“Satan masquerades as an angel of light.”

Corinthians 11:14

Some doors open softly. They offer community. A place to belong. A teacher who seems to see something in you. A promise that your life, your art, your spirit, your future could become more than it is. But sometimes the door leads somewhere else entirely. In this episode of Tales from the Truth Seekers, I’m joined by Abigail Kochunas —artist, actress, writer, poet, painter, energy worker, and survivor of a fourteen-year coercive experience connected to Scientology with an acting teacher in Los Angeles. In it, she bravely opens up about what Scientology is really like, how our current mainstream political and spiritual circles mirror the cult dynamics that she found herself victim of, and offers sage advice for anyone living in America today who wants to protect their mind and heart from the insidious nature of ideological possession.

Abigails’s Bio & Links:

Abigail is a multidisciplinary artist, trauma-informed Usui Reiki Master Teacher, and Animal Communicator based in Joshua Tree, CA, with over 25 years of experience as a performing artist on stage and screen. A published poet and visual artist, her work has been featured in galleries and publications throughout Southern California, and she is the creator of Art Alchemy workshops and author of This Awakened Life on Substack. Trained in energy medicine, core wound healing, shamanism, and crystal healing, Abigail brings both professional training and lived experience as a trauma “survivor to thriver” to her healing practice. Her work with humans and their animal companions takes a holistic, multisensory approach, incorporating Reiki, sound, aroma, color, vibration, and handcrafted organic aromatherapy, flower, and gem essences. Rooted in a deep reverence for Mother Earth and informed by Buddhist, Pagan, and Christian traditions, Abigail explores the sacred intersection of creativity, spirituality to fuel the movement of LOVE.

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Natalie’s Bio & Links:

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Etsy

IG - @sidhe.channelled.art

My Story, Part I

My Story, Part II

Tales from the Truth Seekers Podcast

available on Spotify, Apple, & Substack

After walking through the world as somewhat of a cynic for many years, Natalie found herself deeply humbled by a quite sudden and profound state of “non-ego” in 2014. This 48-hour period initiated her into a life-long spiritual journey. While on this path, Natalie has discovered that unique, first-hand, spiritual experience can threaten rigid belief systems of religious, secular, and New Age people alike. Because of this, she is dedicated to empowering people to look withinfor the security they seek and to release complete dependency on blind belief or external systems to guide them. Over the past ten years Natalie has been certified in MindfulSchools, Reiki Level 2, and has graduated from the Spiritual Guidance Mentorship program at Atlantic University. Natalie is also an ordained Avalon Rose Priestess through the Avalon Rose Chapel in Glastonbury, England. Her current advocacy centers around creating educational content to help people extract harmful ideology from truly spiritual and compassionate practices.

In the muggle world, Natalie is an actress, singer, dancer, choreographer, director, and playwright. She holds a B.A. in musical theatre performance, an M.A. in theatre education, was a high school theatre director for seven years, and is passionate about the connection between spirituality, mental health, and the arts, and the powerful healing effects that they can have, especially for disadvantaged youth.

If I was able to go back in time and describe to 2012 Natalie what the next fifteen years were going to look like, both personally and collectively, my chin would have fallen all the way to the floor. You will have a life-alternating spiritual experience, Donald Trump will be president, aliens are real, and the twists and turns your life is about to take might be too much for you to process all in one sitting. Reconnecting with old friends has a way of bringing up these kinds of thoughts. Jimmy T. Martin is one of these old friends, and the paths we’ve both been fated to walk since our fresh-faced, 20-something days have be far from easy. In this episode, Jimmy opens up about losing his beautiful wife to cancer at 29 years old, grappling with losing the will to live, reencountering her during an experience with DMT, finding love again, and all that the hardships have to offer when you look back at your life and realize the true power and meaning of what it is to surrender.

