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 people involved even if we do not respect the beliefs or actions involved.
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 people involved even if we do not respect the beliefs or actions involved.
Episodes
Episodes



Aug 22, 2026
Aug 22, 2026
1 hr 26 min
This week I welcome Anne Peterson back to have a very loose discussion around the things that all cults do or the beliefs/ideas that seem to echo from one to the other. This being our first time on this topic, we cover a lot of diverse ideas rather than have a bullet list of things to discuss, but I hope you find this as fun as we had doing it. Enjoy!
Anne's channel: @ConfrontingTheLine
The workshop page: https://ilumn8.life/op/reclaiming-your-mind-and-life-chris-shelton/
Aug 22, 2026
1 hr 26 min



Aug 15, 2026
Speaking of Cults...Leaving Mormonism
Aug 15, 2026
Aug 15, 2026
1 hr 10 min
This week I welcome back Bryce Blankenangel and Shannon Grover to help me understand what happens when people want to leave the faith of the LDS Church in terms of repercussions both personally and/or professionally. As always, we go wide on this topic and hope it brings some more clarity to why cults like the Mormon Church act the way they do. Enjoy!
Glassbox podcast: https://glassboxpodcast.com
Aug 15, 2026
1 hr 10 min



Aug 8, 2026
Aug 8, 2026
1 hr 22 min
Today I welcome back Jon Atack to continue our series of podcasts to debunk the "basics" of Scientology, one bit at a time. This week we are taking on some of the very basic ideas of Scientology with theta and the simpleton approach of Scientology's philosophic foundations. This is a wide-ranging and hopefully interesting discussion where we pull no punches on how we see Scientology. Enjoy!
Aug 8, 2026
1 hr 22 min



Jul 25, 2026
Jul 25, 2026
1 hr 9 min
This week I welcome NY Times bestselling author and investigative journalist Michael Blanding to discuss his new book, The Gospel According to Hobby Lobby, a surprising and even shocking expose of the hidden agenda behind Hobby Lobby and its owners, the Green family. When religious fanaticism is rewarded with hundreds of millions of dollars in liquid cash, what happens to our rights, laws and freedoms? Hobby Lobby is a lot more than a chain of craft stores and what your money is being used for when you contribute to this religiously fanatical organization harms all of us.
Michael's website: https://MichaelBlanding.com
Jul 25, 2026
1 hr 9 min



Jul 18, 2026
Jul 18, 2026
1 hr 8 min
This week I welcome Anna Clark Miller, LMC, a licensed therapist who specializes in religious trauma syndrome and also has her own background of an abusive religious upbringing. Yet Anna hasn't let her own experience bias her views on religion or how she does her treatment and in this podcast we frankly discuss the difficulties on both sides of the therapy relationship when religious abuse is part of the picture. I hope this is as educational and informative for you as it was for me. Enjoy!
Anna's website: https://empathyparadigm.com
Jul 18, 2026
1 hr 8 min



Jul 11, 2026
Jul 11, 2026
1 hr 29 min
This week I welcome back Bryce Blankenangel and Shannon Grover to help me understand first the financial rapaciousness of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, an organization that clearly values money over morality or good works. In explaining why this is, Bryce and Shannon break down the violent origin story of the Mormon "faith" and how Joseph Smith went from one calamity to another as he conned people over and over again, committed criminal acts against children and had more than a few "enemies" outright killed. This is not a history anything like the sanitized, whitewashed nonsense the LDS Church publishes and it needs to be heard by a lot more people.
Jul 11, 2026
1 hr 29 min



Jul 4, 2026
Jul 4, 2026
1 hr 51 min
This week I welcome Lindsey Hartzel, who is sharing her experience growing up in a family connected heavily with Landmark Worldwide (formerly Landmark Education) and the large group awareness training format of human transformation. This was not a positive or helpful experience for her as a child and young adult and we cover exactly why from her perspective. Landmark comes from Est, which was taken directly from Scientology so there's a lot of compare and contrast in this episode too. Enjoy!
Jul 4, 2026
1 hr 51 min



Jul 1, 2026
Jul 1, 2026
1 hr 23 min
This week I welcome therapist, author and narcissist specialist Dr. Tina Paone to discuss the psychology of narcissism and adjacent topics. She is the author of a recently released book on recovery from narcissistic abuse titled Unbroken: Healing from Narcissistic Abuse and Reclaiming Me. We cover a lot of territory. Enjoy!
Dr. Paone's website: https://drtinapaone.com
Dr. Paone's book: https://www.amazon.com/Unbroken-Healing-Narcissistic-Abuse-Reclaiming-ebook/dp/B0GRPNKDS6?ref_=ast_author_mpb
Jul 1, 2026
1 hr 23 min

Your Host
Hello, my name is Chris Shelton and I am an author, consultant, podcaster, videographer, and former cult member. Welcome to my podcast!
Who is Chris Shelton?
Chris started a YouTube channel which has over 45,000 subscribers, produces the Sensibly Speaking podcast each week and has produced hundreds of videos laying out the scam of Scientology, educating on critical thinking and interviewing former members of Scientology and other destructive cults, as well as a range of therapists, cult exit counselors, educators and media personalities. Chris has also given talks and presentations around the United States about his experiences and has been featured on numerous podcasts and television shows. He was featured on Leah Remini’s Scientology and the Aftermath on A&E and served as a consultant to the show for its first two seasons. He has also written a critical analysis of Scientology and L. Ron Hubbard called Scientology: A to Xenu – An Insider’s Guide to What Scientology is Really All About, available on Amazon in printed form, e-book format and as an audio book.







