Former 'cult' member reveals extreme rules: 'I was brainwashed when I was 14'

Deborah Frances-White, the host of The Guilty Feminist podcast, opened up about her experience being a part of what she describes as a "cult", on this week's episode of HELLO!'s Second Act podcast.

Speaking to host Ateh Jewel, the social media sensation spoke about spending her teenage years in a "religious cult" that believed "Armageddon would come and we would live on a paradise earth."

"I know it sounds absurd to say that I thought I was going to live forever on earth," she says, "but I was brainwashed when I was 14, so I really did think that."

Among many things, Deborah opened up about the extreme rules that were placed on members of the community, including a surprising "punishment" for the people who decided to leave.

"The religion I was in," she began, "the rules were you couldn't have any friends outside, and you would be reported by someone if they saw you socialising with what was called a worldly person."

The comedienne elaborated: "No one can talk to you. They would literally cross the road to avoid. You would be like you were dead."

Deborah opened up about a surprising 'punishment'

Deborah explained: "The punishment for leaving is everyone cutting you off. You were totally alone. When I first left, I was a nanny, and I wouldn't see anyone. The children would go away for the weekend with their parents to the house in the country.

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"I wouldn't speak to anyone. I remember going to get a cup of coffee to hear my own voice, just so that I felt like I was a human being," she continued.

Deborah also spoke about leaving

Deborah defined a cult as "any group that won't let you leave with your dignity intact," but, fortunately, that wasn't the case for her.

"I think the biggest piece of bravery was leaving the cult and leaving everything behind," she said elsewhere in the interview. "Once you've done that, you feel like you can do anything."

© Jed Cullen/Dave Benett/Getty Ima

Opening up about her motivation for leaving, she said: "The thing that made me finally fully leave is me going, you've got one life, you've got to live it now and you want to live forever. This is absolute nonsense. And that revelation kicked me into gear."

Listen to the Second Act podcast now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Podcasts and YouTube.