

IndoctriNation
IndoctriNation
Welcome to IndoctriNation: A weekly podcast covering cults, manipulators, and protecting yourself from systems of control.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 4, 2023 • 7min
BONUS EPISODE PREVIEW: From Landmark to One Taste w/ Priscilla Eyles
This is just a preview of our Patreon exclusive bonus episode. You can hear the episode in its entirety by becoming a member at:
www.patreon.com/indoctrination
Returning guest, Priscilla Eyles is a Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion trainer and facilitator from London. They are an advocate, and speaker passionate about raising awareness around the issues that Neurodivergent people face, specifically those of multiple marginalized identities. Alongside normalizing conversations around vulnerabilities to cult abuse, career, and intergenerational trauma. Priscilla is a bi-racial, neurodivergent queer person who survived eight years in two cults and has worked in many toxic workplaces with cult-like dynamics.
Priscilla is also a trustee for Camden Disability Action and has a special interest in effective and holistic therapeutic frameworks and trauma-informed approaches, they recently completed a foundation certificate in Integrative Psychotherapy and Counselling at the Minster Centre. Their first published book chapter will be out later this year in the forthcoming "Birdsong From Inobservable Worlds, an anthology on Psychiatry and Race", edited by mental health activist Dolly Sen.
In this second conversation with Priscilla, she continues her story explaining how she quickly jumped from Landmark to One Taste, the infamous "orgasmic meditation" cult whose leader was recently indicted on forced labor charges.
You can reach out to Priscilla on social media or via her email at:
priscillaeyles@gmail .com
Twitter: PriscillaEyles
IG: CulturalLiasons
Check out their music as “Dandy Lion” here:
dandylionuk.bandcamp.com/album/be-perfect
Thanks to all of our Patreon supporters for making this episode possible!
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Aug 2, 2023 • 1h 4min
Leaving Landmark w/Priscilla Eyles
Priscilla Eyles is a Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion trainer and facilitator from London. They are an advocate, and speaker passionate about raising awareness around the issues that Neurodivergent people face, specifically those of multiple marginalized identities. Alongside normalizing conversations around vulnerabilities to cult abuse, career, and intergenerational trauma. Priscilla is a bi-racial, neurodivergent queer person who survived eight years in two cults and has worked in many toxic workplaces with cult-like dynamics.
Priscilla is also a trustee for Camden Disability Action and has a special interest in effective and holistic therapeutic frameworks and trauma-informed approaches, they recently completed a foundation certificate in Integrative Psychotherapy and Counselling at the Minster Centre. Their first published book chapter will be out later this year in the forthcoming "Birdsong From Inobservable Worlds, an anthology on Psychiatry and Race", edited by mental health activist Dolly Sen.
In this compelling conversation, Priscilla begins to reveal her complex story of multiple cultic experiences. Together, Rachel and Priscilla analyze the role of identity within high-control groups and explain how vulnerability is exploited within "large group awareness trainings" such as Landmark.
Before You Go: Rachel shares her insights on how emotional trauma can manifest physically in the body, explaining how these effects can be amplified in cultic groups.
You can reach out to Priscilla on social media or via her email at:
priscillaeyles@gmail .com
Twitter: PriscillaEyles
IG: CulturalLiasons
Check out their music as “Dandy Lion” here:
dandylionuk.bandcamp.com/album/be-perfect
The music featured in this episode is by The Wholesome you can find more info on them here:
https://m.facebook.com/the.wholesome.music
Their new album "Alive Tonight" is available here:
https://open.spotify.com/album/3bLCWfMp9gSqtY7Usiise7?si=3ZDRHZUgQFSCbNl6fDv5bw&context=spotify%3Aalbum%3A3bLCWfMp9gSqtY7Usiise7
All of Rachel's free informational PDF documents are available here:
www.rachelbernsteintherapy.com/pdf.html
All of Rachel's video lectures are available for purchase here:
www.rachelbernsteintherapy.com/webinar.html
To help support the show monthly and get bonus episodes, shirts, and tote bags, please visit:
www.patreon.com/indoctrination
Prefer to support the IndoctriNation show with a one-time donation? Use this link:
www.paypal.me/indoctrination
Connect with us on Social Media:
Twitter:
twitter.com/_indoctrination
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/indoctrinationpodcast
Tik Tok:
www.tiktok.com/@indoctrinationpodcast
Instagram:
www.instagram.com/indoctrinationpodcast/
YouTube:
www.youtube.com/rachelbernsteinlmft
You can always help the show for free by leaving a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple/ iTunes. It really helps the visibility of the show!
