Best trustmepodcast Podcasts (2025)

1
The Modern Brady Bunch: Planning for Children from Second Marriages 19:07

8d ago19:07

19:07

Episode Summary: Attorney John Marshall discusses the complexities of estate planning for blended families and second marriages. He shares insights on protecting assets, ensuring fair distribution between spouses and children from different marriages, and the importance of proper planning to prevent family conflicts. The episode covers crucial topi…

1
Don’t confuse your Google Search with my Law Degree 22:33

24d ago22:33

22:33

Episode Summary: Attorney John Marshall discusses the critical differences between DIY estate planning and working with a qualified estate planning attorney. He explains why online legal services and generic forms often fall short, highlighting Florida's unique legal requirements, particularly regarding homestead laws. Marshall emphasizes the impor…

1
Amanda Rae - The Kingston Clan and Escaping Polygamy 1:19:13

3M ago1:19:13

1:19:13

Today our guest is Amanda Rae, host of YouTube channel by the same name and former member of the Kingston Clan, or the Order, a polygamist group in Utah, not to be confused with the FLDS. Some of you may remember our previous guest Priscilla from the same group - both of these gals were on Escaping Polygamy. Amanda’s going to tell us who the Kingst…

1
Maggie Rowe - Sinning Bravely and Moral Scrupulosity 1:20:12

3M ago1:20:12

1:20:12

Today our guest is Maggie Rowe, former writer on Arrested Development and author of Sin Bravely, a book about her experiences with moral scrupulosity, or sin-focused OCD. We talk a lot about OCD on this show, so here’s a guest who wrote an entire book about growing up with religious obsessions! She’ll tell us about her first obsessions about what w…

1
Caleb Ward, Part 2 - Disneyland for Christians and Exiting the Church 54:14

3M ago54:14

54:14

Former evangelical Christian and pastor's son Caleb Ward continues his story of growing up in evangelical culture in the early 2000s. We discuss some of the touchstones of his youth including Heritage USA (Disneyland for Christians) and Christian rock event Creation Festival, as well as his fear of losing his virginity before marriage, what hell to…

1
Caleb Ward, Part 1 - Kingdom Life Ministries and Evangelical Youth Culture 57:07

4M ago57:07

57:07

Former pastor's son Caleb Ward joins Lola and Meagan to share his experience about the height of evangelical culture in the early 2000s in a church called Kingdom Life Ministries. Caleb discusses growing up in an environment where everyone was speaking in tongues and having loud prophecies in the middle of church, the pressures that come with being…

1
Uriah Wesman, Part 2 - Growing Up in Three Cults (The Hearts Center and The Ideal Society) 1:05:00

4M ago1:05:00

1:05:00

Today is part 2 with Uriah Wesman, former member of THREE different cults. This week he’ll talk to us more about cult #2, the Hearts Center (which was an offshoot of cult #1 from last week), what it was like being a rebellious emo kid slowly starting to realize inconsistencies in the church, and how his dad discovered cult #3 in Canada, the Ideal S…

1
Uriah Wesman, Part 1 - The First Cult: Church Universal and Triumphant 53:05

4M ago53:05

53:05

Creator of the one man show 3 Cults Walk Into a Bar, Uriah Wesman, shares about his FIRST cult experience in Church Universal and Triumphant, how they combined Christianity and New Age ideas, the paranoia that was created by beliefs surrounding demons, his mom's mental deterioration that led her to accuse his father of being a demon, and his parent…

1
Philip Deslippe & Stacie Stukin - 3HO,Kundalini yoga, & Yogi Bhajan 1:33:07

4M ago1:33:07

1:33:07

Today our guests are historian Philip Deslippe and writer Stacie Sutkin, who together have done investigative reporting on 3HO (“happy, healthy, holy organization”), Kundalini yoga, and Yogi Bhajan. They’re going to tell us how they got started writing about 3HO, both interacting with Kundalini yoga in different ways, who Yogi Bhajan was and whethe…

1
REWIND: Frank Lyford - Heaven's Gate, Part 2: Breaking Away 34:45

5M ago34:45

34:45

Episode 23: Lola Blanc & Meagan Elizabeth continue to interview Frank Lyford, former member of Heaven's Gate. In part 2, they discuss the growing number of red flags he began to notice after one of the leaders died, including talk of castration, and what led to his decision to finally, after 18 years, break away. He also tells the girls what it was…

1
REWIND: Frank Lyford - Heaven's Gate, Part 1: The Nomadic Lifestyle 43:37

5M ago43:37

43:37

Episode 22: Lola & Meagan interview Frank Lyford, survivor of Heaven's Gate who left after 18 years--just a few years before discovering his friends and loved ones in the group had died by suicide. In part 1, he tells the girls how he began following the leaders Ti and Do, what it was like living a nomadic lifestyle with his "check partner," and wh…

