We watched the documentary "The Curious Case of Natalia Grace" on Discord and were FLOORED by the entire production. From the horrific story of child abuse to the sensationalized, dramatic storytelling, something always felt slightly off and prompted more questions than it ever answered. In this bonus episode we have listener and Discord Member Casey to lead her unique perspective into an incredibly nuanced topic of discussion. Show Notes The Curious Case of Natalia Grace Natalia Grace...

*Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about infertility, adoption and foster care. Please use discretion when listening.* Shanny grew up in a strict Evangelical cult where her entire life as a woman was planned out for her. First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby in the baby carriage, right? But what happens when no one prepares you for the very real possibility that things might not work out the way you want? For Shanny it looked like supporting every newly...

Last month I got to go to Podcast Movement Evolutions in Downtown Los Angeles and record a fun crossover episode with some of my favorite podcasting ladies at Spotify Studios! HUGE THANK YOU to Spotify for the use of the space and your hospitality! And it was so great to hang out with and collaborate on content with Andrea Dunlop and Terra Newell! Our chat got cut short due to LA traffic and bad GPS directions, but we managed to get in some time to chat about the intersectional topics of our...

Trigger Warnings : This episode talks about child abuse, kidnapping and CSA. Please use discretion when listening. When she was just 15, Meg Appelgate was abducted by two strangers in the middle of the night from her home in California. Over the course of the next 6 months Meg would enter a behavioral modification program called Chrysalis in northern Montana where she would spend the next 3 years. These programs go by the names "youth residential treatment centers", "wilderness...

It was just past year that Anne took pause and started digging into her admittedly "weird childhood". After listening to the podcast Nobody Should Believe Me, she started to suspect that she may have been the victim of medical child abuse, what is more commonly known as Munchausen by Proxy. With an unhealed and unwilling mother to answer her questions, Anne dove into everything she could consume to process the trauma she experienced as a young girl. In our chat we get into the triggers and...

Last year I received a heartbreaking email from a mother who had felt she was running out of options; her daughter was stuck in a controlling cult, isolated from friends and family, and she hadn't seen her in years. Over several months I met with Sandy to discuss her story and the history behind how she got here. The more I heard the more I wondered; Was Sandy's daughter a strong, independent spirit? Or was there something more calculated and nefarious at play? Show Notes Connect with Sandy :...

Sean Munger is back to share the story of Glenn W. Turner! Arguably one of the earliest HunBros of all time, with such hits as "Fake it til you Make it!", Koscot Interplanetary and the Dare to Be Great! course scam. In our chat, Sean recounts the life, times and legal troubles of the early MLM Kingpin Glenn W. Turner, a man so obsessed with fame, success, wealth and greed that it lead to his ultimate downfall and felony conviction. Show Notes Connect with Sean : YouTube Sean's Koscot...

Lacey had been out of high demand control for years when she sat down to watch a TV show and was triggered by her past experiences. From her Gideon Roots, and Romanian Orphan Trips to her life as a DINK in Quixtar, Lacey definitely had a pattern of cults and high demand control she couldn't see until it was long in her rearview mirror. In our chat we cover how Quixtar came and went, coaching scams, Costco, the public perception of MLMs and what Amway calls "The Process". Show Notes Small...

Kurtis just wanted to have a Scentsy party to help a friend, and ended up using his party points to join the team. When the annual convention went digital during the pandemic, Kurtis's megahun upline refused to let it get her down, renting a massive house in Gatlinburg, Tennessee and hosting her own event. We also chat about Disney World's upcoming Scentsy attraction, Smellephants on Parade. Show Notes Gatlinburg, Tennessee Justin Darnell Comedy : Gatlinburg Official Smellephants on...

Nineteen years ago Marc and Claire Headley escaped Scientology, the cult they had grown up in, and started their journey to real freedom. In Part 2 of our conversation, we go deeper down the rabbit hole into OSA, Fair Gaming and how Anonymous joined the good fight. Plus how the rage baiting and hate sport of social media advocacy fuels the algorithm, Marc's juicy inside secrets, Car School and of course, Tom Cruise. Show Notes Connect with Marc & Claire - Website | YouTube | Instagram |...

Nineteen years ago Marc and Claire Headley escaped Scientology, the cult they had grown up in, and started their journey to real freedom. In Part 1 of our conversation with special guest host Michelle Carpenter, Marc and Claire share about their lives climbing the bridge, their early advocacy, South Park, how Xenu gets a bad rap and a possible answer to the question that's been asked for 18 years; "Where's Shelly?". Show Notes Connect with Marc & Claire - Website | YouTube | Instagram |...

Gina Pezzullo has a unique perspective when it comes to MLMs and utilizing social media. Back when she first joined in 2001, smart phones, apps and social media didn't exist. In fact, parties were local, in home and came with forms to fill out while you shopped. One single bounced check or declined credit card could wreak havoc on the hostess's entire party. It was a stark contrast to the highly accessible online shopping world today, and it's not surprising to learn that the viral trends of...

