u/Horror-Attention6589

As-salamu alaykum everyone,

I just turned 18 and I am going through a really dark time with my family. For the past year, my mother has been watching a specific Arabic YouTube channel that mixes political conspiracies with "New Age" spirituality. It has completely brainwashed her and she is turning away from Islam.

She stopped praying a while ago, but lately, it has gotten much worse. The channel teaches that religions are just a "matrix" to control us. She now talks about having "telepathic powers," believing in universe energies, and recently, she even refused to say the Shahada. When I gently tried to tell her that believing in these "powers" is Shirk, she completely lost it and screamed at me.

She has become very paranoid. She thinks everything is poisoned (she aggressively boycotts normal food like milk,meat and wheat, claiming it "blocks our DNA") and is constantly waiting for the end of the world based on fake internet predictions.

My heart is breaking. My mother went through a lot of hardship in her life, and I know she is looking for peace, but she is losing her Akhira (hereafter) to internet manipulation.

I feel so helpless. I have been making constant Dua for her to return to the straight path, but it’s hard to live with her right now.

I know Islam teaches Birr al-Walidayn (dutifulness and kindness to parents), but how do I practice this when my mother is actively committing Shirk and gets aggressive when I try to talk to her? How do I protect my own mental health and Iman while living in this stressful environment? Has anyone dealt with a parent falling into online cults or New Age spirituality?

please help me or give me some info. Jazakum Allahu Khairan

As-salamu alaykum everyone,

I just turned 18 and I am going through a really dark time with my family. For the past year, my mother has been watching a specific Arabic YouTube channel that mixes political conspiracies with "New Age" spirituality. It has completely brainwashed her and she is turning away from Islam.

She stopped praying a while ago, but lately, it has gotten much worse. The channel teaches that religions are just a "matrix" to control us. She now talks about having "telepathic powers," believing in universe energies, and recently, she even refused to say the Shahada. When I gently tried to tell her that believing in these "powers" is Shirk, she completely lost it and screamed at me.

She has become very paranoid. She thinks everything is poisoned (she aggressively boycotts normal food like milk,meat and wheat, claiming it "blocks our DNA") and is constantly waiting for the end of the world based on fake internet predictions.

My heart is breaking. My mother went through a lot of hardship in her life, and I know she is looking for peace, but she is losing her Akhira (hereafter) to internet manipulation.

I feel so helpless. I have been making constant Dua for her to return to the straight path, but it’s hard to live with her right now.

I know Islam teaches Birr al-Walidayn (dutifulness and kindness to parents), but how do I practice this when my mother is actively committing Shirk and gets aggressive when I try to talk to her? How do I protect my own mental health and Iman while living in this stressful environment? Has anyone dealt with a parent falling into online cults or New Age spirituality?

please help me or give me some info. Jazakum Allahu Khairan

I already removed a lot of distractions:

• deleted TikTok about 1 month ago
• deleted my Twitter/X account 5 months ago
• this week I even deleted all my games and social media apps

But somehow my concentration still hasn’t improved much. I keep ending up relapsing because of stress and frustration from school. No matter how hard I try to block everything, I always find another way.

I also analyzed my situation a lot, and I think my biggest triggers are stress, frustration, and boredom. I’ve been trying to replace the habit with more productive goals like game development, learning a language, and studying more seriously, but I still fall back into the same cycle.

At this point I honestly feel stuck. Is anyone here in a similar situation or has been through this before? What actually helped you get out of it?

I have final exams coming up, and I genuinely feel like if I keep messing up like this, I’m going to fail them. I really need advice. please.

I’ve been trying to quit fapping for the last 4 years. But only since last year I really started noticing how much it destroys my concentration, motivation, and especially my ability to study.

I already removed a lot of distractions:

• deleted TikTok about 1 month ago
• deleted my Twitter/X account 5 months ago
• this week I even deleted all my games and social media apps

But somehow my concentration still hasn’t improved much. I keep ending up relapsing because of stress and frustration from school. No matter how hard I try to block everything, I always find another way.

I also analyzed my situation a lot, and I think my biggest triggers are stress, frustration, and boredom. I’ve been trying to replace the habit with more productive goals like game development, learning a language, and studying more seriously, but I still fall back into the same cycle.

At this point I honestly feel stuck. Is anyone here in a similar situation or has been through this before? What actually helped you get out of it?

I have final exams coming up, and I genuinely feel like if I keep messing up like this, I’m going to fail them. I really need advice. please.

I’ve been trying to quit fapping for the last 4 years. But only since last year I really started noticing how much it destroys my concentration, motivation, and especially my ability to study.

I already removed a lot of distractions:

• deleted TikTok about 1 month ago
• deleted my Twitter/X account 5 months ago
• this week I even deleted all my games and social media apps

But somehow my concentration still hasn’t improved much. I keep ending up relapsing because of stress and frustration from school. No matter how hard I try to block everything, I always find another way.

I also analyzed my situation a lot, and I think my biggest triggers are stress, frustration, and boredom. I’ve been trying to replace the habit with more productive goals like game development, learning a language, and studying more seriously, but I still fall back into the same cycle.

At this point I honestly feel stuck. Is anyone here in a similar situation or has been through this before? What actually helped you get out of it?

I have final exams coming up, and I genuinely feel like if I keep messing up like this, I’m going to fail them. I really need advice. please.

I’ve been trying to quit fapping for the last 4 years. But only since last year I really started noticing how much it destroys my concentration, motivation, and especially my ability to study.

I already removed a lot of distractions:

• deleted TikTok about 1 month ago
• deleted my Twitter/X account 5 months ago
• this week I even deleted all my games and social media apps

But somehow my concentration still hasn’t improved much. I keep ending up relapsing because of stress and frustration from school. No matter how hard I try to block everything, I always find another way.

I also analyzed my situation a lot, and I think my biggest triggers are stress, frustration, and boredom. I’ve been trying to replace the habit with more productive goals like game development, learning a language, and studying more seriously, but I still fall back into the same cycle.

At this point I honestly feel stuck. Is anyone here in a similar situation or has been through this before? What actually helped you get out of it?

I have final exams coming up, and I genuinely feel like if I keep messing up like this, I’m going to fail them. I really need advice. please.