Was I in a Cult?

PodcastOne
  • 4.5 (390)
  • Comedy
  • Updated Weekly

Hosted by Tyler Measom and Liz Iacuzzi, Was I In A Cult? is a documentary-style podcast showcasing individuals who have been in, and most importantly, successfully left a cult. Told first-hand by the experiencer themself, these are raw, riveting and inspirational tales of what it means to be a survivor. Using levity and info-tainment, the show humanizes the cultic experience and may leave some of our listeners asking themselves "Wait, Was I In A Cult?" If you or someone you know has been in a cult and want to share your story, contact us at info@wasiinacult.com. We'd love to hear from you.

  1. 2d ago

    The Organization: "Magic is Real"

    As Cassie on Skins and Gilly on "Game of Thrones," Hannah Murray spent years stepping into other people's pain, other people's stories, other people's worlds. But after shooting a brutal scene for a film that left her body wrecked, Hannah went looking for relief. A trainer suggested a healer. And that healer became the doorway into a world that promised magic, ancient wisdom, secret knowledge, and above all, a way to finally heal the pain Hannah had been carrying around for years.  And as these things so often go, at first it worked. Until it really, really didn't. Hannah is a dream guest. Thoughtful, funny, self-aware, and deeply honest. Her memoir, "The Make-Believe: A Memoir of Magic and Madness," tells the full story, and it is as gripping as it is beautifully written. _________________________ Hannah's Memoir: "The Make-Believe: A Memoir of Magic and Madness," is out June 23 in the U.S. and available now in the UK. FOLLOW US  → For more culty content — follow us on Instagram & TikTok → @wasiinacult SUPPORT THE SHOW Join our Patreon! Tyler's documentary "An Honest Liar" available now for all members! And get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes conversations. (And our forever gratitude)   HAVE A CULTY STORY? Email us → info@wasiinacult.com

    1h 4m

  2. Jun 15

    Hare Krishna—Pt2: "Thank You For Not Drowning Me in a Bucket"

    *CONTENT WARNING: *This episode contains discussions of child marriage, sexual assault, domestic abuse, homelessness, parental abandonment, and religious trauma. Please take care while listening.* Married off by her mother at thirteen. Abandoned in India. Sent back to America at sixteen with a one-way ticket and a hundred dollars. Part 2 picks up where the unthinkable left off, and follows Vilas through what comes after, which turns out to be harder, stranger, and more devastating than anyone could prepare for. But also braver, more defiant, and darkly funny.     This is a story about what happens when no one is coming to save you. About strangers who showed more decency than your own family. About becoming a mother while still needing one. About breaking every cycle you were raised inside. And about why, in 2026, child marriage is still legal in most of the United States. Today, Vilas uses her experience to advocate for children and raise awareness about the lasting impact of child marriage and childhood trauma. This is the final chapter to her remarkable story of resilience and reclamation. A true badass, she is. _____ FIND VILAS: Website: vilaswright.com Instagram: @vilaswright / Facebook: @vilas.wright END CHILD MARRIAGE — GET INVOLVED: Unchained at Last — Advocacy and direct services to end forced and child marriage Tahirih Justice Center — Legal services protecting those fleeing gender-based violence Equality Now — Global action to end legal inequality for women and girls AHA Foundation — Protecting women and girls from forced marriage and honor violence ___________________________________ FOLLOW US  → For more culty content — follow us on Instagram & TikTok → @wasiinacult SUPPORT THE SHOW Join our Patreon! Get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes conversations. (And our forever gratitude)   HAVE A CULTY STORY? Email us → info@wasiinacult.com

    1h 5m

  3. Jun 8

    Hare Krishna—Pt1: "Who Gives This Child Away?"

