Dahn Yoga 'Cult' Uses Sleep Deprivation, Intimidation: We TV "Secret Lives of Women"

WeTV "Secret Lives of Women"/ cults: Cult Rehab
http://www.wetv.com/video/34783830001/cults-cult-rehab

Dahn Yoga is a practice that allegedly teaches followers to "tap into the infinite potential of your brain through brain wave vibration." Dahn Yoga's website shows testimonials of health recoveries and miraculous peace of mind. But some followers are saying the yoga method is hardly a healing practice, but a cult.

Have you ever found a fitness class or workout plan that you loved so much and did so often that you would consider yourself devoted to it? We've all done it -- you think about whether what you're eating fits in with the plan, and your other activities are planned around it.Yeah, that's nothing like what Amy Shipley went through.Shipley will be featured on tonight's "Secret Lives of Women" episode on We TV.

The episode is about cults, and Shipley is a former member of Dahn Yoga, a yoga program that seems totally legitimate at first glance (and some of the practice absolutely is), but which many people have spoken out against as a cult. In the episode, Shipley attends a two-week intensive therapy retreat called Wellsprings Retreat in order to deal with the psychological damage she experienced in leaving the group - she says she was "spiritually raped." And while that's fascinating, it's not why we're covering it here. Rather, we want to point out some of the things that were damaging about the group. -

Sleep deprivation. Each morning, Shipley would awake at 6 a.m. to go distribute flyers. According to experts featured in the episode, cults use sleep deprivation to keep their members in an altered state of mind. Generally, this is done by keeping them busybusybusy all day long.

There's devotion, then there's devotion. It's one thing to be excited and give a "Woo hoo!" during step class. It's quite another to scream yourself hoarse on a steady basis to prove how happy you are to be part of your group. Shipley recalled screaming until she had no voice left on numerous occasions.

Separation from family. A fitness class or workout regimen shouldn't interfere with your interaction with family and friends (other than, perhaps, to encourage them to live healthier lives). Shipley was active and popular with her family and friends, but was cut off from them upon joining Dahn. She remembered being asked, "Amy, what has your family done for you?" While she wasn't expressly forbidden from visiting, she says that not being allowed "was implied."