1
Ashlen Hilliard - The Evolution of Cult Intervention Practices 1:21:28

5M ago1:21:28

1:21:28

Cult interventionist and founder of People Leave Cults, Ashlen Hilliard, talks about her path to working in cult intervention and recovery, her personal religious experience that led her to this work, how interactions with Mormons in Utah affected her worldview, how she defines what a cult is, why accusing a group of being a cult isn't always helpf…

1
REWIND: Joann Vaega: Waco Survivor and Former Branch Davidian 1:03:09

5M ago1:03:09

1:03:09

You're a child living on a remote compound in West Texas. One day authorities show up at your front door and an exchange of gunfire breaks out. Just as you expected would happen. Survivor of the Branch Davidians and the Waco massacre, Joann Vaega, discusses her earliest memories of living on the compound, what cult leader David Koresh was like in p…

1
Carolyn Costin - The Link Between Cults and Eating Disorders 1:19:17

6M ago1:19:17

1:19:17

FOR OUR 200th EPISODE, we are joined by eating disorder therapist, author, and expert Carolyn Costin to discuss her own experiences that led to her starting her practice, why so many cults control the eating habits of their members, why having an eating disorder is like having a little cult leader in your brain, and how Carolyn helped Meagan with h…

1
Yoni Shrira, Part 2 - Hard Labor, Isolation, Running Away, and a Dark Legacy 55:38

6M ago55:38

55:38

Today is part 2 of our interview with Yoni Shrira, former student at the Family Foundation School, also known as Allynwood, the remote troubled teen program known for a series of lawsuits brought against it as well as over a hundred deaths from overdose or suicide by its former attendees. Last week, we talked about how and why Yoni ended up in the …

1
Yoni Shrira, Part 1 - The Family Foundation School, Troubled Teens, and Snitching Culture 46:35

6M ago46:35

46:35

Today our guest is Yoni Shrira, friend of the show and survivor of the Family Foundation School, a troubled teen sobriety school that became notorious for how many of its former students died after going through the program. In part one today, he’s going to talk about what he was like as a teenager, how he was genuinely out of control when it came …

1
Tory Hess - From Second Life to Wilderness Commune 1:20:48

7M ago1:20:48

1:20:48

Today our guest is Tory Hess, former member of a small rural group in upstate New York she calls Crazyland. She tells us about how she always loved reading and fantasy growing up, never went to public school, and didn’t connect easily with folks in real life when she was young, and how she found connection in the online gaming community Second Life…

1
REWIND: Jay Van Bavel - Groupthink, Social Identity, and Cult Psychology 1:03:07

7M ago1:03:07

1:03:07

Groups!... I did it again. Jay Van Bavel, NYU Associate Professor of Psychology and Neural Science, Director of the Social Identity and Morality Lab, and co-author of The Power Of Us, discusses how our social identities change depending on our environment and context, how the groups we identify with affect our decisions and perception, and the impo…

1
Bethany Joy Lenz - One Tree Hill, a Secret Cult, and Living a Double Life 1:15:16

7M ago1:15:16

1:15:16

Today our guest is actor, musician, and now author Bethany Joy Lenz, whom we will just call Joy. Joy was the star of hit TV show One Tree Hill, and today she’s going to talk to us about how she was in a Christian cult the whole time she was filming the show. She’ll tell us about her upbringing and her career as a young actor, living in LA on her ow…

1
Anne - Psychosis, Delusions, & the Cult of Your Own Mind 54:36

7M ago54:36

54:36

Today, our guest is a friend who we'll call Anne. We discuss the connection between psychosis and cults, the mental changes Anne experienced when her episode started, the delusions that grew stronger, how she felt like she was communicating with spirits, the paranoia that grew inside her, and how a psychiatric mental health professional helped pull…

1
REWIND: Jitarth Jadeja - Former QAnon Believer 1:16:48

8M ago1:16:48

1:16:48

Episode 15: Lola and Meagan interview Jitarth Jadeja, former QAnon believer. He tells the girls about how, despite being Australian, he first was a Bernie supporter, then shifted his support to Trump before becoming obsessed with conspiracy theories. They discuss the two years of his life in which he believed in Q, the moment he realized it was all…

1
Gareth Gore - Opus Dei, Human Trafficking, & Project 2025 1:08:28

8M ago1:08:28

1:08:28

Today our guest is Gareth Gore, journalist and author whose new book Opus is about Opus Dei, an ultra-conservative Catholic sect, its harmful practices, its history of dark money, and its connections to modern day right-wing American politics. Gareth shares how he came to this story while investigating the shady practices at a bank in Spain, the hi…

