Trolls and Tribulations To True Blues and Jubilations
Updated: Feb 7
By Olivia Humphries, Lighthouse Global, Associate Partner
What are my intentions for writing this article?
I am writing this article as a response to the many false accusations and lies that have been spread publicly online and also maliciously sent to clients of my own and other clients, family members of those here at Lighthouse International Group, now known as Lighthouse Global, and the general public as a whole.
It is important that I am clear, I am able to share certain information which would have ordinarily remained confidential but instead these particular individuals have chosen to go public with their misplaced grievances. I now have a responsibility and I have a right to correct those lies. It is in the public's interest that I do so. For those of you who are interested in learning the reality and truth that has been smothered by these lies then this article is for you.
Please refer to this article where Senior Partner Chris Nash writes and adds more breadth, depth and substance to the very reasons I am writing this.
Let me make this clear by starting to tell you who this article is not for…
This is not for those who troll whether that is online or offline. Haters are haters. This is not for those who hide behind pseudonyms and troll (‘Happyhippo717’, ‘Skyfall-2022’, 'Starling157', ‘Throwawayeducovictim’ and the rest of your “legion”). This is not for those who are not in the pursuit of truth, who are not in the pursuit of justice, but instead are in the pursuit of significance through violence and destruction, at whatever cost and however dressed up.
Instead I am writing to those who are in the pursuit of absolute truth starting with themselves. These are people who have a deep desire to look inwardly and are willing to see their own fallibilities and in seeing their own fallibilities they are willing to make their wrongs right. These are righteous people. There is a willingness to repent, and through their repentance there is a willingness to forgive themselves. Through this ability of forgiving themselves they can forgive others. These are human beings who love human beings but dislike unrighteous human behaviour. These are human beings who have a high capacity to build deep, meaningful and loving relationships. So, this is who this article is for...
If you are a troll there is no need for you to read on, and this is why… Those who resort to trolling, if they are sick enough to troll they are not well enough to take responsibility. It is pathologically unsound and I will tell you why... Those who troll do not look inside themselves, there’s very low self awareness and therefore very low conscience and responsibility taking. They are so blindsided in themselves and their stories they cannot apologise or truly say sorry. They have sold out!
This article is about my experience of being personally named and character assassinated by online trolls whose intention was to threaten my health and well being. Instead I will use this experience to educate others to show the reality of the fabricated stories and lies the trolls share.
Before I begin, let me share with you my responsibility that I take in being trolled and why I hold myself accountable and why I accept the pain that has been inflicted by these trolls.
First off, I took on some of these trolls as my clients. In hindsight (which is a beautiful thing) I ought to have known better. Looking back the signs were there:
Constant unhealthy confrontation in sessions,
A distinct lack of willingness to genuinely look at themselves,
A relentless lack of willingness to accept responsibility for themselves
A blatant lack of follow through
A continuous stream of justifications, blaming and minimisation when it came to genuine self reflection
A lack of willingness for conflict resolution (which is fundamental to the building of healthy human relationships and lives).
These ought to have been enough for me to refer some of these trolls onto a therapist. In some cases I did suggest that, looking back, I ought to have been stronger in my suggestions. My responsibility is to qualify the right person in, and to qualify the wrong person out. How I do that needs to be through an assessment of whether this person can look inside themselves and therefore is willing and able to follow through and by doing so, uses their investment in themselves well. If I can tell that this person is not going to be using their investment well and that they will not follow through, then it is my responsibility to ensure they do not move any further with mentorship.
It all comes down to attitude. Do they have an unhealthy attitude to being mentored? Do they have an unhealthy attitude to looking at their fallabilities? If yes, they cannot build any healthy relationship in their life whatsoever. End of! Looking at every single one of these trolls I can see where I ought to have called it earlier. I am thankful for this experience of being trolled as I have learnt an enormous amount through this whole experience. What it has taught me is invaluable, which is the more time the wrong person spends in mentoring the more time the right person is starved of the help that they desperately need. Trolls instead show pure indifference, indulgence and self entitlement. My responsibility is towards the right people and for that I am truly sorry.
