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PODCAST

Speaking of Cults

A podcast about cults, coercive control and recovery. Formerly called the Sensibly Speaking podcast, in this weekly show host Chris Shelton interviews cult survivors, psychologists and other professionals and specialists about the topics of cult recruitment, retention and recovery. This also includes non-religious cults and extreme political movements including the more divisive elements of MAGA and left-wing culture war issues. There is nothing off-limits but we always try to be respectful of the

education

All Episodes

53:28

#335: Cults and Emotional Needs, Part 3 ft. Rachel...

Speaking of Cults ·

2022/03/19

This week I am once again joined by therapist Rachel Bernstein, a long-time friend and associate who has been on the show many times and helps us this time dissect our emotional needs and how these relate to getting involved in cults and other unsavory ventures. There’s a lot packed in to this episode. If you haven’t checked out Parts 1 and 2, watch those first! Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #335: Cults and Emotional Needs, Part 3 appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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02:10:25

#333: Growing Up in the Moonies (Part 1) ft. Jen Kiaba

Speaking of Cults ·

2022/03/05

This week I am once again joined by second-generation former Moonie (Unification Church) Jen Kiaba, this time to discuss her personal story. This is not for the faint-of-heart as there are details about child labor trafficking and physical abuse in this podcast, but this is as real as it gets when it comes to what destructive cults like the Moonies are doing right now to the children of their members and why they must be stopped. The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #333: Growing Up in the Moonies

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01:03:23

#332: Cults and Emotional Needs (Part 2) with Rachel...

Speaking of Cults ·

2022/02/26

This week I am once again joined by therapist Rachel Bernstein, a long-time friend and associate who has been on the show many times and helps us this time dissect our emotional needs and how these relate to getting involved in cults and other unsavory ventures. There’s a lot packed in to this episode. If you haven’t checked out Part 1, watch it first! Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #332: Cults and Emotional Needs (Part 2) appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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01:45:49

#331: Being Raised by a Narcissist with Anna Dau

Speaking of Cults ·

2022/02/19

This week I welcome guest Anna Dau who has a story to tell of abuse and escape from an ultra-conservative family situation involving coercive control through religious belief. This is all too common across all landscapes, not just religion, and we hope that getting her story out there will help others in similar circumstances. The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #331: Being Raised by a Narcissist appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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56:42

#330: The Psychology of Coercive Control

Speaking of Cults ·

2022/02/12

This week I thought I should deliver a rundown on what exactly it was I have been studying for the last 1.5 years in the Psychology of Coercive Control program and what I got out of it as a sort of summary of the whole thing and what this means for my channel. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #330: The Psychology of Coercive Control appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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48:42

#329: Cults and Emotional Needs (Part 1) ft. Rachel...

Speaking of Cults ·

2022/02/05

This week I am joined by therapist Rachel Bernstein, a long-time friend and associate who has been on the show many times and helps us this time dissect our emotional needs and how these relate to getting involved in cults and other unsavory ventures. There’s a lot packed in to this little episode. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #329: Cults and Emotional Needs (Part 1) appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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01:58:44

#328: Cults, Education and Controversy ft. Jen Kiaba

Speaking of Cults ·

2022/01/22

This week I am joined again by Jen Kiaba, a second-generation survivor of the Unification Church (the Moonies) and a fellow student on the same psychology of coercive control program I am currently finishing up. We had a great chat this week about cults, the rigors of an academic education and a lot more. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #328: Cults, Education and Controversy appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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02:03:38

#327: Critical Thinking and Human Predators with Jon...

Speaking of Cults ·

2022/01/15

This week Jon Atack and I had a critical conversation on the topics of critical thinking, what it is and isn’t and the pros and cons of thinking it’s more than it is; along with human predators, a topic both of us are keen to educate about because we feel this is the way we can help prepare anyone to avoid not just cults but all kinds of trouble in life. Enjoy! Predator poster: https://jonatacksopeningourminds.wordpress.com/home/infographics-and-posters/ The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast

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01:09:06

#326: Thought Policing in Scientology

Speaking of Cults ·

2022/01/08

This week I did a rare live show to discuss some of the thoughts I had based in the research I’m doing for my Masters thesis about Scientology, confessionals and surveillance culture. In this show I walk through some basic Scientology principles that have a vast influence on its members and setup a mental framework of morality and control. In other words, this is how some of the brainwashing really works. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #326 (LIVE): Thought Policing in Scientology

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01:23:24

#325: 2021 Scientology Year in Review

Speaking of Cults ·

2022/01/01

This week we are doing our annual Year in Review episode to cap off 2021 and begin 2022. It’s almost pure Scientology as we walk through the events and changes, good and bad, that took place this year and look forward to what comes next. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #325: 2021 Scientology Year in Review appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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47:41

#342: Scientific Literacy for the Holidays with...

