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EMPATHS: We need to start talking about psychological warfare & disrupting cognitive dissonance. The tools we use to empathize are not the same tools to use with people suffering neurolinguistic programming & misinformation saturation. It’s not going to feel good but..../1
First off, there is a difference betw a personality disorder (PD) & someone suffering extreme programming. We ALL have succumbed (think abt all the jingles & logos you know, did u memorize them on purpose?) BUT NLP & propaganda create dissonance triggers. What’s that mean? /2
Propaganda has 3 main tools: repetition, trigger phrasing, & relation to reality. We all know repetition but without the right combo, repetition can be rejected as grating & cause the wrong response. So, repetition must be managed in such a way to not be obviously repetitious /3
So, one idea must be repackaged many different ways. How do u make sure the message stays coherent in the brain’s processing & it all goes in the same mental folder? Trigger words/phrasing that tell u HOW to think. Like Trump’s “hoax” fixation. /4
Trump said abt the media’s reporting abt the coronavirus response “It’s all a part of the hoax, u know” & waived it off. He’s been SO successful his followers KNOW what to do with ALL info labeled “hoax”-reject & dissonance. Once triggered, damage is done. /4
Everything is given so much color when he talks bc the audience requires some connection to reality in order to reaffirm their programming in the real world when challenged without sowing seeds of doubt. This is where altered truths & misinformation enter. /6
So say you want people to deny rape allegations. What you want is to trigger cognitive dissonance then associate THAT issue (or person) with reasonable misinformation hard to prove in casual conversations. “She’s a part of the Russia hoax, she talks about Russia” /7
Do u see how it works? Trigger phrase for emotional response, target subject, misinfo, repetitive but flexible format. It requires UNIQUE answers to try & debunk the lies piled on top of half truths. The POINT is to make you TRY to correct them to trigger defensive response/8
So as the message is filtered thru the subject’s brain it becomes adaptable & defensive to correction, the longer they can evade full cognitive dissonance, the deeper the conviction, the harder to deprogram. A pleasure response rewards them for evading dissonance. /9
So how do you handle this? The programming is adaptive, self-reinforcing & time consuming to try & reason with, so what do you do? How do you get past the programming, especially someone who feels safe & validated in this condition? Well, it’s not pretty. /10
You have to break their brain. At the root of the dissonance is fear & a sense of security. There is also freedom from shame bc of the absolutism of programming another human being. We’ve made psychopaths, but not psychos with PDs, with PTSD. This is a cognitive brain trauma. /11
First, you have to identify the triggers for this particular ideology & use your empathy to sense the root core of the individual’s sense of insecurity. Empaths dont want to make people feel crappy, you’re going to have to but it’s a 2 step process. /12
I’m a litigator & I call the technique “slap & soothe”. You authoritatively & viciously assert yourself & itemize specifically the hellfire coming, then you offer an exit. This must be done several times in negotiations & it must also be empathically adaptive. /13
So first, find the trigger & use similar phraseology but mix it up, disorient them so they recognize it but don’t know the exact folder. Then incite insecurity, fear, & shame, above all SHAME. There is NO shame in the brainwashed, you must pry it out aggressively. /14
Finally, you soothe. Offer a safe harbor, a truth they can land on. THEY WILL REJECT YOU. That’s expected, but it will sit with them. If it happens again & again, their sense of foolishness will return & they will feel VERY confused & verging on guilty. This isn’t enough. /15
At this point they require reprogramming & empathic training. They’ll need to rewire their thinking for analytical & empathic responses while overcoming PTSD. This requires compassion & acceptance. You break it, you bought it! You MUST be available like a sponsor. /16
There is an addictive component to brainwashing, it feels good to always think ur right! Freeing someone of addiction is a VERY similar process & it starts w/“tough love & hard truths”. It is also just as difficult & can leave lifelong trauma & feelings of guilt/inadequacy/17
Just like an addict, they need continued support to keep making progress. You don’t come out of it w/o a huge sense of loss & feeling aimlessness, it’s also isolating. NOW is the time for empathic love! But you have to use your intuition, shatter their safety & identity 1st/18
If you got this far, I hope this helps you with a loved one or maybe just an ass on Twitter. Remember, empathy is a superpower, don’t be afraid to use it. But use it tactfully & with purpose, cruelty isn’t the point. This is abt returning to people their freedom. Good luck!/19
Ex propaganda triggers: “I shldnt have to say this but....”, fake news, hoax, normalcy language (MAGA or otherwise), Russia, bot, & (you’re gonna hate it but) 
. The last one was a product of propaganda fluidly resulting from a group but nevertheless it’s a trigger now. 
. The last one was a product of propaganda fluidly resulting from a group but nevertheless it’s a trigger now.
