Leaving a cult behind - Can brainwashing be reversed? | DW Documentary

Breaking free from the clutches of a cult or a cultish religious movement is a long and painful process. So far, it’s one that has largely gone undocumented. Few people talk about the years of struggle -- and relapses - breaking free entails. Five people who have gone through the process talk about their experiences.

This documentary about leaving cultish religious movements behind illustrates how powerful the conditioning is -- and how deeply dependent it makes its victims. How is it possible to renounce one's own identity and "reprogram” the brain?

Nicolas has been exposed to this influence since birth: his parents are Jehovah's Witnesses. At the age of 22, he managed to break away from the Jehovah's Witnesses - but he had to cut off contact with his family.

Julie was 31 and Yohann 20 when they both fell into the clutches of the French "Université de la relation” movement during what purported to be an ‘internship in the field of personal development’.

David and François became "warriors of light” after they trained in kung fu at the Parc de la Villette in Paris -- and stuck with it for 10 years. They describe insidious manipulation and talk about how they were completely sucked into a parallel world.

The film’s moving accounts of cult dropouts and their long journeys back to a normal life are supplemented by insights into the work of a French police unit specializing in new religious movements.

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