Blogs About All Things Cultish And Coercive Control

CONTENT WARNING: THIS ARTICLE DISCUSSES SEXUAL ASSAULT. Seek support if this blog causes distress. In April 2026, an investigation by CNN exposed what’s being described as a global online “rape academy”— digital communities where men share tactics, encouragement, and footage related to the drugging and assault of women, often their own partners. The scale is confronting, with some platforms drawing millions of views and entire forums dedicated to targeting women who are

I wish we could normalise something very simple: Acknowledging what it actually means to be human. Because somewhere along the way, we’ve taken core human experiences—things like strength, freedom, capability, emotional depth, purpose—and divided them into “masculine” and “feminine” traits. And once you really look at that move, it doesn’t make sense. It creates confusion at best, and at worst, it becomes a tool for control. Let’s start with the basics.

We tend to treat privacy, secrecy, and transparency as if they sit on the same spectrum. As if more transparency is always good, and anything hidden must be suspect. But these concepts are not interchangeable. And in coercive cults and high-control groups, the confusion between them is not accidental—it’s functional.

Any spiritual group that causes someone to fear for their safety—physically, mentally, or emotionally—cannot possibly be healthy. That might sound obvious at first, but in high control environments, what feels obvious from the outside becomes deeply confusing from within. In conversations about coercive control, we often compare high control groups to unhealthy intimate relationships. The parallels are not just helpful—they’re essential for understanding what’s really happ

I turned to ChatGBT which we all know can make mistakes but it seemed like a better option than trying to work it all out by myself. The advice I received broke down the options and highlighted key decision-making criteria—function, price, and supporting evidence. Chat GBT flagged one model as “suspect” because it relied on self-reported customer feedback rather than third-party data. It also noted that this model was on the cheaper end of the spectrum, that is $299.

How gender stereotypes in the manosphere and high-control groups impact mental health. A trauma-informed look at control, identity, and coercive dynamics.

You thought leaving would bring relief. More freedom. More space to breathe. Maybe even a sense of peace. Instead… there’s guilt. A constant, nagging, heavy feeling that you’ve done something wrong — even if you can’t logically explain why. If this is you, you’re not broken. And you’re definitely not alone. What you’re feeling makes sense when we understand how high-control or fear-based religious environments shape the brain, the nervous system, and your sense of self. L

When faith becomes fuel for domination, and how to reclaim it from the jaws of extremism In the fairy tale of Little Red Riding Hood, the...

Is Creeping into Australian What Does Freedom Mean Inside and Outside a Cult?Politics PART 2 OF 4 In my last blog , I explored how...

From ISIS to Christian nationalists to hardline Israeli settlers, extremist movements across the three Abrahamic faiths share something disturbingly familiar: A belief that they alone are chosen by God, and that this divine status grants them the right—sometimes even the duty—to dominate others. This isn’t just religious conviction. It’s totalistic thinking, weaponised. And when you peel back the sacred vocabulary, what’s left looks an awful lot like a cult. The Core Claim: “

Under the guise of humility and accountability, authoritarian religious groups have long used forced confession and public shaming to instil fear, monitor loyalty, and condition obedience. Far from creating “safe spaces for truth,” these rituals become highly effective tools for domination—dressed up as righteousness.

In truth, what cults call freedom is just a carefully rebranded system of its own—with its own hierarchies, unspoken rules, and consequences for disobedience. You’re not escaping control; you’re trading one structure for another. Only this new one doesn’t come with legal protections, social safety nets, or the option to question authority without punishment. It’s not freedom from the system—it’s just entry into a new one, cloaked in spiritual language and enforced through emo

When people see my cult ranking system, they sometimes assume it’s a trauma scale. It’s not. My rubric doesn’t measure the emotional pain a group causes—though many do cause immense suffering. Instead, it measures coercive control: the tactics groups use to limit a person’s agency, autonomy, and freedom.

The recent Victorian Inquiry into Cults and Fringe Groups made an important distinction: the state has no interest in policing beliefs. It is behaviours—particularly coercive, deceptive, and controlling behaviours—that are the concern. Still, the grey area where faith transitions into manipulation is where many people get trapped. Understanding how spirituality can be used both to heal and to harm is a critical step forward. This grey area is often where spiritual abuse in cu

Quote from Daring Greatly Shame is one of the most powerful and painful human emotions. It isolates. It silences. And when weaponised—as...

Explore the chilling parallels between onions, the Borg, and Cults and Coercive Control. Uncover how Cults and Coercive Control threaten freedom.

Explore why spiritual spaces need the same standards as workplaces and homes for a truly healthy community. Join the healthy community conversation.

This parliamentary inquiry into coercive control in religious groups, follows years of advocacy by victim-survivors and researchers, and will have a particular focus on recruitment and retention. At the heart of the investigation lies the troubling reality that not all spiritual communities are safe havens; some are meticulously orchestrated systems of psychological domination and oppressive manipulation that masquerades as faith.

Explore the intriguing history of Christianity in this blog post. Discover its early roots & debates around whether it was a cult religion.

Delve into the dangers of coercive organisations beyond the surface. Learn to spot the signs and protect yourself from harmful manipulation.