There was no commune. No matching robes or group chants. A charismatic leader? Yes. But no room full of followers. This is a story about a cult of one - a lesser-known, yet perhaps more common, type of cult.
When Alex first met her college advisor, she thought she'd found a mentor-someone brilliant, charismatic, and seemingly invested in her success. But behind the charm lay something much darker. Slowly, methodically, he pushed boundaries under the guise of guidance and concern-first emotionally, then physically-until she was isolated from friends and family, no longer trusting her own judgment.
In today's episode, we explore how one-on-one cults operate using the same tactics as larger cults-love-bombing, coercion, and manipulation-but in the intimate, hidden space between just two people.
This is a chilling tale of how a trusted authority figure became a master manipulator, pulling the strings until Alex's world was no longer her own. It's a stark reminder that sometimes the most dangerous cult leader isn't the one standing on a stage-but the one sitting across from you, offering a warm smile and a seemingly harmless invitation to talk.
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