Best 2x2s Podcasts (2024)

1
R. Derek Black, Part 1 - Former White Supremacist & Leading a Double Life 57:24

1d ago57:24

57:24

Today our guest is R. Derek Black, former poster child for white supremacy (now turned antiracist advocate) and author of the new memoir The Klansman’s Son. Derek, who came out as trans in this book, walks us through the white supremacist movement, where it stands now, what it was like growing up in a white nationalist family, being close to promin…

1
178 – A Cult Blind To Abuse – Felicity is shunned by Jehovah’s Witnesses 2:44:13

1d ago2:44:13

2:44:13

When Felicity’s father left when she was just eight years old, life took a sudden turn as her mother fell into the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses. Struggling with her own mental and emotional health, her mother is described as a wild animal, hurling objects and abuse at her young daughter. Concerned outsiders could see what was going on at times, but …

1
Ian Rafalko, Part 2 - Son of a YouTube Scientologist Health Guru 1:31:00

8d ago1:31:00

1:31:00

In part two with Ian Rafalko, we go deeper into how he left Scientology, what that meant for his family life, and how his dad's lucrative online presence and supplement company tows the line of multi-level marketing. Ian will talk about the viral TikTok video he posted in which he said he was going to end his own life, why he decided not to, how hi…

1
Ian Rafalko, Part 1 - Former Scientology Auditor 1:01:19

14d ago1:01:19

1:01:19

Today is part one Ian Rafalko, a former scientologist from a prominent scientologist family AND son of a prominent YouTube health guru. We explore how his family joined Scientology, what it was like growing up in a group where children are treated as adult spirits in small bodies, whether Scientology creates little sociopaths, and some of the more …

1
Aliia Roza - Former Russian Secret Agent and Sex Spy 1:25:12

21d ago1:25:12

1:25:12

Subject of the new Neil Strauss podcast "To Die For", Aliia Roza shares about her childhood in Russia, her father who worked for the government, the training school and how she was coerced into joining a secret program for sex operations, the seduction and manipulation techniques she learned, how she was sexually abused in school, how she used thos…

1
177 – Hypocrisy – Greg is shunned by Jehovah’s Witnesses 2:46:37

27d ago2:46:37

2:46:37

Throughout Greg’s life in the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses, he observed the hypocrisy and lack of love in the congregation. People were appointed to positions based on who they knew. They were dealt with judicially, with determinations of their fates being based on who they knew as well. Eventually Greg would have to leave his life as one of Jehovah…

1
Rabia Chaudry - Serial, True Crime, & Countering Violent Extremism 1:10:07

28d ago1:10:07

1:10:07

Lawyer, advocate, podcaster, writer, and the reason you know about Adnan Syed from Serial, Rabia Chaudry, talks about her experience advocating for him, what it was like entering the true crime world, why Adnan is free now, what disappointed her about the coverage of his story, her work in CVE (countering violent extremism), how any group or religi…

1
176 – How Jehovah’s Witnesses Use Gaslighting For Control – Controlling Your Relationships 16:43

1M ago16:43

16:43

Whether it is aligning people against you, telling you that you can’t trust people on the outside, or trying to convince you that you’re crazy, a person that is gaslighting you can wreak havoc on your relationships. When that person isn’t just one person but an entire cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses and it is everyone that you know, you don’t stand a c…

1
Jessica Kahn - Y2K Cult 1:16:00

1M ago1:16:00

1:16:00

Today we chat with Jessica Kahn, former member of a group we're calling "The Narrow Road." She'll tell us about being born into this isolated fundamentalist Christian sect that was originally formed as an addiction treatment program, the leader's connection to the founders of AA, how every part of life was strictly controlled, how they believed tha…

1
175 – An Overseer Found Dead, Secret Memos, CSA Exposed, & A Brave Couple – Meet The 2x2s 2:52:47

1M ago2:52:47

2:52:47

In this episode we meet Kyle and Kari, a brave couple that has been a support (along with others) to their community of religious disaffiliates as they have been awakened to the realities of their group in shocking ways. What group are we talking about? Meet the Two By Twos, at times referred to as “the no name church”, a group that doesn’t necessa…

1
Madi Stroud - Daughter of a Cult Leader: Love Has Won & Amy Carlson 1:13:43

1M ago1:13:43

1:13:43

Today our guest is Madi Stroud. She was featured on the HBO docu series Love Has Won, and is late cult leader Amy Carlson’s daughter - the one whose mummified body was found wrapped in Christmas lights in Colorado. Madi shares what she remembers of her mom as a kid, how it felt after Amy suddenly left Madi and her brothers when she was only 7, and …

1
174 – How Jehovah’s Witnesses Use Gaslighting For Control Part 5 – Patterns, Positivity & Projection 12:41

2M ago12:41

12:41

Gaslighting isn’t just a one time event, it is a pattern expressed over time, and Jehovah’s Witnesses use it with regularity in the cult. Love bombing, brainwashing, projecting what they’re doing onto others, hypocrisy, etc. are all a part of the experience. This is the fifth in a series where I’ll break down the ways that the cult of Jehovah’s Wit…