Speaking of Cults ·

2021/12/25

This week I am joined by my beautiful wife Melissa to first share our Holiday Crack (a tasteless and yet tasteful joke inspired by Delicious Dish) and the mainline of our chat (at 6:26) about scientific literacy and our thoughts on what that has to do with our current and future situations and where we think we might improve. Happy Holidays and enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #324: Scientific Literacy for the Holidays appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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01:31:40

#323: Walking Away from a Cult with Jen Kiaba

Speaking of Cults ·

2021/12/18

This week I welcome back cult survivor Jen Kiaba, who also happens to be doing the same Masters program I am in the psychology of coercive control. Jen and I talk about walking away from a cult and what that takes, as it’s not as easy as some seem to think. We go into what keeps people in and also I get to talk more about critical thinking. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #323: Walking Away From a Cult appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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01:02:37

#322: NXIVM and Its Aftermath with Sarah Edmondson

Speaking of Cults ·

2021/12/11

This week I welcome Sarah Edmondson – actress, author, podcaster and survivor of NXIVM – to talk turkey about her experiences and the aftermath of having helped put away the cult leader of NXIVM, Keith Raniere. She was on the front lines of the FBI investigation that resulted in Raniere’s extradiction from Mexico and ultimate sentence of over 100 years in federal prison, as well as his primary aides at the top level, all of whom we discuss in the show. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast

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49:41

#321: Why Scientology Auditing is Destructive

Speaking of Cults ·

2021/12/04

This week I do a little compare and contrast between the ethics and core purpose of counselling versus Scientology auditing and offer some insights from my graduate thesis research into why Scientology auditing can be so bad for people. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #321: Why Scientology Auditing is So Destructive appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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53:01

Cult Recovery and the Stages of Grief

Speaking of Cults ·

2021/11/27

This week we suffered the death of our cat, Seven, and this brought about some reflections about the five stages of grief and how they relate to my cult recovery which I thought important enough to share. I hope you agree and I hope that sharing my experience might help others with theirs. Here’s the article I read from during the show. The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #320: Cult Recovery and Stages of Grief appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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02:04:15

#319: Critical Thinking or Death! ft. Jon Atack

Speaking of Cults ·

2021/11/20

This week I welcome back Jon Atack for another wide-ranging and important conversation about “stupid people” joining cults, thought reform and “mind control”, sociology, critical thinking and a lot of commentary on what all this has to do with you and me. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #319: Critical Thinking or Death! ft. Jon Atack appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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01:58:46

#318: Dealing with Cults ft. Jen Kiaba

Speaking of Cults ·

2021/11/13

This week I welcome Jen Kiaba, a woman who grew up in the Moonies, escaped and is now doing the same academic coercive control program I am doing at Salford. We have a very wide-ranging discussion about her own experience in the Moonies, how education has helped her in recovery and a lot more on coercive control. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #318: Dealing with Cults ft. Jen Kiaba appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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01:42:06

#317: Scientology ”Leadership” Training

Speaking of Cults ·

2021/11/06

This week we give some updates on Scientology on the legal front which happened this week and then we get into the subject of “leadership” in Scientology and how authoritarian attitudes are baked in to its DNA. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #317: Scientology “Leadership” Training appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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57:08

#316: The Rise of the Apostates (Academia vs. Former...

Speaking of Cults ·

2021/10/30

This week is the beginning of a slightly new direction in my fight against cults and what may end up being a fight I continue into the future. That battle is against the outright refusal on the part of certain important social sciences and scholars to listen to or even consider the testimonials and information provided by former cult members such as myself, resulting in cult disinformation being propagated throughout academia. I feel this is important enough to share with everyone because I

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01:33:24

#315: Conspiracy Theories and Critical Thinking

Speaking of Cults ·

2021/10/16

This week I am joined by Ciprian Ivanof to discuss critical thinking and how it is that conspiracy theorists say they are using good critical thinking skills when they clearly are not. We dive into why this happens and what is going on in their heads. Enjoy! The post Sensibly Speaking Podcast #315: Conspiracy Theories and Critical Thinking appeared first on The Sensibly Speaking Podcast.

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