I stopped watching Soft White Underbelly about a year ago. Delving into the minds of the traumatized, and those who traumatized others, felt like I was sinking into the abyss with them. There is an innocence and peace of mind that cannot be recovered. I commend those who make it their work to help people who have been subjected to the sharp end of life.

This was so interesting to listen to. He's definitely had a hard life, but he also doesn't really seem to accept any kind of personal responsibility. He feels bad about "what happened" but doesn't consider himself the cause of the things he's done. He never really apologizes, and seems stuck in the place of "of course all this happened because my environment was messed up and I was taught to be this way." He seems to spend a lot of energy defending that he is a product of his circumstance. And in many ways he is a product of his circumstance one way or another, but if that's all he can see himself as, I don't really think he's in a position to move past that. That was probably the saddest part of listening to this for me.

Committing child molestation takes this to a whole other level. I have no sympathy whatsoever when it comes to children. I’m a childhood trauma survivor so I know firsthand what this does to you.

As a former "bomb defuser" eod tech, we do have fear. We just keep it tamped down and hidden when we need to. Now that I'm retired, I'm a mental mess.

He should have never been let out of prison, I know this is going to sound terrible, but I'm glad someone took him out. He's absolutely terrifying!!

Methamphetamines are most likely the culprit for the mouth movement. Not to mention him moving around so much. I've witnessed people on that drug, and his body language hits every data point for someone using excessively.

It’s hard to feel sorr for a rapist

Look, not everyone who's had a very harsh childhood become rapist.

The lip smacking could be drug abuse, not anti-psychotic side effects. I feel like drug abuse is highly likely for him especially because he ended up homeless at a young age.

When I watch the video of him and examine his physical movements (peri-oral movements and fidgety, abrupt movements of the body)--while it could be associated with tardive dyskinesia as a result of anti-psychotic use--I think it could very well be caused by signficiant historical or current substance use, like methamphetamines. This is a hallmark trait of previous drug use and I see it regularly in my career in the social services.

I suffered childhood SA since i was a little girl and then subsequently was SA’d when I was a teenager and I’ve always struggled with it and felt incredibly alone my whole life. Even being married and having children.. that loneliness is deep rooted. The thing he said about “it happened before he can remember”, I completely understand what he meant because it was happening to me since i can remember & before that because they’re was no 1st time in my memories, it was just always happening and i can remember being very small, very young and those memories are vivid and i have nightmares and reoccurring night terrors.. so not that i wasn’t seething with rage listening to him.. i found it interesting hearing someone go though that and become was he has yet i would end myself before i could even let 1 brain cell consider anything like he did. Btw i found your channel by accident 😅

I know someone with a very similar criminal history, and watching this interview left me stunned how much the two men resemble each other in their whole body language and attitude. Visually they seek to get acknowledged for their masculinity, legs apart, both feet on the ground, one fist put in their hip, the other one used for grandiose gestures, like “Look at me, I’m so manly, tough and don’t take shit from anybody.”, but when you ask them for their mindset it’s all about being a victim. Also very similar is this vibe of pride they cannot hide when talking about their crimes, but when being asked why they did it they just respond with “Aaah...don’t know. It just happened.” by trying to literally “wipe it off” with a hand gesture, like waving away a bad smell in the air. I got to know the mother of the man I know, and absolutely nothing on her stroke me her being as abusive and dominating as he priorly described her to me. To me she appeared as a very quiet woman who’s genuinely scared of her own son, and as a mother who’s deeply saddened and ashamed by what her son has become. He’s told me about so much oppression and brutal violence, including sexual abuse, done to him by his mother, blaming it entirely on her how he turned out. I’m sorry if I am wrong, but I simply don’t believe him. I can’t. I wonder if people like this sometimes simply develop false memories, in order to avoid taking responsibility for their own actions and in order to avoid becoming overwhelmed by their own guilt, like “Don’t look at me, I’m not to blame. There’s someone else who made me this way.”

You can have emotional memories before regular memories. I have CPTSD, and when disgnosed learned thats how you can have emotional flashbacks just the same as regular flashbacks.

This is the first time I’ve ever heard someone actually mention the freeze part in a fight or flight situation. Thank you so much for that! It feels so validating to hear that this is a genuine human response and not a flaw or weekness. The whole video is super interesting, that comment in particular just stuck out to me as people freeze so often in critical situations and feel somewhat guilty afterwards, yet we’re just doing what we can to survive. Thank you for pointing that out ♥️

Many shrinks could learn alot watching Mark and Soft Whute Underbelly..