Jimmy’s Bio & Links:

Jimmy T. Martin has been in the business of visibility since 2009. He’s the CEO of LSEO, a performance marketing and AI search agency in Wilkes-Barre, PA, where he helps brands get found and cited by AI. Before that, he pioneered the world’s first cool temperature fitness studio with Brrrn in New York City, and the Brrrn Board workout that broke out during the pandemic. Through his consultancy, Mayamo Jimmy, he’s written and directed for billboards, commercials, streaming TV, and advised award winning brands. He’s appeared on the Today Show, Good Morning America, and has been featured in New York Times and Bloomberg. You can also find his writing on Substack at Soar Loser linked below, where he is building better language for living through loss. He’s a proud father and loving husband, and finished speaking in the 3rd person now.

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Instagram

Natalies Bio & Links:

Substack

Website

Etsy

IG - @sidhe.channelled.art

My Story, Part I

My Story, Part II

Tales from the Truth Seekers Podcast

available on Spotify, Apple, & Substack

After walking through the world as somewhat of a cynic for many years, Natalie found herself deeply humbled by a quite sudden and profound state of “non-ego” in 2014. This 48-hour period initiated her into a life-long spiritual journey. While on this path, Natalie has discovered that unique, first-hand, spiritual experience can threaten rigid belief systems of religious, secular, and New Age people alike. Because of this, she is dedicated to empowering people to look withinfor the security they seek and to release complete dependency on blind belief or external systems to guide them. Over the past ten years Natalie has been certified in MindfulSchools, Reiki Level 2, and has graduated from the Spiritual Guidance Mentorship program at Atlantic University. Natalie is also an ordained Avalon Rose Priestess through the Avalon Rose Chapel in Glastonbury, England. Her current advocacy centers around creating educational content to help people extract harmful ideology from truly spiritual and compassionate practices.

In the muggle world, Natalie is an actress, singer, dancer, choreographer, director, and playwright. She holds a B.A. in musical theatre performance, an M.A. in theatre education, was a high school theatre director for seven years, and is passionate about the connection between spirituality, mental health, and the arts, and the powerful healing effects that they can have, especially for disadvantaged youth.

“Paradox isn’t a confusion. It’s really not a problem to fix. It’s actually how reality works.” This conversations moves like a quiet current through paradox, wisdom, and the unseen ways life reshapes us. Together, Prashanthi and I explore the Tao Te Ching, the meaning of surrender, and how moments of illness, loss, and longing can open the door to deeper understanding. Prashanthi shares how her journey from India to engineering, to a life-altering experience, ultimately gave rise to her published work: Embracing Paradox.

Prashanthi’s bio & links:

Driven by a heart-centered philosophy and her name's meaning—"the highest form of peace"—Prashanthi operates at the unique intersection of fast-paced technology and deep spiritual logic. Rooted in diverse Eastern and Western philosophies, her path evolved through a mystical pull toward Taoism, teaching her that true wisdom thrives within the ordinary. Whether navigating strategic decision-making as a technology professional or embracing her roles as a mother, daughter, and friend, she brings a gentle mindfulness to high-stakes meetings, parenting, and relationships alike, gracefully holding life's contradictions without forcing a resolution.

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Instagram

Amazon

Natalie’s Bio & Links:

Substack

Website

Etsy

IG - @sidhe.channelled.art

My Story, Part I

My Story, Part II

Tales from the Truth Seekers Podcast

available on Spotify, Apple, & Substack

After walking through the world as somewhat of a cynic for many years, Natalie found herself deeply humbled by a quite sudden and profound state of “non-ego” in 2014. This 48-hour period initiated her into a life-long spiritual journey. While on this path, Natalie has discovered that unique, first-hand, spiritual experience can threaten rigid belief systems of religious, secular, and New Age people alike. Because of this, she is dedicated to empowering people to look withinfor the security they seek and to release complete dependency on blind belief or external systems to guide them. Over the past ten years Natalie has been certified in MindfulSchools, Reiki Level 2, and has graduated from the Spiritual Guidance Mentorship program at Atlantic University. Natalie is also an ordained Avalon Rose Priestess through the Avalon Rose Chapel in Glastonbury, England. Her current advocacy centers around creating educational content to help people extract harmful ideology from truly spiritual and compassionate practices.

In the muggle world, Natalie is an actress, singer, dancer, choreographer, director, and playwright. She holds a B.A. in musical theatre performance, an M.A. in theatre education, was a high school theatre director for seven years, and is passionate about the connection between spirituality, mental health, and the arts, and the powerful healing effects that they can have, especially for disadvantaged youth.

