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.
Episodes
Episodes



Saturday Jul 19, 2025
Speaking of Cults...Escaping Fundamentalist Mormonism ft. Pamela Jones
Saturday Jul 19, 2025
Saturday Jul 19, 2025
Imagine being born into slavery in Mexico as a female in a Mormon polygamist cult that treats all women like chattel, not good for anything but doing what they are told and making babies. That's what my guest, Pamela Jones, escaped from after being raised amongst seriously violent religious extremists (who are still operating their cult in Mexico and are richer than ever). As an adult, she got out with all nine of her children and started a new life in the US. Pamela has an upcoming book about her experience releasing in September but she shared highlights of her story with me in this week's podcast. It's simply unbelievable what some men are willing and able to do when they feel empowered with righteousness. The good news is that Pamela has made an incredible life for herself and her family and there is a happy ending to this. Enjoy!
Pamela's website: https://PamelaSpeaks.live



Saturday Jul 12, 2025
Speaking of Cults...Cult Recovery is a Rocky Road
Saturday Jul 12, 2025
Saturday Jul 12, 2025
This week I am bringing back Jason Horvatic, a former Scientologist who came out publicly about two years ago and had some contentious views and statements to make about me, Scientology and his own views about his experiences. Well, the road to recovery has many pitfalls and dark alleyways that people can go down, but they can also come right back out again. This podcast is a pretty plain English discussion about all of this and where Jason is at now. I hope this will be of interest and it helps. Enjoy!



Saturday Jul 05, 2025
Speaking of Cults...Breaking the Spell of Religion with Dr. Moe
Saturday Jul 05, 2025
Saturday Jul 05, 2025
This week I am welcoming back Dr. Maurice Turmel aka "Dr Moe" to discuss religious trauma and his new book on the subject. We go over a number of key principles underlying religious trauma which I think might help anyone who is overcoming an abusive religious background. Hope this one helps!
Dr. Turmel's website: https://drmoe2000.bandcamp.com



Wednesday Jul 02, 2025
Speaking of Cults...Project Esther - The Modern U.S. Crusade
Wednesday Jul 02, 2025
Wednesday Jul 02, 2025
I'm posting this bonus podcast mid-week since I didn't want to delay getting this information and interview with Dr. Clint Heacock out to you. Project Esther is one part of a series of actions being taken by the White House to repress free speech and demonstrations and curtail our rights. Current events are running at a lightning pace and I want to do my part to help inform you what is actually going on in the US right now.
Links discussed:
Dismantling Doctrine podcast: https://mindshiftpodcast.podbean.com/
Project Esther: https://www.heritage.org/progressivism/report/project-esther-national-strategy-combat-antisemitism
Heritage Foundation: https://www.heritage.org/
MSNBC report on Project Esther: https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/trump-antisemitism-project-esther-heritage-palestinian-rcna207935



Saturday Jun 28, 2025
Speaking of Cults...How to Get Someone Out of a Cult (for real)
Saturday Jun 28, 2025
Saturday Jun 28, 2025
This week I welcome Patrick Ryan, a cult intervention specialist who has been working in the field for 40 years and definitely knows what he's talking about, having helped thousands of people one-on-one to leave destructive cults and abusive situations. In today's show, we go right to the heart of what it takes to engage with and help cult members and it's not any easy walk in the park, yet it's also so simple that it's kind of hard to believe. Enjoy!
Pat's website: https://cultrecovery101.com



Saturday Jun 21, 2025
Speaking of Cults...Don't Let the Pseudoscience Bug Catch You!
Saturday Jun 21, 2025
Saturday Jun 21, 2025
This week I welcome back Dr. Jonathan Stea, author of "Mind the Science" and a real pleasure to talk to about the harms and pitfalls of science denialism, health fads and pseudoscience. In this age of post-truth nonsense all over social media and in our government, this is a vital topic for us to do something about. I hope you'll give it a listen. Enjoy!
Jonathan's website: https://jonathanstea.com



Saturday Jun 14, 2025
Speaking of Cults...Why Cult "Deprogramming" is Bad with Ashlen Hilliard
Saturday Jun 14, 2025
Saturday Jun 14, 2025
This week I welcome back cult intervention specialist Ashlen Hilliard to discuss the perils and vagaries of cult interventions, deprogramming, the background of all this and what we do to help extract people from destructive cults. We go pretty deep into what this is about in just an hour's time. Enjoy!
Ashlen's website: https://PeopleLeaveCults.com



Saturday Jun 07, 2025
Speaking of Cults...Radical Honesty is a Pack of Lies
Saturday Jun 07, 2025
Saturday Jun 07, 2025
This week I welcome Jura Glo, a survivor of a group called Radical Honesty, which takes honesty to an extreme level that is more suited to the needs of predatory personalities than personal transformation and growth. We take a hard look at this group and its ideas and the effects of what they can do. Enjoy!
Jura Glo on Substack: https://juraglo.substack.com/

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.







