Ex Jehovah's Witness Alisha tried to simply leave the religion she was raised in and build her own life. The... more

The promise that you can be transformed into the person you've always wanted to be is a tempting one. This... more

One of the most emotional interviews ever on our podcast, author Kimberley L Miller talks movingly about her life as... more

In today’s episode I spend a very pleasant afternoon having a walk and a chat with a friend of the... more

When you are a fundamentalist Christian, Theocracy sounds like a great idea but when you leave, the reality becomes clear.... more

The 'What should I think about..?' podcast goes 'sight & sound' this week on this special edition of the show,... more

High control religious groups often discourage games, warning about the 'dangers' of being influenced by Satan or the world. But... more

I (Stephen) had an online conversation recently with a friend who had recently experienced a family loss. We chatted and... more

Ex Jehovah's Witness Poet and Podcaster Leon Helsby tells his story of leaving the organization, why he finds poetry so... more

Celine and Stephen get into some pop psychology to see what we know, what we think we know but don't,... more

Today we interview Marcia and Riley (AKA Jexit) about falling in love with someone who was a member of a... more

This week Celine and Stephen review, and do a cult reading of the 1999 movie, Fight Club, directed by David... more

Author, Mary Mahoney talks about her 31 years in the Children of God. She tells Celine and Stephen about her... more

As if this world isn't confusing enough, today Celine and Stephen explore virtual worlds and our seemingly unavoidable destiny with... more

Becky Armstrong-Corbett is a qualified psychotherapist and solution focused clinical hypnotherapist. Raised as a Jehovah's Witness she was sexually abused... more

Today Celine and Stephen decide to take a sober and even-handed approach to the question of how we should research... more

Daniel O'Brien is an educator, musician and ex Jehovah's Witness elder. He talks to Stephen about his experience being recruited... more

As it's Stephen's birthday today , 'birthdays' is the theme of this week's chat. As a Jehovah's Witness child, birthday... more

Ashlen talks about her experience as a born-in member of a small Christian Fundamentalist group called the Churches of Christ,... more

Riley from the Jexit YouTube channel joins Stephen today to analyse the 2002 movie Equilibrium, directed by Kurt Wimmer, starring... more

Today Celine and Stephen are joined by Jordan Robertson from the Shunned Experience to talk about the history of atheism.... more

We manage risk every day but how we calculate it is often difficult to understand. Our attitude towards risk is... more

Producer Bob joins us to talk about the use of signs and symbols in religions, cults and the social world... more

As a member of totalistic group or cult, morals and ethics are to a large degree determined by the Group.... more

Daniel Schricker grew up in the Kwasizabantu Mission and since leaving has written a number of blogs about the psychological... more

This emergency podcast comes out on the day Russia launches an attack upon Ukraine. It's natural to feel some anxiety... more

Celine and Stephen review Midsommer, a movie released in 2019, directed by Ari Aster and starring Florence Pugh. There are... more

Jake Vaughn from the Alt Worldly YouTube Channel talks about his waking up process from the Jehovah's Witnesses, and the... more

Do some born-in cult members experience greater harm than others because they happen to have certain personality traits? Psychology suggests that... more

Erika Bornman, author of Mission of Malice talks to us about her life growing up in Kwasizabantu, a non-denominational Christian... more

Two completely different topics today on the podcast.    Time Stamp 00:00: Segment 1. The medical condition and psychological impact of serious... more

The guest today is Min Grob from CCChat Magazine. Min experienced a coercively controlling relationship and talks about the behaviours... more

The 1940's film Gaslight about the systematic attack by a man on his wife's psychological wellbeing, provided us with the... more

Darren Slade has a fascinating story. Although not raised in a religious household as a young person he loved religious... more

What is science? How does it work? Can we trust it? Who does it? And can we trust the scientists?... more

Today's guest is Brent Lee who describes himself as a recovering conspiracist of 15 years. Brent explains how he became... more

The Milgram experiments of the 1960s tried to answer the question of how seemingly normal people can do the most... more

Sapphire Phoenix was raised as an 'exemplary' Jehovah's Witness until he found himself disfellowshipped and outside the organisation and his... more

Today Celine and Stephen talk about being wrong and why it's so often hard to accept. They look at the... more

Growing up as a Jehovah's Witness or other fundamentalist religious group members are taught a particular view about the role... more

Does the 2014 movie Whiplash starring Miles Teller and JK Simmons depict a cultic relationship? One of our favourite movies... more

It's a fascinating and emotional episode this week, as Lizzie tells us about her life being raised within an Amish... more

Recorded just before Christmas Day, Stephen's favourite podcasts of the year plus other recommendations to help make sense of a... more

As a Jehovah's Witness dad didn't really 'do' New Year, but upon leaving he observed the common tradition of the... more

Early in 2021 Stephen talked to his daughter, Celine about his life as a Jehovah's Witness, being raised in the... more

Sarah, joins Stephen for our Christmas Special as we think about the joys and 'tricky bits' of celebrating Christmas after... more

Clint Heacock was raised in a Fundamentalist Christian group. As a young man he studied theology and Bible studies in various... more

The term 'Self Efficacy' describes the amount of belief an individual has that they can achieve something. In study after... more

This week in the series of Cults as Organizations Stephen explores Herzberg's Two Factors, and Expectancy Theory, often used in... more

Patrick Ryan found himself deeply involved in Transcendental Meditation during the 1970s until he started to believe he was part... more