As s female survivor of female adolescent offenders, and personally knowing three other survivors, I assure you female offenders are far more common than the statistical claims. I’ve tried for years to tell my story to professionals, and the blatant refusal to accept the commonality of this type of abuse was fierce .

What do you think about the action of “fawning” in addition to flight, flight, and freeze… it is a response that involves “giving in” and complying in order to stay safe in circumstances… it has been associated with codependency later in life. Thank you for any insight you have in this also! 🙏💙🌀

James actually died of a stab wound in his tent a year or so ago.

14:15 Many people who experienced s.a. reported that their attacker acted like they were on a date, horrific as that sounds. It may be related to this weird attachment deficit they have.

I definitely find the Soft White Underbelly videos fascinating, but there’s something unethical going on, even if I can’t put my finger on it exactly. I saw a video if him talking to a sex worker (He used the word “Prostitute”) and being horrifically patronizing. I felt like my jaw dropped on the floor when he said something like “You know that’s bad, right?” The value of these interviews could be giving voices to the voiceless but he decided his voice was pretty important to add in there. If you watch videos of him, he’s very smug. He makes videos people want to see, including myself, but at what cost to the people in the videos? I can imagine that some like to feel heard, but some just need money and may feel violated for Mark to be famous. I’m sure the woman he scolded felt that way.

I refused to watch that one. That "person" does not deserve space or understanding. Even the idea that we have to have an indepth view of him makes my blood boil.

I’m a third-year psychological science student from Brisbane and your videos are so helpful! Such valuable content. Love your work :)

You bring up so many vital issues!!! And your “Getting worked up” is heart-warming. Thank you!! “Not being able to say no”…and “emotional arousal” is so real “survival mechanism”. Thank god you bring up freeze which hit me so hard as i aged when a few really bad things happened though thanks in part to dissociation i avoided all the pitfalls of addiction, crime etc. or even having children which i would have loved to (did work with foster children and had i means was certified to be a foster parent) but was scared unless part of a social support network (before i knew what those are) that I’d mess up like i saw so many adults do in my childhood. And bringing up men victims of sexual abuse..i was oblivious until I accidentally ended up helping a friend’s uncle who had been an alcoholic since his teens …his family didn’t know his mother sexually abused him and yet when i supported him in opening up with them it made sense in hindsight which is interesting - thank god his family cared enough to think back and question not take either extreme of denial or instant belief either. . County mental health throws almost everyone on antipsychotics here in rural US and likely CAUSES or worsens mental health issues. They don’t ask enough questions nor spend enough time with a person to get to know them. No time for a “Wide range of differentials”, which you are so very good at. If you don’t know about repressed memories read up on Ted Bundy case and survivor and how she ended up being able to give description she couldn’t recall and also either on showtime or MAX there is a docuseries i forgot name of about a woman who witnessed her father murder someone and not until the end did my skepticism turn away from the woman and now lands directly on how in the world her father’s lawyers could still have doubt…fascinating to watch for psychology and sociology whatever you end up believing.

I can unfortunately remember traumatic moments when I was a year and a half. Those memories are clear as day.

I have a lot of feelings about this that I'm not quite sure how to express (not quite sure exactly what I'm feeling actually). I understand that learning why people commit violent acts may help prevent people from committing them in the future but I don't know about giving it a public platform. Not that this interview was glorifying or in any way condoning what he's done but... I just don't know. Anyone else feeling confused about this?

He'd playing the victim sooo hard

Risperidone (an anti-psychotic) is used to treat aggressiveness and violent mood swings in ADHD and Autism, as well as personality disorders as you mentioned.

Every video of these that you make i pick apart my understanding and put it all back together again. I’m almost done with my bachelor of nursing and hoping to stay safe and practice in the mental health/addiction space. Thankyou 🙌

As a student of psych and someone who works in the mental health sector, I am enjoying your videos and your comments, so I have subscribed :)

I've seen people on PCP and crack chew their mouths like that.

I've watched several of mark's interviews and it really helps you to understand why people turn out the way they do. Some of the things These people have been through just harrowing. The lives they've led.