Let me explain the pathology of a troll
The purpose of this section is for it to be directed towards the right people, those healthy and righteous (as explained above), those who are willing to look inwardly at themselves. Those who do not shudder at the word repentance (simply an acknowledgment of wrongdoing, an acknowledgment of a wrong result), or blister at the thought of atonement* (see below for explanation and description). The people that embrace Christ, even if that only means they believe in his ideals that he taught. I will use my personal experiences with those who have resorted to online trolling as case studies to learn from and lead and teach about.
I will go on to use actual examples, not only to show you the pathology of trolls but to reveal the white lies, gaslighting and manipulation. These are people who hide behind their destructive ways in the name of “love” and in the name of being “caring”. However it's not always the act that counts, it is always the true intention of that act. For example a psychopath can send flowers to a victim and hide behind the fact that they are just being kind, as all of the trolls in my experience hide behind “it’s just my opinion”. Yes, it is just an opinion however it is the way you go about it. Resorting to chronic, sustained, hateful speech and smear campaigning is not the way to resolve anything. It’s the intent to break down. A healthy individual will always look to resolve their challenges and address them. Not one of these trolls has taken myself or anyone at Lighthouse up on the multiple offers to speak and resolve their challenges, to look for a true win-win, and instead have opted for lose-lose which is desperately unhealthy, and as their pathology suggests is a means to break down, even if it means they lose too.
The general feeling and consensus with trolls is a resonance in relationship to similar stories and experiences. As long as these stories and experiences are congruent to their own they will champion, celebrate, and endorse them. As soon as discrepancies are found in their stories one of two things happen:
They resort to sympathetic retorts in order to deflect from their malicious and violent behaviour.
Completely denounce and vilify the very person delivering that truth, and they will go so far as to start character assassinating that person not listening to the message.
They claim they “will not be stopped and silenced”, yet what do they stand for? Certainly not righteousness. Instead they hide behind pseudonyms and shoot from the shadows now afraid their identities will be revealed publicly fighting to preserve their self image. This corrupt ego preservation is the very reason the world is in the state that it is. No one truly righteous and repentant would do that.
Some of these trolls have become increasingly aggressive in their trolling only to become passive once the truth is revealed about themselves and their fellow trolls. In their passivity what they are really looking for is sympathy. Just like a group of school yard bullies, once the stronger one is found out the others fall away in a desperate display of sympathy.
Trolls will always seek sympathy but will never display empathy for themselves or others. Empathy comes with self forgiveness and responsibility. What you will see moving forwards is not one of these trolls take any responsibility yet always want to share their biased perspective and give their own accounts. What you will see is not the pursuit of absolute truth but the pursuit of sympathy and vengeance for significance, not justice. They will even go so far as to denounce the fact that they are trolls (I mean who would admit being a troll?)... It would be a healthy human being who would admit to trolling. One act of trolling doesn't make a troll, yet consistent trolling reveals the pathology of a troll. As one troll sent to me “The truth always prevails Liv. I pray you see it one day” in a whatsapp message but then blocked me without allowing me to reply. (Obviously not a seeker of truth ‘Happyhippo717’). They instead will claim “we are legion” (‘Skyfall-2022’) yet won't go through the legal channels and will keep hiding behind pseudonyms, spitting their poison from the shadows, lies and outright deceit in the name of “good” and “heroism”, just like in the Bible the term “legion” is a collective demonic attack on what is righteous:
“Jesus asked him, ‘What is your name?’, ‘My name is Legion,’ he replied, ‘for we are many.’ And he begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of the area” (Mark 5:9-10).
Online Trolls Are Not Heroes
So, far from being driven by love, it’s sad to see what actually fuels each troll. For example, one couple in particular (who have resorted to trolling) must think they are very important 007 agents. What people won't know is how, after refusing to follow through even remotely on her journey of mentorship, ('Starling157') the wife of this couple revealed that she gains significance through bullying her own husband. This is typical behaviour of trolls. Not only do trolls troll online they troll offline behind their own front doors. It’s tragic that she couldn't make the distinction to look at herself and her behaviour to want to make the changes to help herself, her partner and their new born child. It is clear that this individual is so driven by destructive means and fuelled by all things negative, such as hate and attempts to bully others that she can find the time and the drive to follow through on online trolling. Never before have I seen her do so much work….If only she put the same effort into her own growth and the positive impact she could have to help herself and her family. Instead she has sabotaged her investment for herself and her husband.
