American actress Bethany Joy Lenz, who co-hosts the podcast 'Drama Queens' along with her former One Tree Hill co-stars Sophia Bush and Hilarie Burton, had revealed that she was a former member of a cult in one of the podcast's episodes.
In the latest episode of the podcast, Lenz talked about her book and said, "I was in a cult for 10 years. It would be a really valuable experience to write about this process and the 10 years of healing that followed. So, I have a lot to share."
In an interview with the American website Variety, Lenz talked about the cult that she refused to name.
The 42-year-old actress, while keeping her identity concealed, mentioned that her former co-stars from the series had tried to intervene and "rescue" her. Lenz said about that time, "They had been trying to rescue me for a while, which was really lovely, but I was very stubborn. I was committed to what I believed was the best choice I could make."
The famous actress stated that her involvement with the cult began by joining a Bible-oriented group in Los Angeles, which later turned into a system of isolation.
Lenz explained the process, saying, "They have to make you not trust everyone around you, so the only person you can trust becomes the leaders and the people within the group. It created a deep distrust between me and my team on the show. As much as I loved them, there was a fundamental thought that if I was suffering, if I was in pain, I couldn't go to any of these people. So, you feel incredibly alone."
The actress announced that her book, in which she describes the painful process, will be released in the early part of next year.
