Cults exposed in New Zealand. The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Faith-Based & State-Based Care investigated what happened to children, young people and adults in NZ in these care settings during 1950 to 1999. The final report - Whanaketia - was released on 25 June. The extent of the findings are beyond imaginable. Lindy, Liz and Caz all have personal reasons to care about the findings of this report. In this discussion they talk about Whanaketia and how the findings relate to cults in New Zealand operating now.

Dr Janja Lalich, leading cult researcher and sociologist, author of several books about cults including “Take Back Your Life”, talks with Liz and shares her Bounded Choice Framework. They talk about moral injury and accountability, the way cults arrest the development of children, and the importance of support and psychological care after leaving a cult. This chat comes in the lead up to Dr Lalich’s October visit to New Zealand for multiple speaking engagements, including the Decult Conference, Parliamentary evening, University lecture and a visit to Timaru to engage with Gloriavale Leavers and supporters.

If you’ve been wondering if your book club is actually a cult, then this episode is for you! Settle in as our hosts chat about the green flags for healthy groups - borrowing extensively from the work of Dr Janja Lalich, in her book “Escaping Utopia”. The girls try very hard to focus on the flourishing, nourishing and encouraging qualities present in a healthy group and how they are different from harmful groups, but of course, they definitely talk about cults! They can’t help themselves!

Lindy chats with Dr Gillie Jenkinson, UK psychotherapist, trainer of therapists, and author of “Walking Free from the Trauma of Coercive, Cultic and Spiritual Abuse - A Workbook for Recovery and Growth.” Gillie talks about her personal history in a cult, her realization that the only way to get some decent resources for the cult recovery journey was to develop them herself, and the excitement she is feeling as she plans the last details for her trip to New Zealand in October 2024 . She will be speaking at Decult and running workshops for therapists. We can’t wait to see her!

Liz & Caz learnt so much at the International Cultic Studies Association conference in Barcelona that they had to do another episode on it! Listen in as they tell Lindy all about the fascinating anti-cult activists and educators they met and the breaking research they learnt about. In this episode they chat about the process of waking up for cultists, the impacts on the second generation, and a dive into the very damaging impacts of mandated shunning - which so many cults enforce.

What were Liz & Caz doing in Barcelona this month? Apart from chowing down on tapas and sipping on their drink of choice, the girls hob-knobbed with leading international authorities on cults & coercive control at the International Cultic Studies Association annual conference. In this episode Liz and Caz download all their new learnings to Lindy who sadly had to stay at home. Join us to hear them chat about up to date international research in the cultiverse and how their own presentations went.

Do therapists have the skills needed to support the recovery of cult leavers? Yes! Do they understand the significance of the cult context? Hmmm, maybe not. In this episode, Lindy and Liz discuss the workshop they recently lead where they taught a room of mental health workers all about cult recovery. Listen in as they tell Caz all about it, share some tips for therapists working with cult-leavers, and explain why therapists should consider upskilling in cult recovery.

Show Notes:

Book: Cracking the Cult Code for Therapists by Bonnie Zieman

Book: Escaping Utopia by Janja Lalich and Karla McLaren

Education: Gillie Jenkinson training for therapists - Mental Health Professionals and Therapists Workshop October 21-22 2024

Education: Decult Conference October 19-20 2024

Service: Mind Health - mental health provider based in Christchurch

We’re back again to finish our conversation with Sarah Mettrick, former Sri Chinmoy disciple, who was recruited into the Sri Chinmoy Centre as a fourteen year old. Sarah tells us about her emotional stunting as a teenage cultist, and how after she got out, she found herself trying to figure out who she was in her early 30s. This second episode gives massive insight into the developmental disruption that occurs when teenagers get recruited into a cult. You won’t want to miss this episode!

Show notes

Book - “Combatting Cult Mind Control” by Steve Hassan

Book - “Hearken O Daughter” by Grace J Adams and Poia Alpha