'Starling157' falsely speaks of “joining LIG." Lighthouse Global is highly selective! This particular couple were never remotely close to “joining” Lighthouse Global, you cannot just join! Lighthouse is called Lighthouse for a reason! Not "LIG". I am proudly part of Lighthouse Global as we are a group of highly committed individuals to our growth and development, to studying the restraining forces as to what gets in the way of our potential and producing value. This just shows her delusional disjointed thinking and how she’s telling the story that she was involved in a “cult”. The lies and fabrication know no end. Again, not seeking truth instead now looking to preserve her self image.
Sabotage is the preserve of trolls! Even if it is self sabotage, that then leads to mutual sabotage. Amazingly, those behind the pseudonyms ‘Happyhippo717’ and 'Starling157' distributed with such glee and enthusiasm the trashy Daily Mail smear campaign article, along with malicious lies about their journey to my clients, as well as other Lighthouse partners' clients immediately after it was released. This was an attempt to discredit both myself and Warren Vaughan along with Lighthouse as a whole. This was a clear attempt at sabotaging with malicious lies and a very clear intention to sabotage other people's mentorship by painting both myself and Warren Vaughan as misleading and deceitful. Some of these clients even asked them to stop contacting them, of which they did not listen! This is now harassment! The clients harassed have now taken this to the Australian police.
The below points are just a few points that these trolls have conveniently left out of their accusations made in recent posts. It must be said we have all the evidence and refute any accusations made towards myself or Warren Vaughan or anyone at Lighthouse Global.
The husband of this couple ('Happyhippo717') was well on his way to suicide and had ever increasing suicidal thoughts and was guided out of suicide and back into employment by his mentor. (This has not been mentioned or recognised).
'Starling157' early into her mentorship had considered leaving her husband on multiple occasions but was encouraged to work on their relationship (due to mentorship) and to this day they are now married and have a child together.
More recently 'Starling157' threatened to take her child away from her husband for continuing his mentorship with myself, but they have both since distorted this reality and claim that it was I who encouraged him to leave her. However, I have all the recordings, as do they, that this is completely false. This claim has also been used as an attempt to sabotage clients in deceiving them to believe this as fact.
Since having their beautiful baby boy there has been nothing but continuous support in every area. Most notably when their son was desperately ill, Lighthouse offered to get them whatever they needed to ensure the health and well-being of their baby boy, and as a result their young family. Another important fact conveniently left out.
Both I and Warren Vaughan would take calls regularly outside of sessions to help guide, mentor and support them through challenging family situations, never charging for our extended time and support.
Both she and her husband enjoyed sessions that ran well over the expected time as well as additional one on one sessions at any time at no extra cost.
They were both invited to a parents group where they enjoyed the support of fellow members and their experiences while building “trust” with those members only to betray that very trust leaving all of those parents feeling hurt and deeply disappointed at this couples' destructive behaviour. (There was no charge for their involvement in the parents group).
Additional workshops were offered to many at a cost, of which out of care and consideration for their new family and their financial situation there was no charge from us.
They were always invited to sit with myself and Warren Vaughan on multiple occasions and encouraged to ask as many questions in the name of transparency throughout the duration of their mentorship and throughout the online trolling activity that began back in February 2021. Only for us to find out that they became trolls themselves.
The duplicity in this behaviour is astounding. We have done nothing but encourage them to sit around the table only for them to be deceitful.
Paul S. Waugh has also invited them to his family home to resolve any issues. We are still waiting for them to respond to his invitation…
The wife of this couple was invested in by her husband and they have both squandered that money with a lack of follow through. Out of the two, she followed through the least...Who will she blame? Well, definitely not herself, and she cannot afford to blame her husband so therefore Lighthouse becomes the scapegoat for her irresponsibility and laziness.
It’s sad when you look deeper to see the trolls themselves have come from very destructive backgrounds, so it’s what they’re used to. Yet they cannot find the love to break out of that and instead revel in the toxicity of darkness and hiding behind pseudonyms. Again, all in the name of “good”, (so they would proudly crow).
