From Devotion to Deconstruction: Laci Bean’s Journey Out (Part 1)

A Little Bit Culty

Sarah Edmondson & Anthony “Nippy” Ames

True Crime, Society & Culture, Education

4.6 • 2.7K Ratings

🗓️ 21 July 2025

⏱️ 44 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

This week on A Little Bit Culty, we’re getting holy uncomfortable.

Our guest is Laci Bean, host of the podcast Deadly Faith, for the first of a two-part conversation about her time in a cult-like Christian ministry that pulled her in as a teenager and tried to own her soul.

From ages sixteen to nineteen, Laci lived under strict rules that dictated what she could listen to, who she could talk to, and even how she thought about her family. The group promised love and belonging but delivered fear, isolation, and spiritual manipulation, all under the guise of faith.

We talk about the emotional hooks that pulled her in, the control tactics that kept her there, and the unexpected kindness that helped her break free. Laci doesn’t hold back as she reflects on what it meant to walk away from her so-called spiritual family—and how leaving God didn’t mean leaving truth.

This one’s for anyone who’s ever felt trapped by a belief system that promised love but delivered control.

Also… let it be known that:

The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty fuckwad.

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CREDITS:

Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames

Production Partner: Amphibian.Media

Co-Creator: Jess Tardy

Associate producers: Amanda Zaremba and Matt Stroud of Amphibian.Media

Audio production: Red Caiman Studios

Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin

Transcript

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0:00.0	This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be considered legal, medical,
0:03.9	or mental health advice. The views and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the
0:07.9	official policy or position of the podcast and are not intended to malign any religion group,
0:12.1	club, organization, business, individual, anyone, or anything.
0:25.8	I know. I'm Sarah Edmondson.
0:27.6	And I'm Anthony Nippy Ames.
0:30.3	And this is A Little Bit Calty.
0:31.8	Cults are commonplace now.
0:34.2	From fandums to fads, we're examining them all.
0:38.9	We look at what happens when things that seem like a great thing at first go bad. Every week we chat with survivors, experts, and whistleblowers for real culty stories
0:43.3	told directly by the people who lived through them, because we want you to learn a few
0:47.3	things that we've had to learn the hard way.
0:50.0	For example, if you think you're too smart to get sucked into something culty, you might
0:53.8	be prime recruitment material, and who knows, you could already be in a cult.
0:58.3	If you're not aware of your programming, you're probably being programmed.
1:01.6	So keep listening to find out.
1:03.3	We'll talk about all sorts of topics on the show, but be aware.
1:06.8	This podcast might contain stories that could be alarming to some of our listeners.
1:10.6	So please check our show notes for more detailed descriptions and take care of yourself.
1:15.2	Subscribe to our Patreon for Thursday bonus episodes, Q&A, and all sorts of exclusive content.
1:19.8	That's patreon.com slash A Little Bit Culte.
1:22.7	Welcome to Season 7 of A Little Bit Calti.
	...

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