First came the seizures and sleep paralysis. Then came the hallucinations and violent behaviour. Anneliese Michel made endless visits to doctor’s and specialists only to be either refereed to another doctor, or placed on medication that wasn’t helping her.

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Her condition became so bad that at times she started to growl and speak in a horrific deep voice, destroy religious objects and complain religious sites like churches were too painful for her to go near. She convinced her parents and several priests she was possessed by demons. It led to the catholic church making the unusual decision to grant two priests permission to perform an exorcism ritual.

But was Anneliese really possessed by demons? The medical community doesn’t think so. They were certain of what Anneliese was suffering from, even though they couldn’t diagnose her properly whilst she was alive.

Four people were eventually charged with negligent homicide after her death. The trial that followed was described as the biggest criminal trial in Germany, outside of the Nazi war crime trials.

The story of Anneliese Michel is as heartbreaking as it is horrific. Incredibly, some of the exorcism rituals were recorded. The tapes were never allowed to be played in court…. but they will be played during this episode…