I know how the wife of this couple behaves as, since her childhood, she has been nicknamed “the devil child” because she was never taught to regulate her emotions and would get very, very angry due to bullying within her family environment. To this day she claims her father, mother and older sister bully her. We have strong reasons to believe ‘Skyfall-2022’ is actually one of her own bullies (if not herself again under another pseudonym) from her own family or closely associated with her. This is evident in the way she trolls online. Anyone who resorts to trolling shows a lack of ability to parent themselves. You can understand why such an individual would feel significant riding along the pseudo wave of a super hero complex to ‘save the day’ (only in unlawful ways) when really, deep down, she’s desperately hurt and damaged. The things we will do for love and attention never ceases to amaze me. This is one of the reasons why I feel deep compassion for her, her family and her baby. This is exactly what we teach here to ourselves and to our mentees. The crucial and vital importance of self parenting, which she refused to follow through on for herself and in not following through, blames the mentors. This is typical of someone not able to look at themselves, they blame others as it’s everyone else’s fault. Failing to realise, if she had followed through, she wouldn't have sabotaged her husband's investment in her and their young family.
What have I experienced from those who have the same pathology of those who resort to online trolling?
The damage the online trolling has caused by spreading falsehoods, is that it has intimidated and manipulated those who are more naive. I know the place I was in when I first received mentorship and if I had seen the awful posts online, I no doubt would have been scared that those falsehoods were true. That, I find tragic! I do wonder how many people who have needed the help and guidance as desperately as I did, have been turned away because of the trolls. Little do people realise that the large contingent of our trolls, (for example ‘Throwawayeducovictim’) have never even met us here at Lighthouse, let alone even know who we are. Instead they have jumped on the bandwagon of trolling because of their own pathology.
However, a select few mentees of this pathology that I have mentored have seen the posts and instead of healthily asking to speak and find the truth, became instantly violent themselves. Ironically these are the same people who were offered multiple times to speak about their concerns after seeing the online trolling yet turned instead to become a troll themselves… Which shows they were never in the pursuit of absolute truth. Here’s what I experienced in one case last year over one volatile, vicious and violent phone call…
With this mentee, after working with her for over a year and a half, and knowing her for a good few years beforehand I wasn't expecting this violent reaction from her. This mentee had reached out to me because she wanted to learn to be a mentor herself and she expressed a real appreciation and love for the mentorship she received. I helped her with relationship struggles in her own family and even spoke with her own children. What was a seemingly flourishing mentoring relationship turned out to be an incredibly painful and blunt end to our mentorship. This mentee did a complete 180 degree switch in her character and became violent towards me over the phone after seeing the online trolling. It was a violent attack on me, my character, my well being and my mentoring relationship with her. This was an attack on what I stand for as a human being, and I felt completely and utterly violated, disrespected, dishonoured and dismissed. This is not normal or healthy behaviour! It made me question what on earth had happened to her in the space of just one week for there to be this sudden change in her character. I was accused of conning her, yet she had not given me any indication there was anything wrong and had sent me lovely text messages just days before her vitriolic and emotional verbal attack.
What’s sad about this is it actually shows how unhealthy this individual is and the trolling helped to reveal that. I still care for this mentee massively as I walked a sacred journey with her and she confided in me some deeply personal and heart breaking experiences that she had been through in her life. This mentee had seen the illegal trolling on various sites and also an illegal website that had been created by the very same anonymous trolls which revealed a very damaged and damaging side to her. It not only damaged her, but sabotaged her entire mentorship relationship with me in one violent, destructive and detrimental phone call. At the time I was deeply hurt and upset, however my sadness is for her and the dark place the online trolling triggered for her.
"Emotional sickness is avoiding reality at any cost. Emotional health is facing reality at any cost." M. Scott Peck
This mentee opened herself up to manipulation which is the intent of the trolls. No conscious human being can ever be manipulated. This shows she was not genuinely seeking the truth. If she was she would have been willing to come to the table with me to resolve any issues, which she was offered multiple times. Anyone with a healthy and educated conscience and the ability to genuinely self reflect would look at that behaviour and apologise and want to make it right. Again, this shows an individual with a propensity to be unrepentant which leads to a lack of self-forgiveness.