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Jul 26, 2023 • 1h 14min
The Language Of Control w/Sue Winter
Sue Winter is a modern linguist who holds two graduate degrees, one from the University of London, and another from UWE Bristol. She taught for over 44 years in a variety of settings in both mainstream and specialist teams for vulnerable young people. Sue has multiple cultic experiences from religious to corporate to interpersonal, including both parental and spousal abuse. She became involved in Fruitful Vine Ministries, an Australian charismatic group, led by a female apostle prophet. After leaving that group she unknowingly “cult hopped” volunteering for a UK-based commercial hiking company which she only recently realized was employing many cult-like practices. She is now an E.S.O.L examiner and a group leader for a U.S. not-for-profit organization. Sue has a passion for language and speaks French, Spanish, German, Catalan, and Arabic.
In this complex and engaging discussion, Sue opens up to Rachel about the plethora of cultic experiences she endured throughout her lifetime. Together they draw connections between the various high-control situations she found herself in. Rahel and Sue go on to point out the commonalities of Sue's experiences, pointing out the similarity in the methods of control.
Before You Go: Rachel examines the resilience of those who survive multiple cult experiences and offers her insights on how to stay conscious of the potential to "Cult Hop"
All of Rachel's free informational PDF documents are available here:
www.rachelbernsteintherapy.com/pdf.html
All of Rachel's video lectures are available for purchase here:
www.rachelbernsteintherapy.com/webinar.html
To help support the show monthly and get bonus episodes, shirts, and tote bags, please visit:
www.patreon.com/indoctrination
Prefer to support the IndoctriNation show with a one-time donation? Use this link:
www.paypal.me/indoctrination
Connect with us on Social Media:
Twitter:
twitter.com/_indoctrination
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/indoctrinationpodcast
Tik Tok:
www.tiktok.com/@indoctrinationpodcast
Instagram:
www.instagram.com/indoctrinationpodcast/
YouTube:
www.youtube.com/rachelbernsteinlmft
You can always help the show for free by leaving a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple/ iTunes. It really helps the visibility of the show!
Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Jul 21, 2023 • 8min
BONUS EPISODE PREVIEW: Finding A Way To Heal w/Em Thomas
This is just a preview of our Patreon exclusive bonus episode. You can hear the episode in its entirety by becoming a member at:
https://www.patreon.com/indoctrination
Returning guest, Em Thomas was born and raised in the dogmatic Christian cult The Way International. The daughter of a Way Corps graduate and WOW ambassador, Em attended a fellowship in her home three nights per week, monthly branch meetings with other leadership families, and prolonged stays semi-annually at TWI headquarters. Em’s family was labeled “Mark and Avoid” (excommunicated) in 1998, after which they attended fellowship within a splinter group until 2000 when Em was 15 years old.
Em has two main goals for sharing her story: to connect with other survivors of cultic abuse, especially second or third-generation survivors of The Way International, and to bring attention to this once well-known organization that is still operating and doing harm to its members today. She hopes that by telling her truth, she can bring hope to folks who are still finding their way out.
In this follow-up conversation, Em details the rampant homophobia of the church's leaders and shares her long and complex journey to recovery after leaving the cult as a teenager. She points out the long-lasting psychological impacts that affected her life and relationships long after being physically out of the grips of the church. Together Rachel and Em discuss how being deprived of bodily autonomy as a child can lead to entering into dangerous relationships as an adult.
Em can be found on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/markandavoid/
You can contact her via email at: iammarkandavoid@gmail.com
Thanks to all of our Patreon supporters for making this episode possible!
Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Jul 19, 2023 • 1h 14min
Mark & Avoid w/ Em Thomas
Em Thomas was born and raised in the dogmatic Christian cult The Way International. The daughter of a Way Corps graduate and WOW ambassador, Em attended a fellowship in her home three nights per week, monthly branch meetings with other leadership families, and prolonged stays semi-annually at TWI headquarters. Em’s family was labeled “Mark and Avoid” (excommunicated) in 1998, after which they attended fellowship within a splinter group until 2000 when Em was 15 years old.
Em has two main goals for sharing her story: to connect with other survivors of cultic abuse, especially second or third-generation survivors of The Way International, and to bring attention to this once well-known organization that is still operating and doing harm to its members today. She hopes that by telling her truth, she can bring hope to folks who are still finding their way out.
In this revealing conversation, Em shares publicly for the very first time her story of abuse, homophobia, and coercive control as a member of The Way International. She explains to Rachel how she struggled with her identity and sexuality growing up in the very unsafe, and predatory environment of the church and how that experience primed her for abusive relationships and self-harm as a teenager. Together Rachel and Em analyze the harmful dogma of the church, its fraudulent and plagiarized teachings, and the abusive culture of control, secrecy, and excommunication.
Before You Go: Rachel addresses the importance of fortifying bodily autonomy in young children and explains how high-control organizations often intentionally work to erase the natural boundaries of self-determination and physical sovereignty to assert total control over their followers and weaken resistance to abuse.
