"The Journey", Monet's Boat, Giverny, France, 2007, photo by C Russell

Beginning in May, 2011, "The Journey" takes me to Bend, Oregon in beautiful Central Oregon!  After much consideration my husband and I have chosen to relocate to Bend and continue our work here.  My office is conveniently located in the Old Bend Historic Neighborhood, two blocks from Drake Park and the Deschutes River and two blocks from the charming and lively town.  I'm available in the office and through phone and email.  I also plan to begin long-distance support groups.  Periodically I travel to Marin in the SF Bay Area from where I relocated after living there for 30 years.  My next visit will be in December, 2011, and I will be available for a limited amount of individual and group sessions. 

A Group for Motherless Daughters, a Group for Former Cult (or High-Demand Group) Members, and a Group for Women are beginning in Bend, OR, in January, 2012.  I will continue to facilitate these groups.  If you or anyone you know is interested, please contact me at 541-306-6081 or email: crussellmft@earthlink.net.

Recently released Cultic Studies Review journal article on my experience leaving Eckankar, what I regard as a high-demand group. "TOUCHED:  DISCONFIRMING PATHOGENIC BELIEFS OF THOUGHT REFORM THROUGH THE PROCESS OF ACTING," (2010) Colleen Russell, LMFT, CGP,  "The Last Draw," Cults and Creativity, Special Edition, Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 9, No. 1. On this website see "Groups Identified As Cults" and click on "Touched" to your left for the complete article.

A WORKSHOP FOR FORMER MEMBERS AND ADULT CHILDREN OF CULTS OR HIGH-DEMAND GROUPS was held on Sunday, June 27, 2010, from 1:00–5:00 p.m. in Mill Valley, CA (10 miles north of San Francisco). Janja Lalich, Ph.D. and I co-facilitated our second workshop together. Dr. Lalich presented on her "bounded choice" model and "brainwashing" in the first half of the workshop.  After a 20 minute break with light refreshments at a pleasant spot around a picnic table under an oak tree, the workshop continued with  readings by former members and open discussion of current issues relevant to participants' lives. The workshop goal is to provide a safe, respectful environment in which participants may gain increased understanding and support for their cult and post-cult experience.  Janja Lalich is Professor of Sociology, CSU Chico, is a specialist in extremism, cults & coercive situations. She is author of Take Back Your Life: Recovery from Cults and Abusive Relationships and Bounded Choice: True Believers and Charismatic Cults.

I facilitated a Workshop For Former Members of Cults including Second Generation Adults, those born and/or raised in cults, in Mill Valley, CA on Saturday, December 5th, 2009, from 1:00 - 5:00 PM. 

At the NORTHERN CALIFORNIA GROUP PSYCHOTHERAPY SOCIETY'S ANNUAL CONFERENCE at Asilomar Conference Center on the coast in Pacific Grove, CA, June 6th, 2010, I gave a presentation entitled: "From Cults To Group For Former Members:  Opportunities for Healing and Change."  With an attentive, interested audience, I described, among other issues, various types, structure and dynamics of cults; observed life histories and characteristics of cult leaders; the harm caused to "true believers;" the process of leaving; and how the group and other life experience helps people disconfirm inaccurate, self-limiting, deeply-held  beliefs, a part of the process of recovery that frees cult survivors to pursue healthy goals.  http://www.ncgps.org/ 

An On-Going MOTHERLESS DAUGHTERS GROUP, an exploratory, supportive and educational group, on-going for 14 years, is offered every other Tuesday, from 6:30 - 8:00 PM, in Bend, OR.  I have located an experienced facilitator, Lois Friedlander, LMFT, CGP, to take on this role in Mill Valley since now that I've relocated to Bend, Oregon. Women who have lost their mothers in childhood, adolescence or adulthood meet in a safe, respectful environment to explore many aspects related to mother loss along with relevant issues in their current lives.  Topics addressed include: loss and grief, trust, family of origin issues, dads and step-mothers, intimate relationships, motherless mothers, mothering oneself, disconfirming inaccurate, self-limiting beliefs internalized through traumatic events, challenges, successes, goals. I am also a motherless daughter.

A Nine-Year, On-Going GROUP FOR FORMER MEMBERS of cults or high-demand groups, is offered as a long-distance group (online) as well as in my new Bend, Oregon office.  Each group meets every other week on Sunday, from 3:00 - 5:00 PM.  If you are interested, please contact me.  This is a safe, respectful, exploratory, educational,  and supportive group in which former members address issues related to their cult experience and current lives.  Such issues include: cult characteristics, recruitment and indoctrination tactics, thought reform, disconfirming inaccurate, self-limiting beliefs internalized through thought reform, critical thinking skills, personal rights, loss and grief, regulating emotions, healthy boundaries, relationships, connecting to society-at-large, successes, challenges, goals. Participants gain mutual support, share perceptions, and learn from each other.  

I have presented at the International Cultic Studies Association Conferences on "Cults and Creativity" and "Disconfirming Inaccurate Beliefs Internalized Through Thought Reform with 'Corrective Emotional Experiences'".  I draw from my experience as a former member of an "Eastern"/"New Age" group years ago and my 20+ years of professional and other life experience and training. 

You may reach Colleen Russell,  CA Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT)  and experienced Certified Group Psychotherapist (CGP) at 541-306-6081; Email:  crussellmft@earthlink.net; Address:  70 SW Century Drive, Suite 100-363, Bend, Oregon 97702.