I am lucky enough to live in one of the most magical places on earth. The ancient hills of the Blue Ridge Mountains are home to the world famous Monroe Institute, Yogaville which hosts the only shrine in the world dedicated to all major religions, as well as The Department of Perceptual Studies at the University of Virginia, just to name a few. This specific department at UVA, affectionally nicknamed “DOPS,” is a scientific research group devoted to the rigorous evaluation of empirical evidence for extraordinary human experiences and capacities. I am also lucky enough to call Dr. Marieta Pehlivanova of DOPS a friend, and this episode is full of her professional and personal insight on the near-death experience. It isn’t often that you are able to capture this kind of perspective from someone on a topic like this. There has been a long-time division in our culture between the heart and the mind. Yet Marieta has studied numerous NDE cases at the most prestigious university in the state, and her prolific academic knowledge combined with her personal spiritual insight create a balance and unification of this rift that is nothing short of healing.

Marieta’s Bio & Links

Marieta Pehlivanova, Ph.D., is a Research Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences at the University of Virginia’s Division of Perceptual Studies. She earned her Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology with a focus in Cognitive Neuroscience from the University of Pennsylvania. Her research explores near-death experiences, children’s reports of past-life memories, after-death communications, and the personality and cognitive factors associated with psi beliefs and experiences. Before joining UVA, she worked as a biostatistician in health research. She has presented her work nationally on near-death experiences, survival research, and best practices for supporting people who report spiritually transformative experiences.

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LinkedIn

Natalie’s Links:

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Etsy

IG - @sidhe.channelled.art

My Story, Part I

My Story, Part II

Tales from the Truth Seekers Podcast

available on Spotify, Apple, & Substack

Natalie’s Bio:

After walking through the world as somewhat of a cynic for many years, Natalie found herself deeply humbled by a quite sudden and profound state of “non-ego” in 2014. This 48-hour period initiated her into a life-long spiritual journey. While on this path, Natalie has discovered that unique, first-hand, spiritual experience can threaten rigid belief systems of religious, secular, and New Age people alike. Because of this, she is dedicated to empowering people to look withinfor the security they seek and to release complete dependency on blind belief or external systems to guide them. Over the past ten years Natalie has been certified in MindfulSchools, Reiki Level 2, and has graduated from the Spiritual Guidance Mentorship program at Atlantic University. Natalie is also an ordained Avalon Rose Priestess through the Avalon Rose Chapel in Glastonbury, England. Her current advocacy centers around creating educational content to help people extract harmful ideology from truly spiritual and compassionate practices.

In the muggle world, Natalie is an actress, singer, dancer, choreographer, director, and playwright. She holds a B.A. in musical theatre performance, an M.A. in theatre education, was a high school theatre director for seven years, and is passionate about the connection between spirituality, mental health, and the arts, and the powerful healing effects that they can have, especially for disadvantaged youth.

When I was a twenty-something, running around Brooklyn NY, auditioning for commercials with my cat eyes, red lip, and skinny jeans, I never would have guessed that 15 years later, I would be interviewing my old actor friend about his near-death experience, and his full on encounter with God. These were not things we talked about then, or even acknowledged to be real. But so far my life has been nothing but surprises, and I am here for it. Timothy describes his previous self as a lukewarm Christian, who followed his faith in a transactional way. But when he was rushed to the ER last year due to a sudden stroke, his consciousness left this world as the surgeons were performing emergency surgery. What he experienced has changed him forever. When you survive death, you are born again, and as he shares his story, this newness radiates with every word he speaks. It’s the same newness that comes from an infant, or a child, or anyone who has just came from beyond the veil to return with the gift of pure, unconditional, love.

Timothy’s Bio & Links:

Timothy Lofing was born and raised in Montana. He is an independent producer and director working in New York City and across the United States. He has worked in the commercial, film, and television market from the age of 18. His clients cover the commercial, television, film, and streaming markets working with CBS, ABC, Netflix and companies such as Pfizer, Google, Lincoln, Mercedes, L'Ore'al, Ruby Tuesdays, Adidas, Nike, and many more. Timothy was honored to start working with the BBQ Hero Project in 2020. His most recent project is a 4 year documentary film for STILLWATER County that premiered in 2025.