While browsing the posts on Bluesky, Michelle stumbled across a post for a short film using #antimlm called The Downline. We decided to watch it on Patreon and after I decided to reach out to the filmmaker, Rachel Weatherly and ask her to come chat about her films The Downline and The Hun, her inspirations for the films, her own MLM experiences and what's next for Poppy the Megahun. Show Notes Connect with Rachel! : Instagram | YouTube | Website The Hun The Downline Eerie, Indiana : S1 E1...

It's Valentine's Day AND Life After MLM's 3rd birthday! So to celebrate, we've got a bonus episode loaded with Romance Scam Horror Stories and Red Flag Education. Today's stories were compiled from Reddit's Scam Subthread, articles on Romance Scams, the FTC and LAMLM listener, Jolie! Have a safe Valentine's Day and don't fall for a romance scammer! Show Notes Reddit Story #1 Reddit Story #2 Georgina's Story The Handsome Soldier Story Alison's Story FTC & Romance Scams Out of MLM The BITE...

Back during the pandemic, I got hooked on a reality show called Love is Blind, I couldn't get enough. But as the seasons progressed, there was a level of concern that turned my watching into more of a fascination than fandom. So when Nick Thompson, star of Season 2, started comparing the show to a cult in the media and describing a level of control I could definitely relate to, I knew we had a lot to talk about. Just in time for Valentine's Day Nick and I discuss in detail the "Cult of...

One of the biggest content requests on my social media has been to collaborate with Hannah Alonzo. So I sent her a message and she was happy to oblige! If you aren't familiar with Hannah (or her cat Zeke!) get ready to fall in love with one of the most compassionate AntiMLM content creators on YouTube. In our conversation we talk about how far AntiMLM has come, Family Vloggers, what it's like to live your life on camera, and what kind of backlash she got when she announced her pregnancy. Show...

Everyone loves an Amway episode, and this chat with Darren Mudd is no exception. As our deep dive into Amway in Season 4 is just getting started, we meet Darren who tells us about being an Ambot in the UK, recruiting at University, and the DTI investigation against Amway. Plus we dip our toes into the conversation about cyrpto and around scamming and scambaiting. Stay tuned at the end for a bit of "Scam Poetry" from Darren! Full video and clips on YouTube! Show Notes Connect with Darren :...

Heather Tobin has been involved with MLM one way or another for the past 33 years. The farther Heather got away from The MLM Complex, the easier it was for her to see connections between the business model and the stress, depression, anxiety, and other issues she was facing. Now, as a mental health advocate she looks back on her time in MLM with a clearer eye and understanding of the systemic ways MLM's prey on not only our physical and financial health, but our mental health as well. Show...

Dr. Amy Saltzman spent over 30 years with a Life Coach who kept her controlled within an intricate web of lies. Once the psychologist read the results of an incredibly thorough mental health evaluation, it was only then that Dr. Amy could see every silvery thread her spider had woven. In the years since, Amy has made it her life's work to help us "Spot a Spider" and see the red flags of undue influence. In our chat we cover our own experiences, what signs to watch out for, and what to do if...

*Content Warning : This episode talks about child abuse, disordered eating and suicide attempts in detail. Please use caution when listening to these sensitive subjects.* Kelli Copter was declared a Suppressive Person at age 6. The Church of Scientology told her parents to handle her or disconnect from her, and so the handling lasted 10 years until at 16 Kelli was kicked out of her house and the disconnection began. In our chat Kelli discusses what that "handling" entailed, the effects of...

Thanks Russ for the inspiration to do my first Best of 2023 clip show! This year was FILLED with some of the best and most amazing chats we've ever had on LAMLM and it was so hard to choose! Thank you to everyone who responded to my call to action and sent me in their favorite episodes, moments, and guests! I am so thankful to every single person who has ever supported the show and this is a fun way for me to say THANK YOU and end 2023 with a BANG, HUN! Happy New Year and we will see you in...

In the liminal space between Christmas and New Year's it's best to just have fun and keep it low stress! So.... remember my Holiday Magic record? It's time to break it out and break it down with our TRIPLE Emerald Princess of Robots, Michelle Carpenter! Plus some sneak peeks for 2024, and what we've got in store for the LAMLM Community!! Show Notes Holiday Magic Record Cover A not so Magical Holiday Remembering Bruce Craig, Esq. Out of MLM The BITE Model LAMLM Book Club MLM Dupes How can you...

It's our Christmas episode!!! Back in our live episode from Dallas, I mentioned The Body Shop at Home being an MLM to the shock of most of the live audience and teased that we had an episode coming up soon... Well this is that episode!!! Jules is joining us all the way from Down Under in Sydney, to talk about the MLMs that plague the Outback and what these scams look like in Australia. Show Notes Nisse How Consumers Fell Out of Love with The Body Shop @ Home Aurelius Acquires The Body...

For 10 years Brandie Hadfield found herself on the hamster wheel of her MLM, trying to make sense of it all. It wasn't until the middle of the Covid-19 Pandemic and seeing the disgusting predatory nature of MLM with her own eyes that she decided to ask more questions and look for the answers herself. In our chat we discuss the seldom recognized unfair advantages in MLM, your MLM cult identity and the healing journey to getting yourself back. Show Notes Connect with Brandie : Instagram |...