I already love when you do these types of videos but I’m even more excited to watch your videos after you finish becoming a psychiatrist hint hint 👀

Truly an amazing channel i recommend it to everyone, its insane how much trauma is in our world and right under our noses. Theyre great about making you think youre gonna hate someone, find out their story, and instead feel sad for them. Ive been through a lot of horrible things, but they really squash the idea that my life is the worst/its not fair/why me kinda feeling. We all suffer, and we all nees laws that work with the people not against them! Healthcare includes mental care and can really save a life, both the person and potential victims they would hurt later on. We have the ability to become a healthy society it just needs to be done. And these kinds of archives of stories are fantastic little windows into 21st century trauma and i hope one day down the line they're studied. Humanity needs to not just improve but also heal. Healing is a huge part of growth and getting better as a species.

I believe he was stabbed to death. I was very shocked to hear about it all. There were more interviews with him in Mark's subscription channel

Thank you so much for your in dept analysis of this interview. I'd seen it, I think SWU takes on a very important and loaded endeavour, and that it's useful to the interviewees as well as us audience. I do have to take prolonged breaks from it though as it's pretty heavy for the soul. I also want to thank you for bringing up the well less known from of fight or flight, which is freezing. I've been there when I was 7, and hearing this is very enlightening. I'm one of those male survivors who didn't really have a chance to express myself until now. Being about to start transactional therapy, after decades, I feel better equipped to start this somewhat scary journey from watching your videos.

This was really interesting and I think you should do some more of these. I enjoy all of your content, and I happen to have to seen quiet a lot of soft white Underbelly. It would be very interesting to dive into the 'why' of so many of those stories. Oh and there's a pretty high chance he's on meth, that may explain the crazy mouth movements. seems to be common from what I understand, and the guy interviewing does meet most of them in skid row.. one of americas biggest open drug markets. love your channel and your perspective on things, keep up the good work man.

I've always associated that mouth movement with methamphetamines. I had no clue anti psychotics could be the culprit. This is exactly why I'm binging this channel I'm learning a lot from you

I don’t think that his mouth movements were a “clear sign” of tardive dyskinesia or antipsychotic medication use. I’m a nurse and have had plenty of patients that have not been on antipsychotics who do these mouth movements - and these folks are people who don’t have teeth! Whether or not they have worn dentures at any point doesn’t seem to change the intensity or frequency of these movements, although, I have more frequently worked with people that do have access to dentures and when they aren’t wearing them, they do these mouth movements! Based on the position of this man’s lips, and the way he speaks, it appears that he doesn’t have teeth, or doesn’t have many teeth. I’d reckon that’s the cause.

I've followed Mark Laita and watched his Soft White Underbelly videos for several years. I strongly recommend them. They help you see another side of life as you hear stories from drug addicts, alcoholics, prostitutes, pimps, and many others. He also does interviews of people from Appalachia, where I'm also from. Of particular interest is the Whitaker family in West Virginia, whose members are inbred and suffer from severe physical, mental, cognitive, and verbal issues. Whoever Mark interviews, whatever their story and whatever they've done, Mark is patient, kind, caring, and respectful of them all. He gives everyone a chance to speak and be heard.

28:00 Wouldn’t putting psychopaths and sociopaths in the military just reinforce them to be even more violent? It seems like it would cancel out any benefit from concurrent therapy/treatment. You don’t hire a drug addict to test new street drugs because “they’re good at it.” Plus I think the military is one of the last places we want psychopaths and sociopaths to be.. there are too many cases of abuses by soldiers in other countries, and we would probably also benefit as a world from having more soldiers question and resist the commands they get from psychopathic politicians. The argument to put psychopaths in the military serves psychopaths in power; it doesn’t serve humanity. I think it would be better for them to do “nothing” than serve in the military.

This was very helpful and intriguing!

Love the channel mate

Hey bud - great analysis of an informative (although disturbing) interview. I think that too often in society we feel that as soon as we've labelled someone as mentally ill, then we're done and can go about our day, when in fact, if we don't dig deeper we won't really understand how these problems and pathologies arise and how to possibly intervene in advance before people get hurt in the future. *_Here are a couple other videos that are similar that you may find interesting to react to:_* *I Was Almost A School Shooter | Aaron Stark | TEDxBoulder* A 7 minute TED talk by a guy who, as the title suggests, was VERY close to becoming a school shooter but backed out at the last minute because of an intervention. He talks about how he got to that state and all the things going through his mind and why he wanted to and how thankful he is that he didn't go through with it. *Paul Bernardo - Police interrogation of notorious serial killer* A longer interview with a psychopath and narcissist. (Peterson actually references this video as one of the best examples of psychopathic narcissism) He's being interviewed in jail about murders he committed and he completely turns it around on the cops and lawyers for being rude to him and ungrateful for his help. Cheers buddy.

