This week I’m offering something slightly different from usual in describing some valuable life lessons I’ve learned since leaving Scientology which I thought other people might appreciate as well. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #372: 10 Things I’ve Learned Since Leaving a Cult appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast ....
This week I welcome Dr. Alex Wills, psychiatrist and author of the new book Give a F*ck Actually. We discuss emotional health, some science-based ideas on how one can deal with difficult emotions and delve into emotional manipulation as a coercive method. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #371: Emotional Health and Giving a F*ck appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast ....
This week, Jon Atack and I do a follow-up discussion to our last podcast about L. Ron Hubbard and the occult origins of Dianetics and Scientology. This information sometimes makes ex-Scientologists uncomfortable because it’s basically so diabolical, no one wants to think they were part of something that bad. But Jon and I had a good time discussing some follow up thoughts on Hubbard and mysticism. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #370: Hubbard, Scientology and Mysticism appeared first o...
To kick off 2023, I’ve put together a no-nonsense podcast with my “collected wisdom” of the last 10 years on how to stay out of getting involved in a destructive cult or predatory relationship. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #369: How to Stay Out of a Cult appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast .
This week I am breaking tradition with our usual “year in review” episode because this month marks the 10-year anniversary of my leaving the Sea Org and embarking on what would become my escape from the destructive cult of Scientology. In this podcast, I offer some backstory and some of my best life lessons/recommendations for anyone else who has had to do the “hard reset” on their life. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #368: Cult Recovery After 10 Years appeared first on The Sensibly S...
This week I welcome back John P. Capitalist to cover in some detail how authoritarian governments around the world solve the “dictator problem” by adopting cultic methods to control their population and thereby stay in power. We especially detail China’s recent history and the way President Xi has adopted the Cult Leader Playbook to maintain his position. This is a deep dive into a very important subject and one I hope my viewers will enjoy and learn from. The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #367...
This week I welcome back Christian Szurko, a practicing cult recovery specialist who helps me take perhaps our deepest dive yet on what it takes to help someone recover from a cult or coercive experience. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #366: Going Deep on Cult Recovery appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast .
Today I have a special, early podcast release of an interview Tony Ortega and I did with the jury foreman of the Danny Masterson rape trial. Last week this resulted in a deadlocked jury and mistrial, still awaiting determination as to whether there will be another go-round. The daughter of the jury foreman reached out and helped arrange this interview after the trial and I am thankful for her support. This interview gives real insight into what went on behind the scenes and a clear idea of how f...
This week I am joined by Alexander Barnes-Ross, a former Scientology staff member in London who has some things to say about his short but deep experience with Scientology getting in, being kicked out, returning and getting kicked out again. It’s another survivor story with a lot of lessons for all of us. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #364: Fear and Loathing in Scientology London appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast ....
This week I am joined by Jon Atack to finally put in one place the explanation of how Scientology is based purely and wholly on L. Ron Hubbard’s occult beliefs and how Scientologists themselves not only have no idea this is true, but actively resist ever even finding out about it. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #363: The Occult Foundation of Scientology appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast ....
This week I am joined by attorney, author and advocate Andrew Seidel to discuss his latest book, American Crusade, and how a minority religious extremist group known as Christian Nationalists are taking powerful and decisive steps to unduly influence our government and religious freedom. This is one of those topics that is controversial because people confuse our criticism of Christian Nationalists and extremists as somehow taking an anti-religion stance and become personally offended that anyon...
This week I welcome back former Scientologist Ian Rafalko, a man who has fascinating stories to tell about growing up in a Scientology household that was anything but a pleasant experience. In this second interview, we discuss his time on staff and in training at Flag’s central headquarters and the lingering effects of Scientology to this day. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #361: Second Generation Scientology appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast ....
This week I welcome Spencer Schneider, a cult survivor, lawyer and life guard trainer from New York who wrote the fascinating book Manhattan Cult Story: My Unbelievable True Story of Sex, Crimes, Chaos and Survival.” This story demonstrates how some preconceived notions of how cults operate are totally wrong and the red flags are not always as obvious as you think. Spencer does a great job describing what his cult experience was like and how he got out. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast ...
This week I’ve invited DC lawyer Ciprian Ivanof back to the show to discuss some ins and outs of what has happened in the first two weeks of the Danny Masterson trial in Los Angeles. Tony Ortega has been offering amazing on-the-ground reporting and much of our commentary looks at what he’s been reporting of the victim testimony and how the defense & prosecution have reacted. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #359: Some Comments on the Masterson Trial appeared first on The Sensibly Sp...
This week I welcome guest John Christansen, the man who helped ex-Sea Org member Katherine Olson to escape Scientology and go to the Aftermath Foundation to create a new life for herself. We go into all the details of what this entailed and it’s not exactly a nail-biting account, but all the basics I’ve been talking about for years are covered and I hope this helps anyone out there struggling with how to help their friends or family who are trapped in a cult now. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speakin...
