A Little Bit Culty

Latest Episodes:

PATREON PREVIEW: Sarah & Nippy Answer Your Questions Dec 14, 2023

Show notes

This is a short preview of an episode Sarah & Nippy recorded for the A Little Bit Culty Patreon. If you want to hear the whole thing, plus get bonus to ad-free episodes and other exclusive content, sign up at: www.patreon.com/alittlebitculty

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Decoding Mindf*ckery: Dr. Robin Stern on The Gaslight Effect Dec 11, 2023

Show notes

Today’s episode is sponsored by BetterHelp.

Dr. Robin Stern is not your average psycho-therapist – she’s renowned for her work in emotional intelligence, relationships, and well being. And she’s the psychological sleuth who’s highlighted one particularly culty behavior: gaslighting. Fun fact: Dr. Stern actually coined the phrase “the gaslight effect.”

As we know, gaslighting is straight out of the culty charismatic coercive fuckwad playbook. But we want to get specific and don’t mean to merely call names. So in this episode, we go full CSI on gaslighting with Dr. Stern. We dissect the term with the expert who wrote several books on the subject: The Gaslight Effect and The Gaslight Effect Recovery Guide.

NOTES -

Dr. Robin Stern is co-founder and associate director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and is a licensed psychoanalyst who’s been in private practice for over 30 years. She hosts the Gaslight Effect podcast. She’s developed and co-created social emotional learning apps including HowWeFeel and OjiLifeLab. She writes and is interviewed regularly for her insight into socio-emotional matters for Psychology Today, The Hill, Time Inc., and Harvard Business Review.

You can find her on Twitter and Facebook.

If you’re looking for more, here’s an early ALBC episode specifically about narcissism and gaslighting: Shameless: Dan Shaw on Gaslighting, Narcissists, & Recovering from Cultic Abuse

Also…

Let it be known far and wide, loud and clear that…

The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty fuckwad.

OTHER LINKS:

Check out our lovely sponsors

Join ‘A Little Bit Culty’ on Patreon

Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag

Support the pod and smash this link

Cult awareness and recovery resources

CREDITS:

Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames

Production Partner: Citizens of Sound

Producer: Will Retherford

Co-Creator: Jess Tardy

Writer: Holly Zadra

Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

PATREON REPLAY: A Chat with Susan Dones Dec 07, 2023

Show notes

This is a replay of an episode Sarah & Nippy recorded for the A Little Bit Culty Patreon. If you want to access to all of our content bonuses, ad-free episodes and other goodies, sign up at: www.patreon.com/alittlebitculty

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Rethinking Steiner: Chloe Weise on Waldorf Schools Dec 04, 2023

Show notes

Today’s episode is sponsored by BetterHelp.

If you had a good Waldorf experience, we’re thrilled for you. Not all the schools are the same. Just like not all churches are the same. Don’t get your knickers in a knot. But if there are things about Waldorf that chap your ass, pour yourself some tea because we have just the guest for you.

In this episode Chloe Weise sheds light on her decade and a half in a Waldorf School before leaving for college and grad school. Now steeped in the scientific method and working in the tech industry, Chloe raises questions about Waldorf’s founder, Rudolf Steiner, and teachings openly called “Occult Science.”

Was Rudolf Steiner an early 20th Century German mystic, or an arrogant semi-Christian evangelist for things like astral bodies, clairvoyance, and overtly racist pseudoscience. We're here to find out what Chloe thinks. This is Chloe’s first time speaking publicly about her misgivings with Waldorf. We’re honored she trusted us with her experience. Without further adieu, here’s our chat with Chloe Weise.

NOTES:

Chloe Weise holds an MS in Evolutionary Biology and is a data analyst at Lumen Energy. Her research on paper wasps and logical reasoning was published in Proceedings B, the Royal Society’s flagship biological research journal. You can find links to Chloe’s research on Twitter.

Chloe’s Instagram: @chloeweise

Chloe’s Twitter @WeiseChloe

Waldorf Watch: https://sites.google.com/site/waldorfwatch/welcome

Jennifer Sapio, PhD on why she “wouldn’t drink the kool-aid”: https://medium.com/age-of-awareness/waldorf-schools-are-inherently-racist-cults-91193d1fbef6

Please note, this series includes details of sexual abuse. Listener discretion is strongly advised. If you, or someone who know, is a survivor of sexual assault, abuse, grooming, child abuse, or human trafficking, RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline offers support at 800.656.HOPE (4673).

Also…

Hear Ye, Hear Ye:

OTHER LINKS:

Check out our lovely sponsors

Join ‘A Little Bit Culty’ on Patreon

Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag

Support the pod and smash this link

Cult awareness and recovery resources

CREDITS:

Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames

Production Partner: Citizens of Sound

Producer: Will Retherford

Co-Creator: Jess Tardy

Writer: Mathias Rosenzweig

Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Recollected Self: Jaime Mahler on Breaking Toxic Cycles (Part 1) Nov 27, 2023

Show notes

Today’s episode is sponsored by BetterHelp.

Jaime Mahler, MS, LMHC, is a New York-based psychotherapist and mental health educator who recently published her book TOXIC RELATIONSHIP RECOVERY: Your Guide to Identifying Toxic Partners, Leaving Unhealthy Dynamics, and Healing Emotional Wounds After A Breakup.

