing the Bonds"

TallTexan

For those of you who have not read this book, I encourage you to immediately obtain a copy, especially if you still don't believe that JW's are a cult. Although inactive and filled with doubts about the organization for a number of years, I truly disregarded all thoughts of it as a 'cult'. I figured that it was simply misguided men who thought they were doing the right thing. WRONG! Randy Watters was kind enough to send me a copy of Hassan's book and within the first couple of chapters I realized that the WT society truly is a cult! If you can't accept this, it's o.k...you're still under the influence, but at least get a copy and read it objectively, and apply the information to the WT society. It may take time, but you will soon see. I'm sure you can get it from many places, but it can be ordered from Randy's website at www.freeminds.org. Please, do yourself a favor. You no longer need to live in fear of a vengeful God who will destroy all those not toeing the line of the WT society.

shotgun

Yup...enjoyed it so much I sent one to my sis as well!

Another good read along the same vein is Emotional Blackmail which Winston advised me to read and I learned alot from.

DevonMcBride

You can read a chapter of this book on Steve Hassan's web site. www.freedomofmind.com

Devon

Undaunted Danny

Awesome resource,when I exited in 1992 there was little in the way of anything.Now help is only a mouse click away.This PC i am using would have cost a million dollars back then also.

M.J.

I suggest reading both "Releasing the Bonds" and "Combatting Cult Mind Control". I think that "Combatting" gives a better intro to what defines a mind control cult with better examples. "Releasing the Bonds" seems to skim over that part a little more and gets more into the methodology of dealing w/cult members.

Bubbamar

I know this is kind of an old thread but I just got the book and I can't put it down. I'm wondering if anyone has had any experiences with the techniques he teaches in the book? Any success stories?

I love that he says people WILL leave cults. I have told myself for a long time that my mom will NEVER leave. So I'm feeling a little hopeful. That could be a bad thing though - I'm so sick of disappointment and pain.

blondie

I have those 2 books right by my computer. It definitely convinced me that the WTS is a cult and that wasn't easy.

Blondie

mineralogist

"Combatting Cult Mind Control". It's a real eye-opener! Even it is not available in german anymore, i got an antiquariat from my local book store.

The "german branch" of exJW trys to get it republished.

Mulan

Agree with all of you. Great books, especially the first one, Combatting Cult Mind Control.

detective

I definitely modified some of the techniques in the book when I was working on getting my friend out. It was extremely helpful. In particular, I found that Hassan's mention of looking for physical clues as to when someone is in "cult" mode and when someone was relaxed and in a mood closer to themselves was quite helpful. It seems obvious, but sometimes we get so caught up in our own agenda, we don't always look to see if the conversation is really open or closed.

I would often push the envelope a litle and then watch for the body language that indicated even a subtle shift into defensiveness on my friend's part. Then, I would change my approach and watch for signs that the authentic personality was kicking back in. It gave me a good indication as to when I needed to lay off and let things ride or when I could push a little bit without my friend getting all cult-y.

I also worked with the idea of losing trust and regaining it. If I challenged the cult too much, then I would lose my friend's trust. I'd end up having to slowly regain it by making sure he didn't feel threatened. When I really became cognizant of the subtle shifts in mood and perspectives.

I spent months actively working on my approach. Of course, 9/11 happened and it all went to the potty anyway, but I feel that the months of actively building the trust stayed in his mind over the months that we had limited contact after that and I believe it helped bring him around in the end.

I didn't enlist team help as most people seemed unwilling to recognize that my friend was in a high-control group, so most of the work I did, I had to do on my own. Would have been nice to have that sort of support in the real world though (not here online- where you can get that support).

Hassan's "Releasing the Bonds"

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