I like that u mention ACES. I’m a childhood trauma survivor and have been in a long recovery process and reading and studying all facets of toxic family of origin dynamics.

Don’t forget fawn! Fight, flight, freeze, or fawn. :) Agree with much of your content, love how tactfully and compassionately you talk about the subject matter. You are an excellent psychiatrist, I think, because we can see your thought process, just as we see the obvious issues presented by the videos. Excellent basic knowledge for those interested in mental health.

I agree with you that many factors make up Who we are; however there still has to be accountability for everyone. I have been around mentally challenged people and even they respond to reward etc response. They are held accountable. And we need to focus on victims as well so that they don’t get lost in understanding of the whys of others choices. Everyone needs compassion, second chances and listening but sadly some are just evil and they enjoy it. Some truly don’t want help or change. You can’t fix the world. Just wanted to add that. Just discovered your channel. You seem to be in the right profession with a kind caring heart. Just remember this world is not perfect and you can only do what you can do. Take care of yourself! Thanks for bringing a light to a much needed area that needs more funding and support.

Great series. I love your commentary

It takes a special kind of person to be able to work with people who have mental/behavioral issues and those who have been deemed outcasts of society. It's not for everyone. But for those of us who have the patience, resilience and emotional capacity to be involved in their lives, i believe it's important that they have light shed on their circumstances. Of course it's hard to sympathize/empathize with a rapist or anyone involved with crime, but with compassion or willingness to learn the WHY aspect, nothing would ever change. Compassion is my religion. ❤️ From a little ole psych tech to you, thank you for your kindness and compassion, Dr. Syl.

You know your stuff. I was going to pass it because of childhood trauma but you breaking it down gives an insight.

Maybe you should reconsider whether you consider CSA violent. It's always a violent act. Even if it's not. It is. It is.

Love the video, thank you

great content!

Fight flight freeze and fawn. Fawn is another one that happens and is also totally understandable and makes total sense. All of the responses do

Love Soft White Underbelly. Thank you for doing this reaction.

Thank you for this analysis of a very dark soul. Both you and Mark Laila are gifted healers who use your medical and photographic artistry, respectively, to shed light on the most unlit recesses of human beings that so many would prefer to lockup, throw-away and punish rather than engage with and/or attempt to rehabilitate. “God Bless Us, Everyone!” as Tiny Tim would say!🆘❤

As a former meth user- those movements? Meth. Also, I think he's making involuntary movements because he's not telling the whole truth about some things. He thinks before answering. I think he's trying to answer in a way that creates more sympathy for himself. He knows what he did was wrong but he cares about how he's viewed. If I had to guess, antisocial personality disorder. He's exactly like my ex husband in presentation of self vs reality of past actions.

You don't consider the rape of a child a ln act of violence....oh I can absolutely assure you, its horrifyingly violent

Thank you for this

Absolutely fascinating for which I thank you.

I really enjoy soft white underbelly and I've really been enjoying watching your reaction and dissection of these videos. I find it very informative and enlightening. Hope you do more.

You're good at this

First of all, the mouth movements look like methamphetamine intoxication. It's possible he was given antipsychotics in prison, so it could be tardive dyskinesia. Second, moving to a new area makes me think of "the geographical cure:" thinking their problems are tied to a particular area and the people there. Unfortunately, it doesn't work.

my new favourite channel! can you do a video on your favourite books or podcasts please?

The fact that Dr. Styl said that he feels really sorry for this rapist means to me that he has a lot of love, compassion and understanding for people.

So...his rape of his mother "just happened." As much as we are supposed to sympathize with this maladapted individual, I think it's safe to say that this guy was one very sick puppy. I think the psychiatric community needs to realize that these types will give whatever story will tug at the most heart strings. They rarely take any real responsibility for any evil act they do. It would be interesting to hear his mother's side of th story.

I like your video. It helped me get through that one-was particularly hard to watch.

Thankyou for explaining the mouth movements. I am an MH worker, and I've always assumed it was the classic "Jaw Swingin" as another Aussie Esp from Sydney, I am sure you know what I meant.