    *CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains discussions of child abuse, child sexual abuse, rape, child marriage, neglect, religious trauma, and family trauma. Please take care while listening.* Born into the Hare Krishna Movement aka ISKCON, Vilas was supposed to be part of a "pure" new generation of devotees. Instead, she was sent away at three years old, raised in boarding schools and temples across the world, taught that suffering was holy, comfort was indulgent, family attachment was weakness, and obedience was the only way back to God. From Los Angeles to Iran to India, Vilas's childhood was shaped by silence, neglect, impossible rules, and adults who kept choosing devotion over protection. Part 1 takes us behind the chanting, robes, and airport flowers into the devastating cost of growing up inside a movement that promised divine love, while denying a child the human kind.   FIND VILAS:  Instagram: @vilaswright  / Facebook: @vilas.wright ___________________________________ FOLLOW US  → For more culty content — follow us on Instagram & TikTok → @wasiinacult SUPPORT THE SHOW Join our Patreon! Get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes conversations. (And our forever gratitude)   HAVE A CULTY STORY? Email us → info@wasiinacult.com

    48 min

  4. Jun 1

    OneTaste: "Empire of Orgasm"

    NOTE: This episode discusses sex, sexual exploitation, coercion, and sexual abuse.  What happens when female empowerment, Silicon Valley startup culture, spiritual enlightenment, and clitoral stroking walk into a fluorescent-lit conference room? You get OneTaste. In this episode, we sit down with Bloomberg investigative journalist Ellen Huet, author of Empire of Orgasm: Sex, Power, and the Downfall of a Wellness Cult, to unpack the rise and fall of OneTaste, the orgasmic meditation company founded by Nicole Daedone that promised connection, healing, and transformation through a 15-minute partnered orgasm practice called OM (Orgasmic Meditation). But behind the language of liberation and "turn-on" were allegations of sexual coercion, financial exploitation, sexual abuse, forced labor, and a belief system that taught members their discomfort was just something to push through on the path to enlightenment.  Ellen walks us through how her 2018 investigation helped expose the darker side of the company, the criminal case that followed, and why OneTaste's story is not just about sex. It's about power, belonging, manipulation, and the very human longing to be seen.   FIND ELLEN:  Instagram: @ehuet  Book: Empire of Orgasm: Sex, Power, and the Downfall of a Wellness Cult  Bloomberg: bloomberg.com/authors/ASmGayS_jTQ/ellen-huet__ ___________________________________ FOLLOW US  → For more culty content — follow us on Instagram & TikTok → @wasiinacult SUPPORT THE SHOW Join our Patreon! Get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes conversations. (And our forever gratitude)   HAVE A CULTY STORY? Email us → info@wasiinacult.com

    58 min

  5. May 18

    Swartzentruber Amish — PT2: "Promoted to Wearer of Jeans"

    CONTENT WARNING: This episode discusses sexual assault. Not in graphic detail, but please listen accordingly. For 19 years, Lizzie Ens lived in one of the most conservative Amish sects in America: the Swartzentruber Amish. Last week you learned about her upbringing and all facets of living a life off the grid with no electricity, no indoor plumbing, and very little autonomy over her own life. In Part 2, the horse-and-buggy postcard version of Amish life disappears fast. Lizzie takes us inside the bizarre dating ritual called "bundling," and into the darker corners of the community — sexual assault, shunning, suppression, and the impossible weight of knowing that leaving means leaving everything behind. Including her twin sister. Eventually, she realizes something terrifying: if she doesn't escape now… she may never escape at all.   What follows is one of the wildest escape stories we've ever covered. __________________________________ RESOURCES: RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network) Bailing Out Benji __________________________________ FIND LIZZIE: Instagram: @lizzieens_wellness / TikTok: @lizzieh_wellness Book: Amish Renegade: The Anthropology of an Amish Girl Turned Global CEO Website: undietyou.com _____________________________________ FOLLOW US  → For more culty content — follow us on Instagram & TikTok → @wasiinacult SUPPORT THE SHOW Join our Patreon! Get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes conversations. (And our forever gratitude) HAVE A CULTY STORY? Email us → info@wasiinacult.com

    59 min

  6. May 11

    Swartzentruber Amish — PT1: "Promoted to Housework"

    Many people picture a peaceful, technology-free life of butter churning, candle making, and horse-drawn buggies. But for today's guest, the reality behind the plain dresses and pastoral image was far more restrictive, and far more dangerous. Lizzie grew up in one of the strictest Amish sects in the country: the Swartzentruber Amish. No electricity. No indoor plumbing. No music. No photographs. No Rumspringa. And absolutely no preparation for life outside the community. In this first part of a two-part conversation, Lizzie shares what it was like growing up under intense control, the rigid rules imposed on women, and how isolation and fear kept members obedient. She also opens up about the early cracks in her belief system—and the impossible choices that eventually led her to attempt an escape. __________________________________ FIND LIZZIE: Instagram: @lizzieens_wellness / TikTok: @lizzieh_wellness Book: Amish Renegade: The Anthropology of an Amish Girl Turned Global CEO Website: undietyou.com _____________________________________ FOLLOW US  → For more culty content — follow us on Instagram & TikTok → @wasiinacult SUPPORT THE SHOW Join our Patreon! Get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes conversations. (And our forever gratitude)   HAVE A CULTY STORY? Email us → info@wasiinacult.com

