In this powerful episode of Awakening Conversations, Kate and Amanda explore a topic that is both confronting and essential in today’s awakening world: cults, guru culture, and the manipulation of spiritual seekers. Drawing on real-life stories from the Bewitched podcast series and the NXIVM cult exposé, they unpack how even highly intelligent, trauma-informed, spiritually gifted women can find themselves entangled in coercive group dynamics. They explore the tactics used by modern-day cult leaders such as love bombing, public shaming, isolation, information control, and how these behaviors often mirror broader societal systems that thrive on fear, disempowerment, and division. More than just a breakdown of cult behavior, this episode is a deep inquiry into how we give our power away, why we’re so susceptible during spiritual awakenings, and how to reclaim sovereignty by turning inward. You’ll learn about the BITE model, how societal structures echo cult tactics, and how healing your inner child and trusting your intuition is the antidote to manipulation. This episode is for anyone who has ever doubted their intuition, questioned a leader, or wondered if they were “the only one” feeling off. It’s also a vital conversation about discernment, collective healing, and the radical act of reclaiming your emotional energy. Takeaways: Cults aren’t always obvious. They often show up in coaching and spiritual spaces that appear empowering on the surface, yet subtly manipulate through control and coercion. Spiritual manipulation often looks like empowerment, using promises of growth or success to draw people in while leveraging fear, shame, and power dynamics to maintain control. Society reflects cult tactics through institutions like media, education, and government, where obedience, conformity, and emotional manipulation are used to suppress questioning. The BITE Model (Behavior, Information, Thought, Emotional control) is a powerful lens for recognizing cult dynamics and can also help us identify subtle control patterns in daily life. Spiritual awakenings create vulnerability, as the desire to seek truth can blur our boundaries and open us to giving away our power to others who claim to “know better.” ‘Us vs. Them’ thinking is a red flag. When dissent is silenced, questioning is punished, or outsiders are vilified, it’s a sign of unhealthy control, whether in a group or online. Unhealed childhood wounds make us more susceptible to manipulation, as cult leaders often prey on our unresolved pain to create dependency and loyalty. We’re conditioned to look outside ourselves. From school to media, society trains us to seek approval and authority externally rather than trust our inner knowing. Our emotional energy is the real currency. When we react in fear, outrage, or shame, we feed manipulative systems. Awareness and emotional self-mastery are the antidotes. Love, awareness, and real connection are the way out. Healing, inner work, honest conversations, and remembering our shared humanity help us reclaim sovereignty and dissolve control.