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Julianna Glasse is back for Part 2, and this one is all about what comes after the leaving and what you build when you refuse to swap one savior for another. We hear about the three years Julianna spent being, in her words, “spiritually promiscuous:” traveling the world, visiting temples and mosques, dating freely and non-monogamously, deliberately not writing her book until she could show women how to be the hero of their own story rather than just trade one belief system for another. The intentionality of that choice is its own kind of radical act. We get into her Oxford dissertation's central revelation: that shame, fear, isolation, and psychological manipulation are the universal tools that oppressive religious systems use on women across cultures—and that once you name the internal mechanics rather than the external differences, a girl from Iowa and a girl from Saudi Arabia suddenly look at each other and say "me too." That insight became the curriculum at her organization, This Is What Happens When Women Read, which has already reached over four million women in 67 countries in just a year and a half, including a woman in Botswana who hosted 41 women for dinner in honor of Julianna's birthday. Julianna's advice to anyone secretly listening from a bathroom with headphones is some of the most quietly powerful we've heard: you have intrinsic worth. There is no gatekeeper between you and love or God or yourself. Be very private with your becoming. Ask of everything put before you—does this feel like love or does this feel like fear? We never got to the boat chapter in This Is What Happens When Women Read; you'll have to read the book for that one. Trust us—you'll want to. Be sure to follow Julianna on Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn. Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of religious coercion, shame-based control, isolation, and psychological manipulation within religious systems. Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In Part 1, Julianna Glasse joins us for a conversation about what happens when a woman starts reading, questioning, and noticing the system she was raised to accept as absolute truth. Raised in the Christian Evangelical Free church by a pastor father and homeschool-teacher mother, Julianna describes the slow internal unraveling that began with philosophy, poetry, science, and one very memorable scooter accident that made her wonder whether everyone might be praying to the same thing—or whether we were all just making it up. She shares how she went from a successful Christian singer, author, and teacher to quietly hiding books, questioning patriarchy and religious certainty, and eventually facing the enormous backlash that came when she chose self-actualization over conformity. We talk about information control, public shaming, character assassination, spiritual abuse, fundamentalism, religious trauma, deconstruction, and the difference between personal spirituality and institutions that claim exclusive access to God. Stay tuned for Part 2 on Thursday. Be sure to read This Is What Happens When Women Read and follow Julianna on Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn. Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of childhood sexual and institutional abuse, religious trauma, fundamentalist Christianity, misogyny, coercive control, public shaming, death and rape threats, and homophobia. Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Suzanne Jordan is back for Part 2, and this one starts exactly where it needs to: the moment 24-year-old Suzanne braced herself in a doorframe and told Yogi Bhajan she thought of him like an old grandpa. We get the full story of his sexual advance, her refusal, his explosive rage, and the martial arts training that meant the next time he came at her—fists up—she dropped into a fighting stance and made him rethink his strategy. She left two weeks later at 5:00 AM, car full of white clothes she would never wear again, sobbing and screaming down the 10 freeway to freedom. We also dig into the infrastructure that kept it all going: the 3HO reparation program that paid out settlements while never admitting wrongdoing, the failed “compassionate reconciliation” process that opened with a “Sat Nam” and re-traumatized survivors, the Kundalini Research Institute and its unverifiable prescriptive kriyas, the White Tantric Yoga VHS tapes conducting subconscious cleansing from beyond the grave, and how Yogi Tea and grant money keep the organization financially afloat while attendance collapses. Suzanne draws a sharp distinction between 3HO and actual Sikhism—a conflation that does a disservice to Sikhs worldwide—and makes a passionate case for why victims who were also complicit deserve space to tell the truth rather than take it to their graves. Be sure to read Suzanne’s memoir, The Deviant Daughter, follow her at SuzanneJordan.com and check out the Yogi Bhajan Kundalini abuse Facebook page and Beyond the Cage, a private Facebook group. Also look out for the documentary, Long Time Sun, by Fifth Season in the US, and check out Suzanne’s Yogi Bhajan Smack Down: https://youtu.be/1qKVh7RHUG4?si=alqvTl-CDyMBhW7t Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of sexual assault, attempted rape, physical violence, coercive control, sex trafficking, and survivor accountability dynamics. Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Suzanne Jordan joins us for a deep dive into her time in the early days of 3HO, Kundalini, and the world built around Yogi Bhajan. She shares how childhood trauma, family rupture, Omega House, and a desperate search for safety and belonging created the perfect runway into an ashram that initially looked like a wholesome new family, with yoga, vegetarian food, chanting, and a suspiciously effective café. Suzanne takes us from her first exposure to 3HO through marriage, spiritual bypassing, tough love, and the increasingly impossible gymnastics required to reconcile Yogi Bhajan’s public teachings with his abuse of power. We also discuss Omega House, Yogi Bhajan, 3HO, Kundalini, Pamela Dyson and her book Premka, which helped crack open the truth for longtime devotees, along with Suzanne’s own memoir, The Deviant Daughter. Stay tuned for Part 2 on Thursday. Follow Suzanne at SuzanneJordan.com and check out the Yogi Bhajan Kundalini abuse Facebook page and Beyond the Cage, a private Facebook group. Also look out for the documentary, Long Time Sun, by Fifth Season in the US, and check out Suzanne’s Yogi Bhajan Smack Down: https://youtu.be/1qKVh7RHUG4?si=alqvTl-CDyMBhW7t Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of childhood trauma, troubled-teen programs, emotional, physical, religious, spiritual, and child abuse, sexual grooming, assault, and violence, coercive control, and suicide. Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS: Find the fall pieces you’ll reach for most at Quince. Download the Quince app for app-exclusive offers, or go to Quince.com. Get free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Now available in Canada and the UK, too. Find pieces made for real life, and get even more value with Wayfair Rewards. Join Wayfair Rewards today to get five percent back on every purchase. Head to Wayfair.com to shop all things home. You’re going to love Hungryroot as much as we do. For a limited time get 40% off your first order PLUS get a free item in every box for life. Go to Hungryroot.com/culty and use code culty.  To get your new wireless plan for just $15 a month, go to MintMobile.com/culty. That scratched up pair has done its job. Upgrade today with Zenni! Go to Zenni.com/PODCAST and use code PODCAST15 for 15% off your first order, plus free shipping on all US orders over sixty five dollars. Celebrate Raycon Month with the Everyday Earbuds. Go to BuyRaycon.com/CULTY to get 20% off. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In Part 2 of our conversation with Sean Miller, we get into the messy business of figuring out what to keep—and what to leave behind—after spending 36 years as a Jehovah’s Witness. Sean talks about the anger, grief, and identity crisis that came with leaving, and how learning to incorporate the good parts of his past without excusing the harmful ones helped him move forward. We dig into the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ handling of sexual abuse allegations, shifting positions on medical care and mental health, and the mindfuck of discovering that the people and institution demanding impossible standards from you don’t always hold themselves to those same standards. We also talk about how Sean found a way to rebuild through art. He shares the inspiration behind his book Novice Enthusiasm, his comic project Kinsugi, and his goal of creating a roadmap for anyone trying to reconnect with their creativity after religious trauma. Plus, we get into the surprisingly culty potential of AI and one very committed—and ridiculous—Jehovah’s Witness parking-lot grift involving the magic number 1914. Because apparently deconstruction can be healing and useful at the beach. Be sure to pick up Sean’s book, Novice Enthusiasm: Belief, Rebuilt. Built One Line at a Time, visit his website, SeanGregoryMiller.com, and follow him on Instagram @seangregorymiller. Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of religious trauma, domestic and sexual abuse and institutional cover-ups, mental health, coercive control, grief, and estrangement from family. Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Sean Miller grew up as a Jehovah's Witness golden boy—son of a highly respected elder, raised in what he calls a nearly perfect JW family, and groomed from infancy to be the best Witness in the room. The only problem? Nobody asked Sean. He wanted to shred guitar and make art, but was too busy passing an invisible bar exam at five years old, with love that felt conditional on performance. We get Sean's full origin story: how a rock band, a spiritually feisty Pentecostal girl, and a forbidden relationship got him disfellowshipped the first time—which, for the uninitiated, means treated like you're dead by everyone you've ever known, effective immediately. He got reinstated, got married, started a family, and lasted about 10 more years before his ex-wife picked up Crisis of Conscience and blew the lid off everything. Cue the Australian Royal Commission testimony on child sexual abuse within the Jehovah's Witnesses, the laundry folding, the sobbing, and the full worldview collapse. We also get into the ex-JW community, cult hopping, and the real danger of trying to fill the cult-shaped hole in your heart. Part 2 brings the book, the art, and the constructive use of all that very justified anger. Be sure to pick up Sean’s book, Novice Enthusiasm: Belief, Rebuilt. Built One Line at a Time, visit his website, SeanGregoryMiller.com, and follow him on Instagram @seangregorymiller. Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of shunning, child sexual abuse institutional cover-up, and religious coercion. Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS: Go to https://OmahaSteaks.com and use promo code CULTY at checkout for $35 off. Minimum purchase may apply.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Melissa Archer's story in 5F continues with a “deliverance,” a session conducted over speakerphone ( audio now public through Be Scofield's reporting) that turned deeply personal fast, and a follow-up call where the "prophet" asked if she was "wet" and how "thirsty" she was. That was a major crack, but not the exit. What happened there is a masterclass in coercive control: a middle-of-the-night break-in, gunshots, and a wide-open back door that GeorDavie waved off after claiming he'd checked the "spiritual realm"; plainclothes "cops" recasting what she knew she heard; Wi-Fi that mysteriously went dead; and a one-on-one that ended with Melissa going limp—"surrendering," exactly as instructed. She came home blaming herself and tripling down, until her friend disclosed she had been assaulted and the group's response was pure pattern: Catherine called the victim a liar, and GeorDavie denied the sexual-assault allegations while reframing the recordings as a third-language misunderstanding. Melissa went to the FBI, wrote about the experience in 2022 to almost no response, and is finally being heard now, with a message for anyone judging victims: when people are taught from childhood to surrender to spiritual authority, “you're indoctrinated from an early age to be able to join a cult.” Check out the original post on 5F on The Guru: https://www.gurumag.com/l-a-s-viral-exorcist-kathryn-krick-knew-of-prophets-sexual-abuse-allegations And follow Melissa on Instagram, Facebook, or X. Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of sexual assault allegations, invasive sexual questioning, cult dynamics, coercive control, religious and spiritual abuse, grooming, manipulation, gaslighting, threatening situations, and victim blaming.  Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Melissa Archer is best known as Natalie Buchanan on One Life to Live, with later stints on Days of Our Lives and a run of indie films. These days she builds software, including NeuroRewire, an app for rewiring thought patterns formed in situations people didn't choose. Somewhere in the middle of all that, she accidentally joined a cult. We first learned about her from Be Scofield's reporting in The Guru, and she joins us fresh off the story going public. In Part 1, Melissa walks us through how a non-practicing Catholic went looking for a deeper connection to God and found a pile of red flags she didn't yet have the language for: love bombing, daily phone calls, leadership titles, "diamond memberships," doubt dismissed as a "religious spirit," and isolation bragged about so openly she figured a group that culty couldn't possibly be a cult on purpose.  Her entry point was a Tanzanian "prophet" named GeorDavie and his 5F movement (formerly Advanced Anointing), with twenty-something emcee Kathryn Krick and pastor David launching the American branch. And to her credit, Melissa was skeptical enough to design a literal test for whether the prophecy stuff was real. But a streak of "miracles" had her healthy skepticism gaslighting itself, until it ended with a prayer: "I'm going all in—pull me out if I get too deep." Come back Thursday for Part 2, when we head to Tanzania, where the promises got bigger, the control got tighter, and the whole thing stopped feeling like a miracle. Check out the original post on 5F on The Guru: https://www.gurumag.com/l-a-s-viral-exorcist-kathryn-krick-knew-of-prophets-sexual-abuse-allegations And follow Melissa on Instagram, Facebook, or X. Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of cult dynamics, coercive control, religious and spiritual abuse, manipulation, gaslighting, and isolation. Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS: Sign up and get 10% off at BetterHelp.com/culty. