Culture & Media
New Publications
The Intersection of Wellness Culture and Undue Influence
The line between modern alternative wellness communities and high-demand, coercive organizations is receiving significant mainstream scrutiny.
Hannah Murray’s Memoir: British actress Hannah Murray (known for her roles in Skins and Game of Thrones) just went public with an intense, deeply personal account of her experience being drawn into a secretive "wellness cult."
The "Quick Fix" Trap: From her breakout role as a teen actor on the cult TV show Skins, to critically acclaimed movies, to the smash hit Game of Thrones, Hannah Murray built a career in Hollywood cracking open her own psychological foundations and pushing her body to its limits. But one day, the line between make-believe and reality disappeared, and she found herself confined to a psych ward, dangerously in love with the leader of a shadowy wellness organization, and believing in magic. How she got there—and how she managed to rebuild her life—is the heart of this gripping, powerful memoir that asks: How far would you go to find enlightenment?
For Hannah, falling down the rabbit hole was deceptively easy. As she struggled with her mental health, she sought help in the form of wellness and self-care. After an eye-opening session with an energy healer, Hannah was introduced to an organization that she was told would bring her further spiritual rewards. Enthralled by its charismatic leader and his teachings of a world filled with magic and meaning, Hannah found herself sucked into a rigorous practice involving high control and financial outlay. And as her sense of reality began to slip, eventually resulting in her hospitalization and diagnosis with bipolar disorder, she realized she had fully ceded control of her life to this mysterious organization. And, she thought, as she reckoned with the Hollywood career that conditioned her to give her body and soul over to others, maybe she’d been doing that her whole life.
Both a cautionary tale and a cry for radical empathy, Hannah’s story of learning to trust herself will resonate with anyone who has struggled to find agency. The Make-Believe is a probing exploration of womanhood and mental health, and a search for the healing that comes when we reclaim our own narratives.
Updates
Ongoing FocusLegislative & Legal
RNS: Eli Lilly sues church leaders for alleged $200 million 'sham' drug program
Pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly and Company filed a lawsuit in federal court alleging that several high-ranking leaders of the Church of God in Christ (COGIC)—a major Pentecostal denomination—operated a "sham" cost-sharing prescription drug program.
Instead of providing millions of church members with access to diabetes medications like Trulicity, the defendants allegedly orchestrated a scheme to pocket more than $200 million in fraudulent rebates between 2020 and 2025.
How the Alleged Scheme WorkedBulk Purchasing: DrugPlace allegedly purchased "enormous quantities" of Trulicity from wholesalers under the guise of distributing them to COGIC’s church members.
Reselling the Drugs: Instead of giving the medications to patients, the defendants allegedly diverted and sold the drugs back to wholesalers for resale.
Filing Sham Rebates: To qualify for pharmaceutical rebates, a drug must actually be dispensed to a patient. The defendants allegedly used third-party intermediaries to submit fraudulent claims to Eli Lilly, falsely representing that the resold medication had been distributed to church members.
Domestic & True CrimeWhile he never cut ties with them, he revealed he had disconnected from his uncle, who later passed away, before they were able to repair their relationship."
Based on the provided CNN report concerning the Broderick siblings and the Tony Alamo apocalyptic Christian cult, here is a summary of the key details:
The Cult and the Leader• Tony Alamo: Born Bernie Lazar Hoffman, Alamo was an apocalyptic cult leader who ran the Tony Alamo Christian Ministries. He used intense psychological manipulation, fear of the "anti-Christ" government, and extreme physical violence to maintain absolute control over his followers.
• The Environment: Followers were subjected to strict control, forced labor, severe physical beatings with paddles/boards, and isolation from the outside world. Alamo heavily preached polygamy and child marriage, taking multiple young girls as "child brides" once they reached puberty.
The Broderick Siblings• Family Involvement: The Broderick family was deeply embedded in the ministry for over two decades. The father, Brian Broderick, was fully brainwashed—vehemently defending Alamo, denying any allegations of abuse, and even labeling his own children "liars" when they spoke out.
• Brainwashing and Abuse: The siblings (including M.B., S.B., A.B., and Nicholas) grew up inside the oppressive compound.◦ The children were taught that leaving the cult meant falling into ultimate sin and damnation.◦ M.B. testified to being sexually molested by Alamo, physically beaten, and forced to help hold her sister (S.B.) down while an adult wife of Alamo beat her with a board.◦ Younger girls in the compound, including members of the Broderick family, were groomed to live in Alamo’s house as his "wives."
The FBI Raid and the Aftermath• Storming the Gates: Following mounting allegations of severe child abuse, sexual exploitation, and labor violations, law enforcement and the FBI raided the cult's compound in Fouke, Arkansas, in September 2008.
• The Intervention: The Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS) stepped in during the raid to take emergency custody of the children—including the Broderick daughters—to remove them from the immediate danger and toxic environment.
• Justice and Recovery: The raid shattered Alamo's absolute control. He was eventually arrested, convicted on multiple counts of taking underage girls across state lines for sex, and sentenced to 175 years in federal prison, where he died in 2017. For the Broderick siblings, the raid was the violent catalyst that finally broke the gates of the cult, beginning a long and difficult path toward deprogramming, escaping the trauma of their childhood, and rebuilding their lives in the outside world.
"...One of the most controversial practices linked to Scientology is "disconnection," where members are encouraged to cut ties with certain people in their lives.But according to Barnes-Ross, many people misunderstand how the policy actually works.
He said the idea that you have "no communication" with your family, with your friends, loved ones, is "not the case".
Instead, he explained that the issue comes down to whether someone is seen as critical of the organization.
"If your relative is critical of the organization, then you're not allowed to speak to that person… you're not allowed to have any relationship or communication whatsoever with that person," he said. "It doesn't matter whether they're a family member, a friend, or a distant colleague or anything.
"Regardless of who they are, if they're critical [of] Scientology, you're not allowed to have any communication with them," he added.
Barnes-Ross said his own parents were never Scientologists and were unhappy about him devoting his life to the church as a teenager."You know, I signed the one billion-year contract dedicating my life to work with this organization. And so my parents weren't overtly against it in terms of they never spoke out publicly or anything, but it was enough of a problem that Scientology was, let's say, coaching me on how to handle that situation. And it came very close to disconnecting from my parents," he revealed.
News, Education, Intervention, Recovery
Intervention101.com to help families and friends understand and effectively respond to the complexity of a loved one's cult involvement.
CultRecovery101.com assists group members and their families make the sometimes difficult transition from coercion to renewed individual choice.
CultNEWS101.com news, links, resources about: cults, cultic groups, abusive relationships, movements, religions, political organizations, and related topics.
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