1
Norah - Girls Night In: L.A. Facebook Group Gone Culty 1:28:21

8M ago1:28:21

1:28:21

Today our guest is a woman whom we’ll call Norah. She tells us about a Facebook group for women in Los Angeles that ended up getting very culty. We’ll talk about why it was exciting in the beginning to connect with other women in a new way, how other subgroups began to form (including one secret, exclusive one) and how the admin, who we’ll call Viv…

1
Demetria, Part 2 - Twin Ray Mysticism, Spiritual Retreats, and the Necessity of Rage 1:06:55

8M ago1:06:55

1:06:55

Today is part two with Demetria, survivor of the Oregon new age cult, Twin Ray. This week she shares more about the wild claims that the leaders made about their mystical backgrounds, how deeply rooted the culture of self blame was (including blaming one woman for her own cancer), and the massive property they purchased in Oregon which was financed…

1
Demetria, Part 1 - Online Gurus, Mysterious Elixirs, and Joining the Twin Ray Cult 1:03:51

8M ago1:03:51

1:03:51

Today we're joined by Demetria, survivor of an Oregon new age group called Twin Ray (not to be confused with Twin Flames). She describes the beginning of her spiritual journey including reading the works of Eckhart Tolle, how one specific online guru captured her imagination, and how this guru's partner made the claim that they were Twin Rays with …

1
Joelle Tamraz, Part 2 - Meeting The Elders, Emotional Manipulation, and Moving On 1:09:26

9M ago1:09:26

1:09:26

This week is part two of a fascinating discussion with Joelle Tamraz, author of The Secret Practice: 18 Years on the Dark Side of Yoga. The story gets more wild! Joelle shares how her spiritual partner, Arun, became her husband, and how he brought her deeper into his world, including the strange visions he revealed to her. PLUS, the financial abuse…

Podcasts Worth a Listen

trustmepodcast

Podcasts Worth a Listen

1
Trust Me, It’s Complicated

trustmepodcast

1
Trust Me: Cults, Extreme Belief, and Manipulation

Exactly Right and iHeartPodcasts

1
The Modern Brady Bunch: Planning for Children from Second Marriages 19:07

1
Don’t confuse your Google Search with my Law Degree 22:33

1
Amanda Rae - The Kingston Clan and Escaping Polygamy 1:19:13

1
Maggie Rowe - Sinning Bravely and Moral Scrupulosity 1:20:12

1
Caleb Ward, Part 2 - Disneyland for Christians and Exiting the Church 54:14

1
Caleb Ward, Part 1 - Kingdom Life Ministries and Evangelical Youth Culture 57:07

1
Uriah Wesman, Part 2 - Growing Up in Three Cults (The Hearts Center and The Ideal Society) 1:05:00

1
Uriah Wesman, Part 1 - The First Cult: Church Universal and Triumphant 53:05

1
Philip Deslippe & Stacie Stukin - 3HO,Kundalini yoga, & Yogi Bhajan 1:33:07

1
REWIND: Frank Lyford - Heaven's Gate, Part 2: Breaking Away 34:45

1
REWIND: Frank Lyford - Heaven's Gate, Part 1: The Nomadic Lifestyle 43:37

1
Ashlen Hilliard - The Evolution of Cult Intervention Practices 1:21:28

1
REWIND: Joann Vaega: Waco Survivor and Former Branch Davidian 1:03:09

1
Carolyn Costin - The Link Between Cults and Eating Disorders 1:19:17

1
Yoni Shrira, Part 2 - Hard Labor, Isolation, Running Away, and a Dark Legacy 55:38

1
Yoni Shrira, Part 1 - The Family Foundation School, Troubled Teens, and Snitching Culture 46:35

1
Tory Hess - From Second Life to Wilderness Commune 1:20:48

1
REWIND: Jay Van Bavel - Groupthink, Social Identity, and Cult Psychology 1:03:07

1
Bethany Joy Lenz - One Tree Hill, a Secret Cult, and Living a Double Life 1:15:16

1
Anne - Psychosis, Delusions, & the Cult of Your Own Mind 54:36

1
REWIND: Jitarth Jadeja - Former QAnon Believer 1:16:48

1
Gareth Gore - Opus Dei, Human Trafficking, & Project 2025 1:08:28

1
Norah - Girls Night In: L.A. Facebook Group Gone Culty 1:28:21

1
Demetria, Part 2 - Twin Ray Mysticism, Spiritual Retreats, and the Necessity of Rage 1:06:55

1
Demetria, Part 1 - Online Gurus, Mysterious Elixirs, and Joining the Twin Ray Cult 1:03:51

1
Joelle Tamraz, Part 2 - Meeting The Elders, Emotional Manipulation, and Moving On 1:09:26