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Trust Me: Cults, Extreme Belief, and Manipulation

Trust Me: Cults, Extreme Belief, and Manipulation

By: Exactly Right and iHeartPodcasts
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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 shades of groupthink and the psychology of influence. Trust Me explores it all with unfiltered honesty, dark humor, and a lot of heart. This isn’t a sensationalized deep dive into cults—it’s a compassionate, first-person exploration of what it means to believe, to belong, and to break free. At the end of the day, wanting to believe in something bigger than yourself is one of the most human instincts there is.

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Episodes
  • Nikki G, Part 1 - Down the Rabbit Hole, Cult Hopping, and Surviving the Black Church

    Nikki G, Part 1 - Down the Rabbit Hole, Cult Hopping, and Surviving the Black Church
    Jun 17 2026

    This week, Nikki G., host of Surviving the Black Church and survivor of FIVE different high-control groups, discusses joining the first church on her cult-hopping journey, how she got initially pulled down the rabbit hole by conspiracy theories and the Book of Revelation, and the intensity and community that drew her to each group.

    She tells the girls about her second and more radical group, IHOP (International House of Prayer), how she eventually learned the term “religious addiction,” and why the idea of “waiting for your Boaz,” or your perfect husband, can be so harmful for women in the church.

    SOURCES

    Surviving the Black Church Podcast

    Black Religious Trauma Recovery Network

    Nikki G.

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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    49 mins
  • Maria Bamford - 12 Step Programs, OCD, and How to Join Every Group

    Maria Bamford - 12 Step Programs, OCD, and How to Join Every Group
    Jun 10 2026

    This week, Lola and Meagan are joined by comic, actor, and author of Sure I’ll Join Your Cult, Maria Bamford. The girls discuss Maria’s childhood OCD, intrusive thoughts, and the ways those experiences primed her to seek support, structure, and belonging through a variety of groups later in life. They explore culty (but helpful!) aspects of 12 step programs like Debtors Anonymous and Al-Anon, along with the many other communities she’s loved and joined along the way.

    Maria also shares her experience with eating disorders, going to treatment in her twenties, and the controversial Suzuki Method through which she learned violin as a child.

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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    1 hr and 30 mins
  • Sarah Edmondson, Part 2 - DOS, Disillusionment, and Leaving Keith Raniere

    Sarah Edmondson, Part 2 - DOS, Disillusionment, and Leaving Keith Raniere
    Jun 3 2026

    This week is part 2 with Sarah Edmondson, NXIVM survivor, author, and host of A Little Bit Culty. The girls pick back up as Sarah goes deeper into the organization, eventually entering DOS and confronting the growing contradictions inside NXIVM. She’ll discuss the emotional grip of the group, the normalization of control, and the psychological unraveling that began once the cracks became impossible to ignore.

    Sarah also opens up about loyalty, fear, cognitive dissonance, and the terrifying process of realizing the self-help system she devoted years to was built around manipulation. The conversation explores deconstruction in real time, what finally pushed her to question Keith Raniere, and how leaving meant rebuilding her entire sense of self.

    SOURCES

    A Little Bit Culty

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
    Show More Show Less
    49 mins
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