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our merch store just got a glow-up, and yes, it’s as Gen X as it sounds. We’ve teamed up with Dashery for new designs and better deals. Every purchase helps support the podcast—think cozy hoodies, sweaters, and mugs for fall and winter, plus shirts, tank tops, phone covers, stickers, pillows, totes, pins, magnets, hats, and basically everything you could use in your house or on your body. No uniform required, but the hoodie is so soft, you’ll want to wear it while planning your exit from a high control group. Shop at alittlebitculty.dashery.com for all your ALBC merch needs. Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We’re back with Mark Vicente for Part 2 of this joint A Little Bit Culty and WTF is on my Mind?! episode. This one gets into the real meat of what happened at our book launch event gone sideways—and what it means beyond just us. We play the last 12 minutes of Sarah’s recording from the event, then the bookstore owner's public social media post about the incident. We contrast it with what actually happened, including eyewitness accounts from people in the front row who tried to set the record straight, only to have their comments deleted. We talk about what it feels like to be publicly misrepresented with no ability to correct the record, how cancel culture weaponizes the cloak of altruism, and why the best fight is the one you don't fight. We also get into identity politics, why fusing your sense of self to a belief system makes civil discourse impossible, and why Mark thinks we're all being triangulated against each other on a macro scale. This episode is a case study in culty thinking without a cult—and a reminder that dehumanizing the person in front of you while claiming to fight for humanity is not advocacy; it's the problem. If the comments on this one devolve into a debate about geopolitics rather than the patterns at play, you've already missed the point. Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of public shaming, online harassment, and geopolitical conflict. Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this special joint episode of A Little Bit Culty and Mark Vicente’s WTF Is on My Mind?!, Mark interviews us about the “Massy incident” during our Vancouver book tour for A Little Bit Culty: Navigating Cults, Control and Coercion. Together, we unpack what happened when a conversation about cult dynamics, extremism, and pattern recognition was hijacked by a highly charged political conflict—and how loaded questions, forced verdicts, black-and-white thinking, and moral purity tests can turn a book event into a full-blown ideological cage match. Stay tuned for Part 2 on Thursday. Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of antisemitism, Islamophobia, racism, the Israel–Gaza conflict, genocide, extremism, religious and political polarization, and online harassment. Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In Part 2, Star gets into the red flags that finally became impossible to ignore at OneTaste: missing consent and accountability protocols, sexual boundary violations, spiritual bypassing, gaslighting, and an organization that seemed to have more “trust the process” than actual process. She shares how she slowly pulled away, eventually leaving the Bay Area, rebuilding her life, and finding her way back to herself through therapy, community, and the very thing she once avoided: feeling everything in her body. Star also talks about turning her experience into a solo theater show, complete with original songs about red flags, narcissism, orgasm, and—because apparently the universe demanded it—corporate vagina. We talk about the unregulated wellness industry, spiritualized intimacy, predatory influencers, and the tools every sexual or spiritual seeker needs: ask questions, check credentials, find out what happens when someone says no, and remember that “no” is a complete sentence. We’ll also share a few minutes of Star’s show at the end, so prepare for trauma, time, and comedy to make one very entertaining baby. Follow Star at starstonespeaks.com, on Instagram @starstonespeaks, and The Wild Project: thewildproject.org Star performs Cl*t Cult September 10 and 11 at 10:30pm at Under St Marks Theater in NYC:  https://tickets.frigid.nyc/event/6897:1495 Also check her out at  Brooklyn Comedy Collective on October 4 at 7pm. Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of sexual assault, rape, sexualized practices, nudity, orgasmic meditation, coercive control, gaslighting, spiritual bypassing, sexual boundary violations, financial exploitation, communal living, and trauma recovery. Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In Part 1 of our third deep dive on OneTaste, Star Stone joins us to explain how a spiritual seeker looking for female empowerment and connection ended up inside a world of confusing intro events, “corporate vagina” demos, goalless orgasmic meditation, and communal housing that sounded like a nightmare waiting to happen. Star walks us through the slow creep from curiosity to commitment: Meetup mixers that felt like team-building exercises, increasingly intimate “communication games,” and a coaching program that promised transformation but delivered a grab-bag of incoherent teachings, hidden courses, and credit-card-friendly upsells. Along the way, we talk about loaded language, financial exploitation, blurred sexual boundaries, coercive control, and the very real moment when your yoga-trained brain goes, “Wait, this syllabus makes no sense,” and the culty fog starts to lift. It’s insightful, unsettling, and darkly funny—because sometimes the only way through is to name the absurdity, laugh until it hurts, and keep asking the questions they really don’t want you to ask. Stay tuned for Part 2 Thursday. Follow Star at starstonespeaks.com, on Instagram @starstonespeaks, and The Wild Project: thewildproject.org Star performs Cl*t Cult September 10 and 11 at 10:30pm at Under St Marks Theater in NYC:  https://tickets.frigid.nyc/event/6897:1495 Also check her out at  Brooklyn Comedy Collective on October 4 at 7pm. Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of sexualized practices, nudity, orgasmic meditation, coercive control, financial exploitation, communal living, and sexual boundaries and assault. Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In Part 2 of our Vancouver book launch, we do a full-on audience Q&A, covering everything from cult susceptibility and the “cult-shaped hole in your heart” to how groups can start with good intentions and slowly slide into coercion, control, and abuse of power. We talk recognizing your own hooks, spotting personality changes and loaded language, rebuilding trust after leaving, and why “What to Do When It’s Time to GTFO” is a chapter in A Little Bit Culty: Navigating Cults, Control and Coercion—because sometimes you need a roadmap, not a motivational quote. We also answered questions about us meeting in NXIVM, leaving safely, the metaphorical shelf breaking, survivor shame, and the importance of sunlight, support, and keeping the conversation going. Special thanks to: Megan Williams at The Self-Publishing Agency for emceeing Eric Lee at CoFunction Events & Workspaces for generously hosting us: cofunctioneventspaces.com Jennifer-Lee Gunson for recording: podcastconsulting.ca Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of cultic and sexual abuse, coercive control, indoctrination, trauma, family separation, death, suspected poisoning, cancer, suicide, and leaving high-control groups. Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We’re kicking off Season 9 live from our very special book launch conversation from July 2026 in Vancouver about our book, A Little Bit Culty: Navigating Cults, Control and Coercion. We chatted about the messy, hilarious, full-circle journey behind the book, then get into how to support someone who may be caught in a high-control group without pushing them further into isolation. We unpack love bombing, indoctrination, behavior and thought control, loaded language, personality changes, and the all-important question: is what you signed up for actually what you’re getting? Stay tuned for Part 2 on Thursday. Special thanks to: Megan Williams at The Self-Publishing Agency for emceeing Eric Lee at CoFunction Events & Workspaces for generously hosting us: cofunctioneventspaces.com Jennifer-Lee Gunson for recording: podcastconsulting.ca Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of cultic control, coercion, indoctrination, emotional abuse, isolation, trauma, and leaving high-control groups. Also…let it be known that: The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty f*****d. Buy the A Little Bit Culty paperback, ebook, or audiobook on Amazon or order a signed copy. Check out our amazing sponsors Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred CREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Co-Creator: Jess Tardy Audio production: Will Retherford Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore Writer and administrator: Sandra Nomoto Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS: Go to https://OmahaSteaks.com and use promo code CULTY at checkout for $35 off. Minimum purchase may apply. Find the fall pieces you’ll reach for most at Quince. Download the Quince app for app-exclusive offers, or go to Quince.com/culty. Get free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Now available in Canada and the UK, too. You’re going to love Hungryroot as much as I do. For a limited time get 40% off your first order PLUS get a free item in every box for life. Go to Hungryroot.com/culty and use code culty. Transform your space with pieces that hold up to real life. Join Wayfair Rewards today and get 5% back on every purchase. Head to Wayfair.com or shop the Wayfair app for all things home. To get your new wireless plan for just 15 bucks a month, go to MINTMOBILE.com/culty. The Everyday Earbuds Classics are the perfect companion for your fall reset. Go to BUYRAYCON.com/CULTY to get 20% off. Thanks to Raycon for sponsoring! Join the millions of customers who trust HomeServe. For 50% less your first year, go to HomeServe.com/culty. That scratched up pair has done its job. Upgrade today with Zenni! Go to ZENNI.COM/PODCAST and use code PODCAST15 for 15% off your first order, plus free shipping on all US orders over $65. The styles sell out, so don't sit on it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.