Montana Outlaw Productions

Natalie’s Links:

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IG - @sidhe.channelled.art

My Story, Part I

My Story, Part II

Tales from the Truth Seekers Podcast

available on Spotify, Apple, & Substack

When listening to someone describe what it’s like to die, it doesn’t matter how many times you hear it, you always leave the conversation feeling profoundly affected. The wisdom, love, and humility that permeate each word is undeniable, as some deep and ancient knowing begins to stir at the root of your being. I only knew Evan as an online classmate at Atlantic University. I specifically remembered him because of his natural ability to leave his fellow students feeling incredibly inspired when it was his turn to share in discussion. I was unaware when I reached out to him a few years later for an interview, that I was asking the newly elected president of the International Association for Near-Death Studies to come be on my podcast. Despite his new role and busy schedule, he graciously agreed, and with that was born a truly beautiful episode. This journey we are on that spans dimensions and multiple lifetimes- may we all finally experience a moment of pure rebirth.

Evan’s Bio:

Evan was an entrepreneur who built and sold several successful companies in the automotive aftermarket. He also served as an officer in the United States Airforce Reserve. Following his business career, Evan embarked on a new path of service, returning to university to become a transpersonal psychologist, minister, and spiritual counselor. He is trained in a wide array of modalities, including regression therapy, NLP, and Reiki energy healing. A published author of spiritually uplifting articles, Evan is also dedicated to his community, supporting the Buddhist Shambala Mountain Center and volunteering as a caseworker at the Fish Food Bank, where he counseled and mentored others. He is the president-elect of the International Association for Near-Death Studies (IANDS.org) and has been a board member since 2023.

Evan’s Links:

The International Association for Near-Death studies (IANDS)

Natalie’s Links:

Substack

Website

Etsy

IG - @sidhe.channelled.art

My Story, Part I

My Story, Part II

Tales from the Truth Seekers Podcast

available on Spotify, Apple, & Substack

On September 11th, 2001, Jenna Axelrod experienced true loss. After the towers fell, she and her husband were invited to so many funerals that they couldn’t attend them all and had to pick between them. At the time, Jena was a stand up comedienne and waitress, turned bond broker. Her world couldn’t have been more separate from the spiritual side of life, but perhaps these experiences have a way of finding you when so many of your friends suddenly find themselves out of body. Her story is amazing, beautiful, and a true testament to the notion that the unseen realities that our society appears to ignore, can make themselves known to anyone at any time.

Jena’s Bio:

Jena Axelrod is a comedian and filmmaker whose work blends humor, science, and spirituality. She studied for over two decades with Pari Center co-founder F. David Peat and regularly badgered physicist Basil Hiley about the philosophical implications of quantum theory. She is the director and producer of the Absurdity of Certainty documentary, which explores the origins and limits of the physicalist worldview. Jena works as a consultant for the The Crestone Zen Center, Channel McGilchrist.

Jena’s Links:

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Natalie’s Links:

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My Story, Part I

My Story, Part II

Tales from the Truth Seekers Podcast

available on Spotify, Apple, & Substack

This episode is one of the most powerful I’ve recorded so far. Not many stories are as equally bone chilling as they are beautiful. I was truly touched. Debbie Ison has encountered disembodied energies throughout her life, but it took many years and multiple life experiences for her to arrive where she is now. While Debbie is careful not to claim if she, or anyone else knows whether a perceived possession is a construct of the brain or an external entity, she is doing powerful, alchemical, spiritual healing either way. She is a primary school educator turned spiritual release therapist, and her story gave me reassurance. It validated something deep within me that we all desperately need to be true- that good will always conquer evil, and that authentic love is the most powerful tool of all. Of course this is not always the case on a micro level in the material realm. But on a broad, ontological level, this has to be the most fundamental truth that there is. There are no other options. I hope you enjoy listening to Debbie describe her work as much as I did. Her clients come to her with spirits of the dead, or possibly even demons attached to them. Alternative voices come out of their mouths, sometimes hurling horrible abuse her way. But she is strong and she is armed. What is her most powerful weapon in the face of such horror? The gentle compassion of a school teacher.