Em can be found on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/markandavoid/
You can contact her via email at: iammarkandavoid@gmail.com
All of Rachel's free informational PDF documents are available here:
https://rachelbernsteintherapy.com/pdf.html
All of Rachel's video lectures are available for purchase here:
www.rachelbernsteintherapy.com/webinar.html
To help support the show monthly and get bonus episodes, shirts, and tote bags, please visit:
www.patreon.com/indoctrination
Prefer to support the IndoctriNation show with a one-time donation? Use this link:
www.paypal.me/indoctrination
Connect with us on Social Media:
Twitter:
twitter.com/_indoctrination
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/indoctrinationpodcast
Tik Tok:
www.tiktok.com/@indoctrinationpodcast
Instagram:
www.instagram.com/indoctrinationpodcast/
YouTube:
www.youtube.com/rachelbernsteinlmft
You can always help the show for free by leaving a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple/ iTunes. It really helps the visibility of the show!
Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Jul 12, 2023 • 1h 20min
Criminality in Cults w/Chris Shelton, MSc
Chris Shelton is a former cult member who escaped from a lifetime of indoctrination and abuse, started a YouTube channel to educate the public about coercive or cultic control, undue influence, and brainwashing, has written a book on the subject of Scientology and why that group is a destructive, high-control group and has spoken at the Secular Hub many times on these topics. He hosts a weekly podcast, a call-in show, and a Q&A, has been featured on the Emmy-award-winning Scientology and the Aftermath television documentary series, and has appeared on a number of media platforms discussing cultic influence.
In this revelatory and cathartic conversation, longtime colleagues and friends Chris and Rachel discuss some of the lurid details of Scientology's actions with regard to the recent conviction of Danny Masterson. Chris offers his personal insights as a former Scientologist on the malicious intent behind the vicious and criminal tactics of intimidation the group is infamous for employing against its detractors.
Before You Go: Rachel shares details about her own experiences of harassment from the Church of Scientology and their minions, explaining the systematic ways in which the group attempts to intimidate anyone they see as a threat to their power.
You can find out more about Chris and his work at:
www.mncriticalthinking.com
Watch Rachel's appearances on Chris's Podcast "Sensibly Speaking" here:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGrPM1Pg2h705KqJ9DRi3HKkWqqZAA6Hs
All of Rachel's video lectures are available for purchase here:
www.rachelbernsteintherapy.com/webinar.html
To help support the show monthly and get bonus episodes, shirts, and tote bags, please visit:
www.patreon.com/indoctrination
Prefer to support the IndoctriNation show with a one-time donation? Use this link:
www.paypal.me/indoctrination
Connect with us on Social Media:
Twitter:
twitter.com/_indoctrination
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/indoctrinationpodcast
Tik Tok:
www.tiktok.com/@indoctrinationpodcast
Instagram:
www.instagram.com/indoctrinationpodcast/
YouTube:
www.youtube.com/rachelbernsteinlmft
You can always help the show for free by leaving a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple/ iTunes. It really helps the visibility of the show!
Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Jul 7, 2023 • 8min
BONUS EPISODE PREVIEW: Why Fear Makes Us Say "Yes" When We Should Have Said "No"
For this week's bonus episode, Patreon supporters can access Rachel's recent video lecture from the International Cultic Studies Conference. In this lecture, Rachel explains how fear can impact the decision-making process in members of high-control groups. This subject is for anyone including those who have gotten involved in a cult, in a controlling relationship, in multi-level marketing, in a corporation that demands all your time and devotion, or in any situation where you feel it would not be safe to say "No".
Manipulators are extremely good at making sure we go along with their wishes and that we agree to do what they want us to do and what they tell us to do. They get us to ignore all of our doubts and concerns and questions and even get us to a point of feeling fear about saying "No" so we don't get labeled "difficult" or as the troublemaker. We don't want to risk making the controller upset by putting our foot down and not immediately agreeing to something.
You can access the video by becoming a supporter at:
www.patreon.com/indoctrination
You can find a PDF outline of this lecture at:
https://rachelbernsteintherapy.com/pdf.html
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Jul 5, 2023 • 59min
Subtle Signs of Control w/Sarah Patch, LPCC
Sarah Patch is a clinical counselor in Columbus, Ohio who has devoted the past few years of her career to educating herself and others on authoritarian abuse and cult involvement. Sarah cares deeply about raising awareness of the subtle and not-so-subtle signs of controlling behavior so that people can live more authentic and joyful lives. Sarah was both a participant and victim of authoritarian control while in a Christian cult where she spent most of her life. She hopes that by sharing her story, she can help individuals break down their walls of cognitive dissonance and find freedom.
