2023-07-31 05:00:00
The box sits in its trunk. Inside, a flocked juice extractor Regenerates, the brand developed by the cantor of raw food, Thierry Casasnovas. Thomas (his first name has been changed) takes the object out of his car: “I don’t know what to do with it. Two years ago he found it in the attic of his mother, Martha (also an alias), who had just succumbed to uterine cancer. She died at 56 following refusing surgery, treatment and chemotherapy. Instead, this follower of the precepts of Thierry Casasnovas fasted for several weeks.
“My mother nurtured a distrust of conventional medicine quite early on,” says Thomas, 30. LP/Ariane Riou
Martha’s attraction to the YouTuber’s videos has swelled for ten years with her frantic online postings. Around 2011-2012, she spoke for the first time to her son, then a student, of “this incredible guy who was on the verge of death and who treated himself by drinking vegetable juices”. “For her, there was no reason for him to lie,” rewinds Thomas, 30, sitting on the terrace of a café near Chambéry (Savoie). This is the first time he has told his full story. To his relatives, he spoke a little regarding it. To others, he never dared: “It’s intimate, I prefer to remain anonymous. »
He nods: “My mother harbored a distrust of conventional medicine quite early on. She grew up surrounded by New Age spirituality, where body, mind and cosmos are supposed to be linked. His own mother was treated for cancer at age 55; Thomas, then an infant, had an allergic reaction following a vaccine. He was treated with homeopathy, soothed with essential oils.
Casasnovas aura increases during lockdown
The “simple” and “popular” words of the naturopath, and his videos captivate Martha. “Thierry”, as she calls him, enters the foyer. Martha starts making fruit and vegetable juices; she is delighted “to have more pep”. “I was not surprised. She was the type to try lots of new things. It was just one more thing,” recalls Thomas.
His mother attends one of Casanovas’ conferences in Perpignan, then collects the objects he touts on the Web: a first juice extractor, and a second, and a trampoline, ideal for moving the “lymph”. She invests in an inversion table, a “practical solution once morest depression”, indicates the Catalan. Having your head upside down would bring “blood to the brain”…
Martha bought some of the items that Thierry Casasnovas was selling on his site, including a juice extractor. LP/Ariane Riou
“My mother didn’t have a lot of means, but health and food were her priorities,” says Thomas. In the spring of 2020, when the Covid pandemic broke out, he confined himself with his mother to his house in Aube. One day they fast. Another, they eat raw. At this time, Casasnovas’ popularity exploded. He questions the virus and the vaccine, brings together all the conspiratorial spheres. His YouTube channel reaches 500,000 subscribers.
Thomas sees his mother’s mistrust swell: “She had reservations regarding the official government version of the Covid. The pandemic passes. He goes back home. Until that day in mid-February 2021, when Martha told him that she was suffering from uterine cancer.
The operation of his tumor canceled in full course of fasting
Heavy bleeding alerted her. She saw the announcement as a “shock” and consulted an oncologist. An operation to remove the tumor is scheduled for a month and a half later. In the meantime, Martha decides to practice a 40-day fasting course in Ardèche. “Those around him were told: you will see the tumor will dry up, you will do a scan at the end of the fast and you will be cured. Thomas worries. He reminds his mother of his date. In vain.
She cancels it in the middle of her internship. At the end of his fast, the verdict falls. The tumor has progressed. Doctors are pessimistic. “My mother still finds explanations, blames the examination done in a hurry… It’s more comfortable for her to say that”, analyzes Thomas, with hindsight.
The suffering intensifies. Desperate, Martha sends an email to Thierry Casasnovas’ team at the end of April. “I am looking for support (from a distance is enough for me) in my healing journey from uterine cancer,” she wrote, praising their “remarkable work”. Two days later, she receives an answer. At the time, Casasnovas was already the subject of an investigation opened by the Perpignan prosecutor’s office for, in particular, “illegal practice of medicine” and “abuse of weakness”. His team states that he [s’est retiré] of all media and public life” and “takes a rest with the family”.
Problem, the message does not stop there. He is offered, via a link, to “contact a coach”, trained by the youtuber in his precepts. The “local guru” receives a commission for each meeting. The email specifies: “One of them will be able to take stock with you in order to be able to advise you and/or follow up. And also to refer to “online self-training in the form of videos” and future practical courses. “You can register via this form to be informed. The email ends with these lines: “We wish you a good continuation on this path to health. At no time was he advised to consult a doctor. Asked regarding the potentially harmful role of his videos, Thierry Casasnovas did not respond to our requests.
At the end of June 2021, Martha is hospitalized. She dies a few days later, leaving her son her joy in memory. On his phone, Thomas shows the shot chosen for his funeral. Her blond hair pulled back in a ponytail reveals her broad smile. She radiates.
“A stepping stone for the next stage”
In the summer of 2021, when he is emptying his mother’s house with his friend, she comes across a Regenere magazine, launched by Casasnovas. Martha was subscribed. His girlfriend, who knows the reputation of the influencer, the man most reported to Miviludes (Interministerial Mission for Vigilance and the Fight once morest Sectarian Abuses), asks: “She followed this guy your mother? Thomas is surprised: “For me, it was just Thierry, the hippie followed by regarding fifty people. He then discovered the inconsistencies distilled by the Catalan. “I feel silly for not asking myself the questions earlier,” he breathes. If I had known, we might have exercised our critical sense together…”
Since then, the 30-year-old has learned a lot. “It helped me to grieve. He deciphers the problem, “progress in things”. “We begin, like my mother, to have a naturalistic vision of life. Then we see a guy drinking vegetable juice. And this super nice, trusted guy says you can cure your allergies with fasting. And cancer…” The young man reflects: “If I ask you to climb a six-meter wall, you won’t be able to do it. But if I give you several small steps… It’s the same here, each time we give you the running board for the next step. »
Of the latest adventures, Thomas has followed everything: this ongoing investigation in Perpignan, the indictment of Casasnovas in March… “I will be happy if he is convicted, he admits. I can’t say he killed my mother, but I’m sure that played into his decision. He is still reluctant to add his complaint to the file.
There remain the objects that Martha had purchased over the years. What to do with it? Thomas gave the trampoline to a little girl in the family. He does not want to sell others. “I’m afraid someone will buy them, see the logo and go to the site. I don’t want to be responsible for this. “Since 2021, he has carried them in his moves. As if Martha was, following all, still a little with him.
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