158. CULTS Part 2: How Intuition Can Save Us with Sarah Edmondson

Glennon, Abby, Amanda, and Sarah Edmondson continue their conversation: 

1. “Love bombing” and other red flag strategies used by cults to reel people in.  

2. The jarring similarities between cults and abusive relationships – and how in both your best qualities are used against you.

3. What to do if someone you love is pulled into QAnon, 4chan, or another conspiratorial culture.  

4. The moment Sarah realized she had been initiated into a sex pyramid, and how she escaped. 

5. The responsibility she felt – after having been such an avid recruiter – to expose the truth of NXIVM and help take down its leaders.  

CW: Discussion of cult culture and sexual coercion

About Sarah: 

Sarah Edmondson is an actor, podcaster, author, and cult-recovery advocate.

Sarah has starred in a number of TV series, yet she is most recently known for her real-life saga escaping the multi-level marketing company NXIVM – and DOS, a “secret sisterhood” within NXIVM – which can also be seen on HBO’s The Vow. Sarah’s memoir Scarred shares her true story from the moment she joined NXIVM, to her harrowing fight to get out and bring its founder to justice. Sarah co-hosts the podcast A Little Bit Culty with her husband Anthony ‘Nippy’ Ames, and lives in Atlanta with her husband and two sons.

TW: @sarahjedmondson

IG: @sarahedmondson

Sarah’s resource page: https://www.sarahedmondson.com/resources

Steven Hassan’s BITE model: https://freedomofmind.com/cult-mind-control/bite-model/