1
Dr. Inna Kanevsky - Pseudoscience, TikTok Psychology, & Culty Psychologists 1:23:07

2M ago1:23:07

1:23:07

Dr. Inna Kanevsky, psychologist, professor, and debunker of pseudoscience psychology TikToks, discusses the misinformation videos that got her started on the path of debunking, why mental health labels can be helpful but can also lead us to incorrectly self-diagnose and take on labels that do not belong to us, and why it’s a problem when we make a …

1
173 – Looking For Love In All The Wrong Places – Catherine is shunned by Jehovah’s Witnesses 3:07:09

2M ago3:07:09

3:07:09

Catherine wasn’t born into the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses. There was a lot of abuse and bullying that went on in her home, both parental and from her siblings. Her family was lacking love, and one day she thought that she found it when she met a young man. That young man ended up bringing her to Jehovah’s Witnesses, and she took to what she though…

1
Warren Kohl, Part 2 - The Pressures of Preaching in a Secretive Cult 1:07:16

2M ago1:07:16

1:07:16

Today is part two with Warren Kohl, former member and religious leader within the 2x2s (Meagan's secretive childhood group that technically has no name). Today we'll hear how Warren left behind his dreams of medical school to become a "worker" (a minister who stays in people's homes). He'll talk about the pressure to speak with some kind of authori…

1
172 – How Jehovah’s Witnesses Use Gaslighting For Control – Part 4 – “The Truth” Creates Liars 19:19

2M ago19:19

19:19

Lying is integral to gaslighting, pushing the false realities that create confusion and lead to controlling behaviors. “The Truth”, as Jehovah’s Witnesses refer to their religious cult, is full of lies. The organization conveniently bends truth to create narratives to support and excuse their own behavior. The constant pressure to conform creates s…

1
Warren Kohl, Part 1 - Preparing to Preach in a Secretive Cult 48:17

2M ago48:17

48:17

Today's guest is Warren kohl, a fifth generation member and former “worker” (or minister) in the 2x2’s, the group that Meagan grew up in. Warren shares how devout he was to the group at a very young age, having your entire life controlled, and how utter heartbreak in high school led him to celibacy and a deeper commitment to the group. Trust Me is …

1
171 – Child Custody – Waking Up In Court On The Witness Stand – Darrin is shunned 2:09:45

2M ago2:09:45

2:09:45

Waking up to the realities of life in the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses is hard enough to do even in the best of circumstances. But what if you were an active JW, and what if you were fighting another active JW for custody of your child? And what if, in doing so, your eyes were opened to the reality of everything that you were involved in through the…

1
Nadine Macaluso - Recognizing, Escaping, and Healing from Trauma Bonds 1:27:10

2M ago1:27:10

1:27:10

Psychologist, trauma bond expert, and author of Run Like Hell: A Therapist's Guide to Recognizing, Escaping, and Healing from Trauma Bonds, Nadine Macaluso share about her relationship with ex-husband Jordan Belfort (aka The Wolf of Wall Street) and how it led her to become a therapist with a focus on trauma bonds. They also discuss "mind mapping",…

1
170 – How Jehovah’s Witnesses Use Gaslighting For Control – Part 3 – Weaponizing Your Desires 17:30

3M ago17:30

17:30

One hallmark of gaslighting is using what is near and dear to a person as ammunition against them. Jehovah’s Witnesses weaponize their relationships with you, your normal and natural desires, the expression of those desire, and more. They use shame to make you feel like a bad person for daring to want something outside of the approved list of perso…

1
169 – There’s Nothing That Jehovah’s Witnesses Can’t Make Worse – Cherie Is Shunned 3:26:06

3M ago3:26:06

3:26:06

Life happens, both for the better and for the worse. Being a kid is hard, especially as it relates to school. Families fight. Relationships come and go. Individuals have their own internal struggles. There are amazing people in this world that seek to uplift others, and also people that prey on others and hope to take them down. Cherie’s story high…

1
Zoe & Lillian, Part 2 - Troubled Teens, Midwest Academy, and Solitary Confinement 53:07

3M ago53:07

53:07

In part two with Zoe and Lilly, survivors of Midwest Academy, one of the abusive troubled teen programs in the same organization that was spotlighted in the docuseries The Program: Cons, Cults, and Kidnapping, we dig deeper into Lily’s experience. She’ll tell us how she was in solitary confinement for two months, and how her reaction was to rebel i…

1
168 – How Jehovah’s Witnesses Use Gaslighting For Control – Part 2 – The Denial 12:37

3M ago12:37

12:37

One hallmark of gaslighting is the denial of what happened, even in the face of proof. Jehovah’s Witnesses are masters of spin, from the organization itself to the individual members of the cult. When you hold something dear and you call it “The Truth”, you need it to be true no matter the cost. Whether it is the denial of their systematic shunning…