    1h 3m

  7. May 4

    Christian Patriarchy: "The OG 'Trad Wife'"

    Four hours into a hostage situation between a man and a woman, the man walks out the door. In that moment, the woman's primal instinct kicks in: "Grab your kids and RUN."  Later, she learns that action may have saved her life. He wasn't just leaving. He was going to get a gun. And the man? It was her husband. At 33-years-old, Tia Levings walked away from the Christian Patriarchy system that dictated her body, her voice, and her life for 13 years. If there were ever a guest who embodies the entire ethos of this show, it's Tia Levings. A badass is an understatement. Now a New York Times bestselling author of "A Well-Trained Wife" and featured in "Shiny Happy People," Tia joins us to unpack:  'Trad wives' and how this movement is far from just churned butter on Instagram. The wedding night she finally has language for. The daughter she lost. How, and more importantly why, the Christian Patriarchy movement has surged over the past decade. And her new book. "I Belong to Me." The survival guide she wishes she had access to when she first got out. It's now our #1 recommendation for anyone leaving a high-control group. A non-judgmental, non-preachy, non-guru self-help book? Who knew?! Tia is brilliant, funny, and unflinchingly honest. And if you leave with one thing, let it be her words: "If you can't speak in your power, you can't f*ck in your power."  NOTE to our Patreon subscribers: You can watch the full, unedited two-and-a-half-hour interview with Tia now on our Patreon. Thank you for being on this journey with us. FIND TIA: Website: tialevings.com Socials @TiaLevingsWriter: Instagram, TikTok, Facebook Substack: tialevings.substack.com — where she does real-time religious deconstruction TIA'S BOOKS: "I Belong to Me: A Survivor's Guide to Recovery and Hope After Religious Trauma" "A Well-Trained Wife: My Escape from Christian Patriarchy" (now in paperback)   FOLLOW US  → For more culty content — follow us on Instagram & TikTok → @wasiinacult SUPPORT THE SHOW Join our Patreon! Get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes conversations. (And our forever gratitude)   HAVE A CULTY STORY? Email us → info@wasiinacult.com

    57 min

  8. Apr 13

    SHOW ANNOUNCEMENT & Shen Yun/Falun Gong is Still a Cult! Pt1 [UPDATE]

    **PLEASE NOTE: This episode originally aired in Oct 2024. Since, there have been quite a few updates to both the cult and story. Tune into the episode to hear more.** ____ When her mother fell sick, young Angela had no idea that she would spend her childhood growing up in a dangerous cult. Falun Gong, a Chinese spiritual movement-slash-religion-slash-cult, known for its Shen Yun dancers and its ties to 'The Epoch Times' entangled her family in its facade of meditation and enlightenment. In this two-part episode, Angela recounts her experience in a world where karma is not just a bitch, but a force that can dictate life and death… with suffering seen as a path to salvation and modern medicine demonized as an obstacle to spiritual purity. And just when you think it can't get any wilder, the Capitol Insurrection storms into the story…  This is Part 1 of Angela's powerful story.  _____ FOLLOW US  → For more culty content — follow us on Instagram & TikTok → @wasiinacult SUPPORT THE SHOW Join our Patreon! Get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes conversations. (And our forever gratitude) HAVE A CULTY STORY? Email us → info@wasiinacult.com

    1h 5m
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Hosts & Guests

4.5
out of 5
390 Ratings

About

Hosted by Tyler Measom and Liz Iacuzzi, Was I In A Cult? is a documentary-style podcast showcasing individuals who have been in, and most importantly, successfully left a cult. Told first-hand by the experiencer themself, these are raw, riveting and inspirational tales of what it means to be a survivor. Using levity and info-tainment, the show humanizes the cultic experience and may leave some of our listeners asking themselves "Wait, Was I In A Cult?" If you or someone you know has been in a cult and want to share your story, contact us at info@wasiinacult.com. We'd love to hear from you.

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