Ep.80 – Bully Backlash & Tinderbox Truths: Speaking Up When It Matters Most (Solo Episode)

Welcome to a brand new chapter in the ‘cult’ure series. We'll be moving away from the wellness world and onto broader culture war topics in the coming weeks. To kick things off, Candice is showing up solo. Opening with an anecdote about an awkward interpersonal interaction from a few weeks ago, she then continues in the vein of storytelling, pulling from the pages of her unpublished memoir. Through a series of intimate flashbacks, she...

Ep.79 – The Flying Monkey ‘High Road’ & Sugar-Coated Shame | DD #52 | Candice & Tracy

Beginning next week, we'll be shifting the conversation here on the main feed away from wellness 'cult'ure convos. But first, back in early February, Candice invited Tracy Stamper to record a last-minute Deconstructing Dogma release for Patreon, and it soon after became one of this pod's most downloaded bonus episodes to date. Flying monkey is a term popularized in cult recovery spaces.  Borrowed from the storyline of the Wizard of Oz, it...

DD#58 – Beyond The Org: Servant Leadership & No More Bangs! | Aimee Van Ausdall – Part 2 of 2

"You saved my life... don't give anybody that power. Anybody who lets you say that without correcting you, that's highly problematic." - Aimee Van Ausdall Welcome to Part 2 with Aimee Van Ausdall. If you missed DD#57, you're definitely gonna want to start there. dd #58 - Beyond The Org: Servant Leadership & No More Bangs! | Aimee Van Ausdall - Part 2 In this second half, we pick up right where we left off: For a hot-minute, Aimee became an...

Ep.78 – P.S. Paper Tigers, Embodied Activism, Spiritual Gaslighting, & A Whistleblower ‘Reality’ Check | Special Guests

Welcome to another Patreon Sampler. Over a dozen conversations have dropped while Candice has been on break from the main feed (that's here), and there are currently 60+ ‘cult’ure series related bonus episodes now streaming over on Patreon. Episode #78 features some of the best moments from recent releases. On activism, diet 'cult'ure, & self-care >> Aimee Van Ausdall shares about her very-public exit from ‘the Org’, how she's...

DD#57 – Leaving Loudly: Bullies, Paper Tigers, & A Size-Stigma Reality Check | Aimee Van Ausdall – Part 1 of 2

"It is not, and it has never been disloyal to question things." - Aimee Van Ausdall Please help me welcome Aimee Van Ausdall to the pod! A few weeks ago, Aimee and I sat down for a candid, heart-hitting conversation; and this week, I'm releasing the first half. In Part 1, Aimee shares what motivated her to separate from 'the Org' in a very public way. We talk social justice. And she adds to our ongoing diet 'cult'ure convo. dd #57 - Leaving...

STC | The Bully Pulpit: A Whistleblower Reality Check + Naomi Klein’s ‘Mirror World’

I'm back with another episode of Subject To Change. And this week, I'm riffing on some recent ah-has I've had around what it really means to blow the whistle, stand up to bullies, and take on psychosocial systems that reward silence and misinformation. March 14, 2024 - The Bully Pulpit: A Whistleblower Reality Check + Naomi Klein's 'Mirror World'  CW: This episode includes reference to bullying, epigenetic trauma, and politics. Here's where I...

DD#54 – Turning The Tables: Money, Meaningful Work, & A New Value Paradigm – Monica Welty interviews Candice

Monica Welty steps in as our guest host in this one-of-a-kind episode of Deconstructing Dogma where Candice is the one in the hot seat - for a discussion about money! 💸🔥 Earlier this week, friend and regular contributor to the pod, Monica Welty, asked me to sit down for a discussion about money, meaningful work, and energy exchange when it comes to relational (versus commercial) value. And she shares what's been weighing on her heart &...

DD#53 – Surviving Anti-Fat Bias & Discovering Intuitive Wellness w/ Dr. Melissa Durfey

"We're all supposed to love ourselves. But where is that supposed to come from when our entire lives we've been told that our bodies are wrong?" - Dr. Melissa Durfey This week, I'm delighted to be circling back to the topic of diet 'cult'ure with long-time friend and special guest, Dr. Melissa Durfey. Melissa & I met back in 2017 - in a business networking group that might've also been a little bit culty. 🤷‍♀️ I ask you, where is it...

STC | Spiritual Capitalism: The Trouble w/ Turning Meaning Into Money

It's been one helluva week. Despite how I've been feeling (the tenderhearted impulse to cut-and-run) yesterday I recorded another unscripted solo episode. In the first few minutes, I share why it is that I/we keep on keepin' on. And I speak to the responsibility that we all share when it comes to safeguarding this work & our shared spaces of cult recovery. 0:00 - Update & important message to all patrons of the pod. 7:45 - Why it's so...

Ep.77 – Spiritual & Religious Abuse: Raising Awareness & Supporting Black Survivors | Nikki G 

January is Spiritual Abuse Awareness Month, and this week Candice welcomes a very special guest. Nikki G is a Certified Trauma Recovery Coach, co-host of the Surviving The Black Church podcast, and a vocal advocate for spiritual and religious abuse survivors. Nikki shares briefly about her personal history growing up in a narcissistic family system, time spent in five different cults, and her personal path of healing. She speaks about the...