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A Little Bit Culty

A Little Bit Culty

Written by: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony “Nippy” Ames
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About this listen

 Think you might be in a cult? Want to know the signs? Join Sarah Edmondson and Anthony “Nippy” Ames to talk about things that are..a little bit culty. Or in their case: a whole bunch of culty. As whistleblowers documented in the critically-acclaimed HBO series “The Vow,” Sarah and Nippy have a lot to say about their experience, and burning questions to ask people with similar stories. They’re here to help people understand, heal from, and avoid abusive situations one little red flag at a time. Listen in as they share their stories, have frank and unscripted conversations with other survivors and cult experts, and do a deep dive on how devotion can turn to dysfunction.© © 2022 A Little Bit Culty Social Sciences
Episodes
  • Love Has Won: Andrew-Ryan Profaci on His Time with Mother God (Part 1)

    Love Has Won: Andrew-Ryan Profaci on His Time with Mother God (Part 1)
    Dec 15 2025
    This episode is sponsored by Betterhelp. In the first of this two-part episode, we finally go inside Love Has Won with someone who was actually there, and who tried to stop it from the inside out. We talk with Andrew-Ryan Profaci about how a lonely, spiritually curious guy dealing with addiction recovery, job loss, and a rabbit hole of conspiracies became “Father God–adjacent” in a group led by Amy Carlson, a woman who believed she was Mother God, destined to usher Earth into a new 5D age. Andrew walks us through the 10-day slide from chatroom seeker to walking into a trashed Colorado house at dawn, facing a drunk, drooling “deity,” and still deciding to stay because of intense, inexplicable experiences he couldn’t ignore. We dig into the daily grind, the alcohol-soaked nights, the Father God proposition, and the mind-bending “quantum hoax” that exposed just how far an insider would go to stay in the group—and with Mother God herself.Be sure to read Andrew-Ryan’s book, The War on Love, and follow him on Instagram, Facebook, X, or TikTok.Trigger warning: This episode contains frank discussion of alcohol addiction.Also…let it be known that:The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty fuckwad.**PRE-ORDER Sarah and Nippy's newest book hereCheck out our amazing sponsorsJoin A Little Bit Culty on PatreonGet poppin’ fresh ALBC SwagSupport the pod and smash this linkCheck out our cult awareness and recovery resourcesWatch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, ScarredCREDITS:Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony AmesProduction Partner: Citizens of SoundCo-Creator: Jess TardyAudio production: Will RetherfordProduction Coordinator: Lesli DinsmoreWriter: Sandra NomotoSocial media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke KeaneTheme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel AsselinSUPPORT OUR SPONSORS:This December, start a new tradition by taking care of you. Our listeners get 10% off at BetterHelp.com/culty.Find gifts so good you'll want to keep them with Quince. Go to Quince.com/culty for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Now available in Canada, too.Don’t let financial opportunity slip through the cracks. Use code CULTY at Monarch.com in your browser for half off your first year.For a limited time, save on the perfect gift by visiting AuraFrames.com to get $35 off Aura’s best-selling Carver Mat frames—named number 1 by Wirecutter—by using promo code CULTY at checkout. This deal is exclusive to listeners and frames sell out fast, so order yours now to get it in time for the holidays! Support the show by mentioning us at checkout. Terms and conditions apply.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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    46 mins
  • Amanda Montell: Cultish and Coded Language, Revisited (Part 2)

    Amanda Montell: Cultish and Coded Language, Revisited (Part 2)
    Dec 11 2025

    Amanda Montell returns for round two, diving into what she's learned since Cultish dropped: Instagram comment wars as tribal battlegrounds, "platforming" as a thought-terminating cliché, and why understanding opposing views could get you canceled.


    We bonded over podcast economics, navigated controversy around Sounds Like a Cult episodes on Waldorf and fertility, discussed which cult she'd have joined (artist-led, obviously), and took a truly unhinged detour into vampire raves, Gen Z slang, and the etymology of "no cap." Chaos, warmth, and peak cult-nerd energy abound.


    Be sure to follow Amanda on Instagram @amanda_montell and the Sounds Like a Cult podcast @soundslikeacultpod. Be sure to listen where you get your podcasts!


    Also…let it be known that:

    The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty fuckwad.


    **PRE-ORDER Sarah and Nippy's newest book here

    Check out our amazing sponsors

    Join A Little Bit Culty on Patreon

    Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag

    Support the pod and smash this link

    Check out our cult awareness and recovery resources

    Watch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, Scarred


    CREDITS:

    Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames

    Production Partner: Citizens of Sound

    Co-Creator: Jess Tardy

    Audio production: Will Retherford

    Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore

    Writer: Sandra Nomoto

    Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane

    Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
    Show more Show less
    36 mins
  • Amanda Montell: Cultish and Coded Language, Revisited (Part 1)

    Amanda Montell: Cultish and Coded Language, Revisited (Part 1)
    Dec 8 2025
    Amanda Montell—author, linguist, and our reigning three-time champion guest—returns in studio to talk about the newly released paperback edition of Cultish, the book that launched a thousand cult-discourse hot takes and made us all think twice about our SoulCycle memberships. We dove into what it's like to write a cult book when you're 27, watch it blow up unexpectedly, and face the onslaught of feedback (good, bad, and "I want to ruin your life"). Amanda opened up about the changes she made for the paperback after years of listening, learning, and hiring her own sensitivity checkers, and why the brainwashing debate is way more nuanced than an X thread can handle. Plus: updates on married life, her forthcoming novel Where To Put Your Tongue (yes, really), and why OneTaste's "get off on any stroke" might be the culty-est thought-terminating cliché we've ever heard.Stay tuned Thursday for part 2, follow Amanda on Instagram @amanda_montell and the Sounds Like a Cult podcast @soundslikeacultpod. Be sure to listen where you get your podcasts!Also…let it be known that:The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty fuckwad.**PRE-ORDER Sarah and Nippy's newest book hereCheck out our amazing sponsorsJoin A Little Bit Culty on PatreonGet poppin’ fresh ALBC SwagSupport the pod and smash this linkCheck out our cult awareness and recovery resourcesWatch Sarah's TED Talk and buy her memoir, ScarredCREDITS: Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony AmesProduction Partner: Citizens of SoundCo-Creator: Jess TardyAudio production: Will RetherfordProduction Coordinator: Lesli DinsmoreWriter: Sandra NomotoSocial media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke KeaneTheme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel AsselinSUPPORT OUR SPONSORS:For a limited time, save on the perfect gift by visiting AuraFrames.com to get $35 off Aura’s best-selling Carver Mat frames—named #1 by Wirecutter—by using promo code CULTY at checkout. This deal is exclusive to listeners and frames sell out fast, so order yours now to get it in time for the holidays! Support the show by mentioning us at checkout! Terms and conditions apply.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
    Show more Show less
    36 mins
All stars
Most Relevant
I loved this episode. It gave strong insight into the experiences both during and after leaving the cults.

excellent!!

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