What do I do if someone close to me starts believing in QAnon?

Reddit forums like QAnon Casualties are filled with stories of anguished people whose relationships with QAnon believers have become strained or which have ended entirely. Conversely, QAnon believers often post themselves about how they have become alienated from their families because of their belief in QAnon.

In this telling, the world of Q research becomes their new “family.”

If you are concerned that someone you know is becoming a QAnon believer, it’s important to not immediately ridicule their new worldview or point out its many factual flaws, according to writer David Neiwert. The author of Red Pill, Blue Pill, an upcoming book on how people can deal on an individual level with conspiracy theories, Neiwert warns that directly attacking QAnon beliefs will convince the QAnon supporter that their friend or relative is a part of the conspiracy themselves.

“It’s really important to maintain the friendship or the relationship that you have with that person throughout,” Neiwert said.

Instead, Neiwert advises people to draw out what personal problems may be drawing someone to QAnon, and talk about how to address those.

“What you’ll find is that everyone who is drawn into this stuff has usually unaddressed grievances or issues,” Neiwert siad.

Unfortunately, there don’t appear to be any easy answers for how to convince a QAnon believer that it’s fake. And there aren’t really any prominent Q-defectors, whose stories could serve as a template for others to follow.

“It’s a long, slow, and frequently very painful process,” Neiwert said.