Trust Me: Cults, Extreme Belief, and Manipulation
Trust Me is a weekly interview podcast about cults, extreme belief, and the fine line between devotion and delusion—told through firsthand accounts from the people who lived it. Hosted by two women who’ve been in cults themselves, Lola Blanc and Meagan Elizabeth, the show features survivors from groups like Heaven’s Gate, the Manson Family, NXIVM, OneTaste and more–sharing personal stories of how they got in, how they got out, and everything in between. Each week, they invite these guests alongside experts who can dive deep into seductive leaders, the darker aspects of organized religion, and the subtler shad...
Episodes
Claire Hoffman - Levitation, Meditation, and a Childhood in a Transcendental Meditation Trailer Park
In Part 1 of our interview with journalist Claire Hoffman, Claire shares what it was like growing up in an Iowa trailer park community built around the Transcendental Meditation (or TM) movement and its charismatic leader, Maharishi Mahesh …
Carol Merchasin - The Cult Assassin: Suing High-Control Groups
Attorney Carol Merchasin didn’t set out to expose cults, but after investigating allegations about a high-control Buddhist organization and discovering that the abuse had run more rampant than she’d imagined, she became a lawyer and focused…
Akina Cox - Part 2: The Moonies, ICE, and the Cult Tactics of Trump
Artist and writer Akina Cox returns to share more about her experience growing up in the Unification Church (also known as the Moonies), its physical punishment rituals, and where the church stands now. The girls then transition from the to…
Akina Cox - Part 1: Unification Church, Mass Weddings, and Unpaid Labor
Artist and writer Akina Cox shares about her childhood growing up in the Unification Church, also known as the Moonies. They discuss the background of the church and its late leader Reverend Moon, how her parents both joined after hitchhiki…
Introducing Trust Me: Cults, Extreme Belief, and Manipulation
Trust Me is the podcast that pulls back the curtain on cults, high-control groups and the psychology of belief. Hosted by cult survivors Lola Blanc and Meagan Elizabeth, the show features raw, first-hand accounts from people who’ve been man…
REWIND: Dianne Lake - The Manson Family, Part 1: Meeting Charlie
Trust Me has joined Exactly Right Media. Hosts Lola Blanc & Meagan Elizabeth will be back with new episodes on Wednesday, July 30th. You’re a teenage girl in the late 60s, bouncing between communes, when a charismatic man and his group of y…
REWIND: Glynn Washington - The Worldwide Church of God
Trust Me has joined Exactly Right Media. Hosts Lola Blanc & Meagan Elizabeth will be back with new episodes on Wednesday, July 30th. End time prophecies? Memorizing the bible? Required church vacations your family can't afford? Snap Judgmen…
REWIND: Hoyt Richards - From Supermodel to Cult Member
Trust Me has joined Exactly Right Media. Hosts Lola Blanc & Meagan Elizabeth will be back with new episodes on Wednesday, July 30th. What do you model your life after? For producer, actor, and former supermodel Hoyt Richards, it was the tea…
REWIND: Lola's Mom - Mormon-Offshoot Cult
Trust Me has joined Exactly Right Media. Hosts Lola Blanc & Meagan Elizabeth will be back with new episodes on Wednesday, July 30th. In their first ever episode, Lola and Meagan interviewed Christine Marie, Lola's mom, about her and Lola's …
An Exciting Update from Lola and Meagan!
The rumors are true—Trust Me is coming back this summer on the Exactly Right podcast network! This teaser has everything you need to know about our next chapter.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Amanda Rae - The Kingston Clan and Escaping Polygamy
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 Priscill…
Maggie Rowe - Sinning Bravely and Moral Scrupulosity
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 …
Caleb Ward, Part 2 - Disneyland for Christians and Exiting the Church
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 Chr…
Caleb Ward, Part 1 - Kingdom Life Ministries and Evangelical Youth Culture
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 …
Uriah Wesman, Part 2 - Growing Up in Three Cults (The Hearts Center and The Ideal Society)
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 slowl…
Uriah Wesman, Part 1 - The First Cult: Church Universal and Triumphant
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 surroun…
Philip Deslippe & Stacie Stukin - 3HO,Kundalini yoga, & Yogi Bhajan
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 sta…
REWIND: Frank Lyford - Heaven's Gate, Part 2: Breaking Away
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 castra…
REWIND: Frank Lyford - Heaven's Gate, Part 1: The Nomadic Lifestyle
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…
Ashlen Hilliard - The Evolution of Cult Intervention Practices
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 a…
REWIND: Joann Vaega: Waco Survivor and Former Branch Davidian
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…
Carolyn Costin - The Link Between Cults and Eating Disorders
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 hav…
Yoni Shrira, Part 2 - Hard Labor, Isolation, Running Away, and a Dark Legacy
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 …
Yoni Shrira, Part 1 - The Family Foundation School, Troubled Teens, and Snitching Culture
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 tod…
Tory Hess - From Second Life to Wilderness Commune
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 …
REWIND: Jay Van Bavel - Groupthink, Social Identity, and Cult Psychology
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 …
Bethany Joy Lenz - One Tree Hill, a Secret Cult, and Living a Double Life
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…
Anne - Psychosis, Delusions, & the Cult of Your Own Mind
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…
REWIND: Jitarth Jadeja - Former QAnon Believer
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…
Gareth Gore - Opus Dei, Human Trafficking, & Project 2025
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 politi…
Norah - Girls Night In: L.A. Facebook Group Gone Culty
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,…
Demetria, Part 2 - Twin Ray Mysticism, Spiritual Retreats, and the Necessity of Rage
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 (includi…
Demetria, Part 1 - Online Gurus, Mysterious Elixirs, and Joining the Twin Ray Cult
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 o…
Joelle Tamraz, Part 2 - Meeting The Elders, Emotional Manipulation, and Moving On
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 …
Joelle Tamraz, Part 1 - Traveling to India, Meeting a Swami, and "Past Lives"
Today is part one of our interview with Joelle Tamraz, author of the book The Secret Practice: 18 Years on the Dark Side of Yoga. She will tell us about her introduction to different yoga practices at a young age including TM, or transcende…
Sara Teitelman - The Culty Elements of Technology
Today’s guest is Sara Teitelman, tech consultant and author of a forthcoming book about tech who’s going to talk to us about the culty elements of technology. While Sara’s specialty lies more in optimization of the nonprofit workplace, we’r…
Min Zhou, Part 2 - Labor Camps, Persecution, and Mass Killings in the Cultural Revolution
In part 2 of our interview with Min Zhou, survivor of the Cultural Revolution and Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Asian American Studies at UCLA, we’re going to talk more about Professor Zhou’s personal experience. We’ll discuss wh…
Min Zhou, Part 1 - The Cult of Mao Zedong, and Growing Up in the Cultural Revolution
Today is part one with Min Zhou, Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Asian American Studies at UCLA, who also grew up during the Cultural Revolution: a decade of social chaos in China in the 1960s and 1970s where intellectuals, artists…
Tia Levings, Part 2 - Questioning Fundamentalism, Motherhood, and the Dangers of Christian Nationalism
In part 2 with Tia Levings, author of A Well-Trained Wife: My Escape from Christian Patriarchy, Tia she discusses how, in the midst of a church-sanctioned abusive relationship, motherhood began to change her beliefs - at first making her mo…
Tia Levings, Part 1 - A Well-Trained Wife in the Christian Patriarchy
Today is part one with Tia Levings, author of A Well-Trained Wife: My Escape from Christian Patriarchy. We talk about the church her family joined when she was young, how it was connected to Bill Gothard and the IBLP - which is why you may …