The Anatomy of Gaslighting

Netizen: You mention gaslighting and brainwashing operating in a similar fashion. What is the difference?

Response: Gaslighting is being funneled to the victim thru lying. Whereas brainwashing uses far-out and more progressive cognitive and psychological techniques.

People who gaslight feed you with lies and the victim is aware that they are being lied to. The main concern here is how they were able to inject some kind of doubt into the person, doubting their REALITY when they are present during the incident and have seen and heard enough.

Telling the victim their eyes and ears are not reliable is the start of the abusive template and when the victim shows signs that they are wobbling in their position, especially with what they saw and heard, gaslighting is up for a good start.

I know of somebody who is quite savvy with gaslighting as a child (although I doubt if he knew what he was doing ... he was only seven then.) He woke up one December morning ... and I said: "Where are you going?"  and he told me that he is going to attend and serve in the MASS."

Doubting what he is up to, I also went to church just to find out. I personally choose the seat in the last pews. He was not serving in the mass ... and then I heard a familiar laughter at the back of the church ... it was him together with his friends. The REALITY was ... he woke up early to meet with his friends and not because he became a holy convert that morning.

He told me lies ... and what was worse was ... he believed his lies. He looked me in the eyes, without batting an eyelash despite the blatant lies ... he maintained his claim that he served in the mass. 

And here's the twist of the story: I don't know what gaslighting was back then. But despite seeing that he was there at the back of the church with friends, I did not see him in front at the altar actually serving either. The REALITY was he did not ... but he succeed in making me let go of the story by making me doubt and question my REALITY ... my sanity ... and my senses! Was I dreaming ... I painfully asked myself while rubbing my eyes (or in Tagalog namamalik-mata ba ako?)

Having earned more units in General Psychology, Abnormal, Cognitive, Developmental, and Physiological Psychology, I taught Mental Hygiene and Psychiatry at the university and followed up with students in Psychiatric hospitals ... I can't believe a seven-year-old child has done that number to me.

He needs to be grounded and he gets away with it.