Dr Syl, lots of emotions coming from you in that video. Some doubts and disbeliefs told of a gap in understanding. The soldier analogy was indeed very interesting in the context he used it. why the flip?

Those headphones look so comfortable n the design of em actually makes sense. I want some in blue😊

Just found your channel. Very interesting stuff. With regards to this video, I think he may have the mouth movements because he's missing some or all of his teeth. That is not to say he's not on medication, but people with dental problems often have the same movements.

You should definitely do more reaction videos. Soft White Underbelly is a very channel. Tons of information on there.

Subscribed and in love

as awful as it mite be to hear interviews like this are actually very interesting and informative in terms of what goes on in a predator's mind. also, he has all the mannerisms of somebody on meth and since he appears like he mite be homeless that is extremely possible as meth and alcohol are the two most common substances abused by the homeless here in L.A. (meth is cheap compared to other drugs).

I was 12 & a boy at the time back in 1977. The perpetrator was a 23 year old woman. A woman who was on a mission to get pregnant. I almost took my own life over it just over a year ago. In the end I plucked up the courage to go to the police. The police said they can not just compare DNA as the mother was the one who commited the crime not our son who is now 45 and was the result of the sexual assault. He is totally unaware of the lengths his mother went to and laws she broke just to conceive him. At the moment the case is in the hands of the prosecution. It's up to them to decide if the case goes forward. If it does go forward then & only then can DND test be undertake.

what about him screams bpd to you? violent tendencies (not at all involved in diagnosis), anxious preoccupied attachment. possible dissociation. there's nothing that shows unstable or difusse sense of self, no self harm or suicidality, nothing that shows frantic efforts to avoid abandonment. he doesnt mention flashbacks or nightmares, disorganised attachment, structural dissociation, intense mood swings. idk im getting emotional about this because i feel like you're grasping at straws and perpetuating stigma and i think it's irresponsible

This 'James' guy could easily be cast in a tough-guy action movie, as he has the rugged look and tonal voice qualities to complete the character attributes necessary for a movie role. ☝️🙄

Even more complex than "fight, flight, freeze" it's "fight, flight, freeze, FAWN" which adds an even spicier complicating flavour to the mix. With "fight" or "flight" people might feel that they "took charge" of the situation in some way, or were able to extract themselves from danger or fight their way out (or attempt to). With "freeze" they obviously run the risk of having feelings later of having "let it happen" and with "fawn", even worse, of "encouraging it"!! All that has got to be unpacked with sometimes years of therapy.

You found your niche keep it up fr

Children are small. Adults, especially adult men, are large. I don’t think it takes a lot of imagination to see why child molestation is considered a violent crime. There is a reason we call them “predators”.

I’m really, really trying to take everything this man says at face value but a lot of what he says and the way he says it are just suspicious. If he is as lonely as he says, and I believe he is, I wonder if he was lying or exaggerating because it’s what he thought the interviewer wanted to hear. Almost trying to impress him in a very strange bid for approval and company.

I am sorry to write this, but not to mention how smart he is , also Dr. Syl is too adorable!!!!

Antipsychotics are often over prescribed and inappropriately prescribed and forced in county mental hospitals and so he may also be suffering from that, the long term side effects.

He acts like he is trying to think of a story when asked about manslaughter. He seemed almost proud he was violent and wanted everyone to know but couldn’t come up with the manslaughter story quick enough to say on camera.

@Drsyl, You mentioned that peri-oral mouvements could be tardive dyskinesia related to his use of antipsychotic. I wonder if it could also be a reaction to illicit drug use or withdrawal. We sometimes see people who are looking for another "hit" of drugs such as crack or meth doing what some describe as the "funky chicken" which resembles this bodily movements. So I guess I wonder if this type of movement is only a side effect of anti-psychotic or also other drugs, especially illicit drugs.

Fight, flight, freeze and fawn.

also how can you say child molestation isnt a violent crime? emotionally always but physically it often is too. i hate when people call it a paraphilia, as if it's some kind of extreme kink. many of them aren't even attracted to children but theyre attracted to the power dynamic. it seems like you've never questioned any of the stuff youve learnt, where's the peer centred learning, where's the intersectional approach? the dsm isn't the bible. all the things you're talking about happen out in the wild, in the context of the social patterns we live under

Did you notice he did a nervous laugh after he said he had molested children?