Anyone spreading volatile slander online anonymously, no matter how it may be dressed up, their aim is to unsettle you as easily as they themselves are unsettled. Someone who does not have a healthy foundation for their lives, cannot discern what is principally sound. This means that they will read the online vitriol and trolling and not know where they stand with it. I will tell you one thing that is the biggest give away, these people are hiding from the truth shown by the fact that all of the online trolling is done behind pseudonyms and there’s many things that are just not seen behind their accusations.
"The truth is something that burns. It burns off deadwood. And people don’t like having the deadwood burnt off, often because they’re 95 percent deadwood."- Jordan Peterson
This is a PS to the trolls, I do think of you and send you love.
The intention and the modus operandi of the online trolls is damning and criminal, and it has caused myself and many here and their families immense suffering and stress, including our children because they do not know how far the trolls will go and when the trolling will end. The reality is I can say how much my business has been affected, and how hurt and upset I have been but these experiences have also helped me. What the trolls do not realise is that they are correcting us and helping us, as an organisation dedicated to transitioning and transforming for the greater good, to improve to get even more on the straight and narrow, despite the pain they've caused. We have done much research into the pathology of human beings and know now exactly who can and will become healthy, growing, mature and loving adults. These people are willing to look at themselves and their wrong doing and make it right. This is a new starting point for us all here at Lighthouse. It is the death of the old and the birth of a new beginning! I really do think of each individual who has resorted to trolling and I hold no resentment but instead pray for them. I think of the pain and suffering they are going through in their souls, I send them positive thoughts of care and only wish them the best for them and their families.
"You never so touch the ocean of God's love as when you forgive and love your enemies." Corrie Ten Boom
The hope for family members and others to realise the consequences of their trolling
Lighthouse has and is setting a precedent on how to address this online abuse and the harm it causes. This is crucially important because the vulnerable suffer from this ill, wicked and evil work at hand. There are many cases of children who have committed suicide by the horrors of online trolling. The legal actions we are taking at Lighthouse means the trolls' families will be impacted too. My hope for them is that this will help the friends and family members of these trolls to become more aware that such acts do not go unaccounted for, and worse, when done in the name of good, however justified, will still bring severe consequences. We live in a cause and effect world, so whatever you sow you shall reap.
My Gratitude for the experience of being trolled over the last year
There’s a saying that I was taught early doors at the beginning of my mentorship journey that goes, "if everyone likes you you're doing something wrong". It became apparent to me very quickly being mentored at Lighthouse Global that leadership is hard and not for the faint hearted. While I have been through many painful learning curves through the mentorship of others I never thought we would end up being trolled. This experience however, has brought all of us in Lighthouse closer together as we have observed and faced adversity through it. Many individuals here have been standing up and finding their voice where they previously hadn’t. There’s another saying that goes; ‘Adversity Reveals Your True Character’. This has been made very clear through the intent of the online trolls as to what their true character reveals about them, when things do not go their way and what they will resort to.
Our journey here at Lighthouse is a really special and sacred one. I have been building my relationship with Christ and learning more and more about the fruitages of The Holy Spirit. I feel deeply humbled to look at what Christ is teaching us, to love thy enemy and to serve with a full heart and to protect the fragile and vulnerable. If anything the trolls have brought us all collectively in Lighthouse closer to one another. I feel a duty to stand up for what is right and righteous to build myself and grow so I can truly help those in need, as that is what I believe Christ deeply wants us to do. So this is a thank you to these trolls, because they are part of our journey here as we continue to grow and develop in the pursuit to seek first what is loving and righteous. I truly wish them all the best and pray they get the help they need and search their hearts to see the error of their ways for themselves and for our children across the globe that are suffering terribly. This is why the world is the way it is, because of this destructive pathology and behaviour.
May God bless us all as we navigate the trials and tribulations of this life.
*Atonement is the reconciliation of God and mankind through Jesus Christ*
To learn more about our program Parents Against Trolls please visit this link:
Click here to learn more, and to register your support for Parents Against Trolls.
Or to speak to me or one of our other mentors at Lighthouse about your experience of online trolling please do contact me on olivia.humphries@lighthouseglobal.family
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