Throughout this revealing conversation, Sarah shares insights from her experience under the control of Xenos, now known as Dwell Church. She goes on to discuss with Rachel her own work as a counselor, explaining how her time in a high-control religious group informed the work she does today. Together the two colleagues explain the mechanisms of control that are commonly used in cultic organizations.
Before You Go: Rachel addresses the concept of P.I.M.O. (Physically In, Mentally Out) explaining the complex stages of recovering from cultic abuse, and how they can manifest in the minds of survivors.
You can find more info about Sarah's work at https://www.sarahpatchcounseling.com/
All of Rachel's video lectures are available for purchase here:
www.rachelbernsteintherapy.com/webinar.html
To help support the show monthly and get bonus episodes, shirts, and tote bags, please visit:
www.patreon.com/indoctrination
Prefer to support the IndoctriNation show with a one-time donation? Use this link:
www.paypal.me/indoctrination
Connect with us on Social Media:
Twitter:
twitter.com/_indoctrination
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/indoctrinationpodcast
Tik Tok:
www.tiktok.com/@indoctrinationpodcast
Instagram:
www.instagram.com/indoctrinationpodcast/
YouTube:
www.youtube.com/rachelbernsteinlmft
You can always help the show for free by leaving a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple/ iTunes. It really helps the visibility of the show!
Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Jun 28, 2023 • 1h 13min
When The World Didn't End w/Guinevere Turner
Guinevere Turner is a writer, director, and actor who has been working in film and TV since her 1994 debut film Go Fish, which she wrote, produced, and starred in. She teamed up with director Mary Harron to write the films American Psycho, The Notorious Bettie Page, and the 2019 film Charlie Says. She can be seen in film roles that include The Watermelon Woman, Chasing Amy, American Psycho, and The L Word. Guinevere has taught screenwriting at Sarah Lawrence College, Columbia University, the University of Georgia, UCLA, and NYU. Her recently released immersive, and spell-binding memoir "When The World Didn't End" tells the story of her childhood growing up with the infamous Lyman Family cult—and the complicated and unexpected pain of leaving the only home she’d ever known.
In this very forthright conversation, Guinevere shares her reflections on her childhood as a member of the Lyman Family cult, explaining how her isolation since birth made it difficult for her to recognize the exploitation she experienced in the moment. Together Rachel and Guinevere go on to share their thoughts on the healing process and point out how perspectives change and become more complex over time.
Before You Go: Rachel explains how manipulative leaders create a false perception of deficiency in their followers in order to keep them distracted from their empty messages of spiritual growth.
You can find Guinevere's book at your local independent bookstore or on her website:
https://www.guinevereturner.com/
You can read her piece in The New Yorker here:
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/05/06/my-childhood-in-a-cult
All of Rachel's video lectures are available for purchase here:
www.rachelbernsteintherapy.com/webinar.html
To help support the show monthly and get bonus episodes, shirts, and tote bags, please visit:
www.patreon.com/indoctrination
Prefer to support the IndoctriNation show with a one-time donation? Use this link:
www.paypal.me/indoctrination
Connect with us on Social Media:
Twitter:
twitter.com/_indoctrination
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/indoctrinationpodcast
Tik Tok:
www.tiktok.com/@indoctrinationpodcast
Instagram:
www.instagram.com/indoctrinationpodcast/
YouTube:
www.youtube.com/rachelbernsteinlmft
You can always help the show for free by leaving a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple/ iTunes. It really helps the visibility of the show!
Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Jun 23, 2023 • 8min
BONUS EPISODE PREVIEW: Reflections On Healing w/Mark Turi
This is just a preview of our exclusive Patreon bonus episode. You can hear the full episode by becoming a supporter at:
www.patreon.com/indoctrination
Returning guest, Mark Turi discovered Scientology while on vacation in Los Angeles, just a month after graduating college in May 2005, Two years later, he joined the staff at the Church of Scientology in Berlin, Germany. While in Berlin, Mark worked for Scientology for over 90 hours a week, earning very little money. He left Berlin in February 2008 when he was transferred to the Church of Scientology in San Francisco, where he worked until May 2008.
Since leaving Scientology Mark has been regularly sharing about his experience online in the hopes that his story can help young people, especially recent college graduates, be more aware of predatory organizations like The Church of Scientology. He has continued to pursue his education and is currently enrolled in a Master's program in Budapest, Hungary where he now resides. Mark is a historian focusing on Nationalism, Language, and Jewish Culture in Late Modern Europe.
In this follow-up conversation, Mark shares further details about his time as a staff member of Scientology, this time he focuses on the aftermath explaining how he managed the anger and resentment that remained after his exodus. Together Rachel and Mark unpack the complex post-cult healing process and share their respective insights on the dangers of "black & white" thinking.
Thanks to all of our Patron supporters for making this episode possible!!
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