This week I’m very happy to welcome Mike Rinder, former Sea Org executive and Emmy-award winning co-host of Scientology and the Aftermath, now doing media for his new memoir, A Billion Years. We had a great conversation and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #357: A Billion Years with Mike Rinder appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast ....
This week I welcome back DC lawyer Ciprian Ivanof to help me dissect some legal points and predictions for the upcoming trial of Scientologist Danny Masterson, an event five years in the making that finally begins next week. We truly hope the victims get the justice they deserve. The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #356: Scientology and the Masterson Trial appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast ....
We all know Scientology is a really bad thing but what about growing up in a Scientology household? What’s that like? What happens to kids who never asked to be indoctrinated into an extremist, authoritarian belief system that seeks to control every second of their lives? In this podcast, Ian Rafalko and I discuss this in some detail and give a firsthand view of what the children of Scientologists have to go through. The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #355: Being a Second Generation Scientologis...
Well it only took us a year, but educator Pat Hendrickson and I have put together a part two of our talks on how to go about getting an education after leaving a destructive/coercive situation. In this week’s show, we discuss my journey into higher education, what it entailed and how people can take advantage of resources all around them to learn, grow and recover. This podcast is mainly intended for cult survivors but anyone can take what we discuss here to help others with higher learning. Enj...
We’re back and with a bang – a 2-hour discussion with Jon Atack to talk turkey about narcissism, what it is and what it isn’t. This being a chat with Jon, we cover a wide range of topics beyond just narcissism, but all of it interesting. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #353: Deconstructing Narcissism appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast ....
This week I welcome back John P. Capitalist to discuss recent news about internet-based cults converting over into real-life activities and the opportunities which led to these destructive groups ensnaring unsuspecting victims into their insane ideologies and practices, including radicalized terrorism. We touch on a lot of topics in this one related to cults, economics and the current world situation. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #352: The Internet and Cults of Opportunity appeared ...
This week I’m joined by my good friend and former Scientologist, Mark Turi, to discuss issues we’ve encountered in ex-cult or ex-religion groups, social media and personal interactions with ex-cult members who can still carry the effects of the trauma and abuse they suffered and the habits they developed to deal with that, ourselves included! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #351: Extremist Thinking and Ex-Cult Members appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast ....
This week I welcome back Sarah Landry to give us an update on her former guru, Nithyananda, and the fact that he’s currently on the run from the law yet boldly trying to start his own country with UN approval! We get into the details of this thanks to Sarah’s persistent endurance to expose this “god man” for the sexually abusive fraud that he is. The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #350: The Hindu Cult of Nithyananda – An Update appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast ....
This week I welcome Julie Bogart, educator and critical thinker, to discuss her views and work on teaching critical thinking. In the process, we ended up having a far-ranging discussion about education, thinking, faith and facts. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #349: Teaching Critical Thinking appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast ....
This week I am joined by Dr. Alexandra Stein, author of the book Love, Terror and Brainwashing and a fantastic expert on the subject of attachment theory as it relates to cultic/abusive relationships and connected with complex PTSD. If that all sounds like psychobabble, no worries because we take these academic concepts and translate them into English for you in this week’s show so you can understand why cultic relationships are really bad for everyone concerned. We hope this one helps! The post...
This week I am joined by licensed therapist and cult exit counsellor Rachel Bernstein to discuss some of the basic principles behind cult recovery and where we think people might best start. This video is meant for those who are even in a cult now and are thinking about getting out or escaping but don’t know what to do. We hope this one helps. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #347: Cult Recovery 101 – Some Basics appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast ....
This week, I welcome back my anonymous guest, identified merely as The Insider, who has some very interesting things to say about current inside events within the Church of Scientology today. We go further into more details of the seeming crash and burn of Scientology which we started in part 1. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #346: An Insider’s View of Scientology (Part 2) appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast ....
This week I am again joined by John P Capitalist (a pseudonym), a skilled Wall Street analyst who has worked with me in the past to analyze some of the more egregious business nonsense that the Church of Scientology gets up to. This week we discuss the recent troubles we’ve been hearing about and how much of a factor these may (or may not) be in Scientology’s eventual demise. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #345: The Future of Scientology’s Demise appeared first on The Sensibly Speakin...
This week I am again joined live for the third and final installment of my long-form interview with Sea Org escapee Katherine Olson. Here we discuss the specifics of her escape, the help she received from an old friend leading to her reaching out to the Aftermath Foundation. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #344: Katherine Olson Escapes Scientology (Part 3) appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast ....
This week I am again joined live in the studio by Katherine Olson, a woman who escaped from the Sea Org a little less than a year ago and has a wealth of information and very personal story to share about her 26 years in Scientology. In this second of what are going to be three parts, we discuss her time in the Sea Org and path to disillusionment and eventual escape from Scientology. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #343: Katherine Olson Escapes Scientology (Part 2) appeared first on Th...