1
Zoe & Lillian, Part 1 - The Program, Ivy Ridge and Casa by the Sea 55:45

3M ago55:45

55:45

Survivors of the infamous WWASP schools, Zoe & Lillian, share about their experiences being forced to join Ivy Ridge, Midwest Academy, and Casa by the Sea; All schools featured in the current Netflix docudrama, The Program: Cons, Cults, and Kidnapping. Lola & Meagan dig into how these programs were marketed to parents, the dramatic ways Zoe & Lilli…

1
167 – Between Two Worlds – Abuse, Trauma; Jess is shunned by Jehovah’s Witnesses 1:30:41

3M ago1:30:41

1:30:41

Jess grew up between two worlds, the one at her father’s house and the one at her mother’s. Both involved abuse and created much trauma for her, and as a child she would have to choose which home to stay at. That often meant staying at one home until she could no longer tolerate it, and then moving to the next. Add in bullying at school, by other f…

1
Roberta Blevins, Part 2 - Leaving The LuLaRoe Family 58:43

3M ago58:43

58:43

In part two with former LuLaRoe seller, Roberta Blevins, they discuss everything about LuLaRoe's founder DeAnne Brady and her family, the mother figure role DeAnne provided in Roberta's life, dealing with toxic positivity, and a thorough list of MLM red flags to look out for. Plus, how Roberta finally realized that she was in a cult and how startin…

1
166 - What They REALLY Said - The 2024 Governing Body Update #2 - An ExJW Reenactment 22:33

3M ago22:33

22:33

On March 15, 2024, Mark Sanderson of the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses gave an update to his cult followers. This comes on the heels of a country like Norway taking the cult to task for their shunning policies, something that most Jehovah's Witnesses likely won't even know happened, and a court case that the JWs lost. As a result, funding w…

1
Roberta Blevins, Part 1 - Inside LuLaRoe 1:14:27

4M ago1:14:27

1:14:27

In part one with former LuLaRoe seller and Life After MLM podcast host, Roberta Blevins, she'll share how she first got involved in MLMS, what LuLaRoe was like, what the deal was with the wet smelly leggings, and what made realize that she did not want to be a part of MLM life anymore. We'll discuss how MLMs make good people act badly, what "huns" …

1
Lola & Meagan - Am I in a Cult (or Just a Group)? 1:05:08

4M ago1:05:08

1:05:08

This week, Lola and Meagan's guests are... Lola and Meagan! They talk about the cult of seeing everything as a cult, discussing how things that might seem a little culty don’t necessarily inherently mean that a group IS a cult. They’ll discuss political polarization, online miscommunication, group dynamics that happen in ALL groups, and the differe…

1
Katelyn Jade Hlavaty, Part 2 - Satanic Ritual Abuse & Becoming a Spokesperson 1:20:14

4M ago1:20:14

1:20:14

In part two of this listener story with Operation Light Force survivor, Katelyn Hlavaty, Lola and Meagan unpack how the leader's bogus healing protocol, which involved digging into old trauma, eventually led to Satanic Ritual Abuse. Katelyn shares how isolation from her family and a period of spontaneous remission from her bout Crohn's disease deep…

1
165 – Looking Back – Cancer, Autism & Jehovah’s Witnesses – Jacob is shunned 1:41:16

4M ago1:41:16

1:41:16

Young Jacob was diagnosed with cancer at just 5 years of age and suddenly found himself in different environments that garnered attention. However, as he would move on throughout his life, Jacob would find himself on the outside looking in, trying to be good enough to qualify to do the things that he saw other Jehovah’s Witnesses doing around him. …

1
Katelyn Jade Hlavaty, Part 1 - Joining Operation Light Force 1:07:32

4M ago1:07:32

1:07:32

In part one of this wild listener story, Katelyn Hlavaty chats with Lola and Meagan about her experience in the evangelical healing ministry group, Operation Light Force. Katelyn shares how she joined the group when she was isolated and struggling with Crohn's disease, and how the group's promises of community, God, and literal physical healing see…

1
164 – How Jehovah’s Witnesses Use Gaslighting For Control – Part 1 – The Setup 15:37

4M ago15:37

15:37

Through gaslighting, one person or one group of people can become the reality check for an individual, whether that person wanted that reality check or not. A person is systematically broken down, detaching from themselves and attaching to the one doing the gaslighting. Cults often employ gaslighting to get oneness of mind, unity, sameness. Jehovah…

1
Sara Gorman - Science, Healthcare, and Why We Ignore Facts 1:25:05

4M ago1:25:05

1:25:05

Sara Gorman, public health expert, CEO & founder of Critica, and author of Denying to the Grave: Why We Ignore the Facts That Will Save Us, joins Lola and Meagan to discuss the importance of the scientific method, why presenting evidence can feel like an attack, common debunked beliefs that persist in American culture, and the role that media plays…

1
163 – What The Hell Did I Just Do? – Justin and Jehovah’s Witnesses 3:19:44

5M ago3:19:44

3:19:44

Getting baptized as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses is a forever contract with a cult. In Justin’s case, that decision to get dunked in a pool of water was made as a young man, a young man that knew he was gay. Because of that, ultimately he would never be able to be what they wanted him to be. He realized that if he were ever to be disfellowshipped fro…

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