Debbie’s Bio:

Debbie Ison is a full-time hypnotherapist who works with clients to overcome a range of issues. Debbie is trained in 13 different therapies, and she also trains therapists in Hypnotherapy, Past Life Regression and Reiki. Throughout her therapeutic journey Debbie has been called to work with clients who wish to explore their spirituality and heal through a transpersonal approach, something which has led Debbie on a spiritual journey of her own. Debbie now works regularly with clients to help them overcome issues that they attribute to past lives and the paranormal, providing energy clearances to properties and working with clients through Spirit Release Therapy to free them from the perceived spirits and entities that are causing them harm. Debbie has recently commenced her PhD studies in this area.

Debbie’s Links:

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My Story, Part I

My Story, Part II

Tales from the Truth Seekers Podcast

available on Spotify, Apple, & Substack

Juliet Trail was introduced to an out-of-body awareness early on in her childhood after experiencing a car crash that severely injured both herself and her mother. In adulthood, Juliet was extensively trained in the spiritual teachings of the Native American, Lakota Sioux tribe. She learned how to safely, and respectfully guide groups of individuals on vision quests. These rights of passage are designed to invoke spiritual experiences by leaving the modern world and completely immersing yourself in nature. Juliet has her own beautiful story to share about the experiences she received on her own quest that are sure to leave you feeling inspired. Her mission? To spread the value of community out into our chaotic modern landscape, and to help heal our crumbling systems with music, song, dance, and most of all, compassion.

Juliet’s Bio:

Juliet Trail, PhD, is an award-winning leader, teacher, author, speaker, & facilitator with 25+ years’ experience across five continents. She is a facilitator of transformation focused on compassion, connection to nature, mindfulness, empowerment, and resilience. Juliet is Founding Director of Courageous Compassion Connection, building a sustainable world for all beings through human awakening, courageous connection and compassionate action. She is the author of Compassion and Coincidence: How Synchronicity Awakens the Heart and Reveals Our Interconnectedness.

Juliet’s Links:

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Natalie’s Links:

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My Story, Part I

My Story, Part II

Tales from the Truth Seekers Podcast

available on Spotify, Apple, & Substack

Ever since Diomira Rose D'Agostino could remember, she always knew there was something more. Throughout childhood she wondered what it was that they were not teaching her in school, and what was inherently missing from her everyday life. This launched her into a lifelong quest to find out, and her story does not disappoint. Diomira has traveled the world, visiting many famous, treasured, ancient sites that predate antiquity, and without knowing a thing about the magic that lives there, she happened to find her holy grail in Glastonbury. This initiation then launched her into the next chapter of her life. She has her fair share of stories from attempting to navigate the shallow, play-along, culture of the New Age community. But inevitably, she began to remember the old ways of living, relating, and healing the land, the earth, and the very real spirits that call Gaia home.

Diomira’s Bio:

Diomira Rose D’Agostino is a teacher of the Earth Mysteries, a soul path mentor and guide, certified flower essence healer, soul astrologer, plant spirit ceremonialist, and metaphysician. After a decade of engaging with the mythic, elemental, and faery inhabitants of different lands and sacred sites around the world, in 2018, Diomira founded New Avalon, a garden and forest sanctuary dedicated to fostering respectful and mutually healing relationships with the ancient spiritual forces of the land where she lives. She is an ordained Healing Minister of Inner Quest Metaphysical Church, where for 6 years she studied the healing and psychic arts, meditation, energy principles, and metaphysical laws of the Universe. She has undergone additional apprenticeships in herbalism, plant spirit healing, Medicine Wheel training, shamanic ceremonial arts and integral space-holding. Diomira is the author of three published books, including the most recent magical memoir: Initiation: My Faery Soul Awakening

Diomira’s Links:

Website

Substack

Book - Initiation: My Faery Soul Awakening

Podcast - The Elemental Whispers

Natalie’s Links:

Substack

Website

Etsy

IG - @sidhe.channelled.art

My Story, Part I

My Story, Part II

Tales from the Truth Seekers Podcast

available on Spotify, Apple, & Substack