I will NEVER empathize with someone who WILLINGLY decides to hurt a child. You ALWAYS have a choice, I have trauma that I’d NEVER inflict on others. They don’t deserve that. To this day I vowed to protect every child in my life, they don’t deserve to be hurt and traumatized man, I’m not empathizing with anyone who could hurt a child.

Cluster B have a tendency of not taking responsibility for their actions, they are very manipulative and lie for almost no reason at times. They are not trustworthy. What I find is strange is how people are believing everything he says, and having sympathy for his childhood, and yet is anyone showing any for his victims? What if his victims have genuinely experienced early age trauma before encountering him. I wouldn't believe anything this guy says. This video, and the comments are an insight into why victims are never believed. Especially child abuse victims/survivors.

Great video and breakdown of this interview. SWU is one of my favorite channels from day 1. Glad I came across this channel as well. The whole jail talk part didn't make sense, I understand the numbers hes throwing out and what he meant. The criminal justice system is different in America and a child molestion charge can definitely be considered a violent crime. In his other video he talks about people he's killed and there are some prostitutes that know him as a serial killer. He did pass away. Mental health is real and you should never judge another person without knowing them. Stay blessed!!

Wow. Just after you're like empathy is important he goes and says what he did and I'm gasping. Why am i watching this before i sleep? 😂 *saves video to follow your content another time.

I have been watching Marks channel for a bit now ... which in turn led me to yours. Thank you for breaking down some of the more subtle personality idiosyncrasies that you see in many of his "guests " Rebecca is one I have noticed suffers from many drug related issues. Although fascinating as some of these individuals can be, I find it somewhat disturbing, as I keep thinking they are being exploited. I know he gives them money. phones, places to stay, and food etc. I don't feel that placating them with the promise of money or whatever else they might want in order to agree to the interview is helpful. He makes a great deal of money from these people who are already so vulnerable and down on their luck. That is just my opinion and I could be totally off base. It just seems like a lot are being interviewed multiple times to get more views for his channel. Which is fine, as long as everyone knows the name of the game.

For all the bpd sufferers who are getting offended,bpd is often caused by trauma or neglect inflicted at toddler age..why are you so against him having it,are you a dr? No,just cos your not a rapist ,that’s good for you,open your minds! No one’s judging you personally,we are discussing him, not bpd

Team, thank you for watching the video. Please consider supporting my little KZfaq channel by liking and subscribing (and clicking the bell!). Soft White Underbelly KZfaq Channel: kzfaq.info Buy me a coffee: www.buymeacoffee.com/Dr.Syl.AU Join me on Instagram: instagram.com/dr_window_syl/

Sexual assault is alarmingly common, and we don’t live in a world without context. There are structural power imbalances that contribute to this fact. Human trafficking is the most lucrative black market industry on the planet - that doesn’t happen in a void. It happens in a global context of power imbalances between men and women, and that is an important part of the story to focus on. I do believe in treating people as individuals and understanding their motives. But I wouldn’t like to think that an interview with one rapist would explain the global phenomena of rape.

It’s fight, flight, freeze and FAWN. As a child protection practitioner I see this survival strategy the least, but have found that the severity of the abuse suffered by children who fawn is the worst of the worst.

NOW DARE he compare himself to a soldier!!!

Part of me empathizes with a sexual assault survivor, but to turn around and assault children, well ... I have no qualms about him being murdered. Hopefully he will find some sort of absolution in the next life. Also, I have real problems with SWU, it seems a bit exploitative.

He was the 'outcast' in his family. When he told the court about his mom, they all got angry because he now was affecting what their lives are like and probably didn't want anything to change. Not giving him an excuse for the crimes that he committed but when you don't have anyone to guide him and teach him right from wrong it makes life thousand times harder.

I don’t like how he pushes the assumption that the molestation is a delusion. I’ve seen interviews of women who raped their son, and there are cases where adults have orchestrated basically gang rape/abuse on children that were in their care by pushing other kids to abuse one kid a little more and more until the abuse was horrific. It’s fine to speculate that it’s a delusion, but he supported the opinion that it’s a delusion by saying that the mother clearly didn’t believe she abused him when she said it didn’t happen in a court case. That’s exactly what an abuser would say. I’m not assuming one way or another- none of us have enough background to make assumptions- but it’s very possible he was sexually abused by family members.