Thursday Testimonies

A chat for writers leaving cults & high-control groups

Jun 11, 2026

Thursday Testimonies: a safe place to share what the group never let you say.

This is a weekly chat for people writing their way out of cults, high-control religions, and other groups that owned the words you were allowed to use.

Every Thursday, you can hold the mic 🎤

I'll start each week by sharing a piece of my own. Below that, the microphone is yours. Drop a Substack you've written, a story you've never told anywhere else, or a piece you needed someone else to read.

The soft rules:

One link or one telling per Thursday, so nothing gets buried.
If you drop a piece, lift two. Read and respond to at least two others before you leave. Most of us weren't lifted up where we came from. We do it differently here.
Trauma is welcome. Cruelty, proselytizing, and recruiting are not. Whatever group you left, this isn't a place to bring anyone back into one.

👋 If you're still inside something and reading anonymously, you belong here too.