She’s also the powerhouse behind the explosively popular social media brand, Recollected. Her podcast, ‘Unlearned,’ helps people of all sexual orientations and genders to heal from relationship trauma, narcissism, and beyond…certainly a lot of the BS we find ourselves tackling on this podcast.

But today, in episode one of this two-parter, we’re focusing somewhat on Mahler’s past, which involved growing up with a self-described “cult-like version of Catholicism.” She revists the types of shame and guilt she experienced within religious surroundings, despite their being a shade less extreme than others we’ve encountered on this show. Even Jaime’s OCD played a role in her religious fervor by tricking her brain into believing one is either purely good or purely evil—wholy faithful or 100% a sinner—eventually leading to semi-neurotic level praying on a daily basis.

Ultimately, Jaime's odyssey of self-discovery and faith, coupled with her distinguished therapeutic training, makes her our favorite type of guest: a badass individual who has directly encountered some culty shit, complemented by a sophisticated educational background that not only helped her understand her own experiences, but those of others, too.

Find Recollected Self on social media: Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, or visit their website

Purchase Toxic Relationship Recovery: Your Guide to Identifying Toxic Partners, Leaving Unhealthy Dynamics, and Healing Emotional Wounds after a Breakup on Amazon

Also…

Let it be known far and wide, loud and clear that…

OTHER LINKS:

Check out our lovely sponsors

Join ‘A Little Bit Culty’ on Patreon

Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag

Support the pod and smash this link

Cult awareness and recovery resources

CREDITS:

Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames

Production Partner: Citizens of Sound

Producer: Will Retherford

Co-Creator: Jess Tardy

Writer: Mathias Rosenzweig

Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This American Dream: Jane Marie on Wellness Nov 20, 2023

Show notes

Today’s episode is sponsored by BetterHelp.

Jane Marie is the Peabody and Emmy Award-winning journalist, author, and producer of This American Life. Now, she’s hosting the hit investigative podcast The Dream where she’s examined pyramid schemes and culty, late-stage, self-care capitalism. In season 3, she gives the side-eye to all the gurus and life coaches that promise new and improved secrets to living our best lives as they empty the pockets of working class people. Check out this podcaster-insider convo on the culty dynamics of selling the American dream via prosperity gospel.

If you missed ALBC’s shows on MLMs, check ‘em out:

Emily Lynn Paulson describes suburban mom-squad MLMs;
Douglas Brooks represents victims of MLM schemers;
and trainer Roberta Blevins testified against LuLaRoe.

NOTES

Jane Marie and her partner – former Modest Mouse guitarist Dann Gallucci – started Little Everywhere, a podcast production house and recording studio renowned for Michelle Obama’s The Light Podcast and The Dream. Jane Marie’s forthcoming book Selling the Dream exposes the scourge of multilevel marketing schemes and how they have profited off the evisceration of the American working class. It’s available for preorder at www.Jane-Marie.com.

Find Jane on social media: Twitter, Instagram & TikTok.

Also…

Let it be known far and wide, loud and clear that…

OTHER LINKS:

Check out our lovely sponsors

Join ‘A Little Bit Culty’ on Patreon

Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag

Support the pod and smash this link

Cult awareness and recovery resources

CREDITS:

Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames

Production Partner: Citizens of Sound

Producer: Will Retherford

Co-Creator: Jess Tardy

Writer: Holly Zadra

Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

PATREON PREVIEW: Sarah & Nippy Answer Your Questions Nov 16, 2023

Show notes

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Cult-Proofing 101: Julie Bogart on Critical Thinking Nov 13, 2023

Show notes

Today’s episode is sponsored by BetterHelp.

Julie Bogart homeschooled her five children for seventeen years and participated in a Cincinnati homeschool co-op of 100 families with over 300 youngsters. But it wasn’t merely homeschoolers that were a little bit culty in her life. With experiences of missionary evangelical Christianity, the New Thought movement, Scientology, and four years as an e s t devotee, Julie Bogart’s got some culty notches in her belt. Now she’s helping cult-proof parents and their kids by teaching families to think well. In this episode, Julie shares insight into susceptibilities for cult-jumping, our perceptions of “trusted” authority/expertise, and the power of wonder and curiosity.

We’re also reminded of the parental golden rule: seek therapy yourselves before subjecting your kiddos to any kind of psychotherapy. For a deep dive into those waters, rewind to our episode with Meg Appelgate who navigated the Troubled Teen Industry firsthand.

NOTES:

Julie Bogart has devoted her life to the triumvirate of writing, kids, and parents and is known for her common sense parenting and education advice on how to raise critical thinkers. She created Brave Writer, an online writing and language arts program that coaches folks to discover their own original thoughts. She has scores of professional writing credentials including a weekly column for United Press International, Brave Writer's Home Study Courses, and two books, The Brave Learner and Raising Critical Thinkers. Mother of five and grandmother to three, Julie lives in Cincinnati, Ohio.

You can find her on Twitter and Instagram.

Also…

Let it be known far and wide, loud and clear that…

OTHER LINKS:

Check out our lovely sponsors

Join ‘A Little Bit Culty’ on Patreon

Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag

Support the pod and smash this link

Cult awareness and recovery resources

CREDITS:

Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames

Production Partner: Citizens of Sound