The Living Truth Podcast - Freedom From Unwanted Sexual Behavior, Hope & Healing For the Betrayed

Fearless, Free, and Uncontrollable: What Healthy Actually Looks Like — and How to Know When It's Missing with Sarah McDugal

You didn't go into your marriage looking for this conversation. But if you're here, something brought you. Maybe it's a feeling you can't quite name. Maybe it's a pattern you've been explaining away. Maybe you already know — and you just need someone to say it clearly.

 

In this episode, Kristin sits down with Sarah McDugal — clarity coach, founder of Freedom Navigator and Wilderness to Wild, and a woman who has lived this story herself — to talk about what healthy actually looks like in a marriage, and how to recognize when what you're living in falls short of that.

 

Sarah and Kristin cover:

• The three markers of a healthy relationship — being fearless, free, and uncontrollable — and what it means when those are missing
• A clear, workable definition of abuse that avoids both over-defining and under-defining it
• Why "is it bad enough?" is the wrong question — and what to ask instead
• How entrenched patterns of behavior become visible when you zoom out from the individual moments
• What it looks like to move from survival mode toward a more grounded, strategic approach
• A word for the men listening — why doing your own work (not controlling her response) is the only thing that transforms a marriage

This episode is part one of a two-part conversation. Part two covers navigating family court when reconciliation is no longer possible.

 

If you're a pastor, counselor, coach, or people helper: Sarah also has a provider toolkit with resources for the gap no one talks about — what to do when reconciliation is off the table. Link in the show notes.

 

Take care of your nervous system as you listen. This is heavy. Walking while you listen is a good idea.

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Sarah McDugal Resources:

• 🔗 Freedom Navigator / Wilderness to Wild
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• 🔗 Exposing the Playbook eBook to discover:
  • • The three biggest myths that can sabotage your case before it even starts.
    • The 3-step strategy to anticipate their next move before they even make it.
    • The exact tactics abusers use to manipulate the system—and how to fight back.
    • Insider tips to protect your sanity and self-care while navigating family court.
• 🔗 High-Conflict Court Case Risk Index
• 🔗 Emotional Armor for Court and Co-parenting
• 🔗 Provider/Helper Toolkit — for pastors, coaches, and clinicians working with women when reconciliation is no longer possible
• 🔗 Co-Parent Behavior Profile Wizard
• 🔗 Free 15-min case consult for any protective parent - Click on services, then scroll down to book your call
• 🔗 Red Flags Videos

 

 

Learn more about our programs: Living-truthLiving Truth, Women in the Battle, Men in the Battle | sex addiction

 

The Living Truth Podcast: Conversations that shed light on the deeper issues that unlock healing from porn addiction, sex addiction, and sexual betrayal. #LivingTruthPodcast #ChristianRecovery #FaithAndHealing #AddictionRecovery #MenInTheBattle #WomenInTheBattle #LivingTruth

 

Sacred Attachment with Michael Cusick

What if your relationship with God doesn’t have to feel like a performance review? In this rich conversation, Michael Cary sits down with author and counselor Michael John Cusick — author of Surfing for God and his newest book Sacred Attachment — to explore one of the most liberating ideas in spiritual life: that your connection to God is unbreakable, and you don’t have to earn it.

We explore:

• What “sacred attachment” actually means and why it changes everything about how we relate to God

• How attachment theory (seen, soothed, safe, secure) shapes not just our human relationships but our relationship with God

• Why “trust and obey” and “know more, do better” Christianity leaves so many of us exhausted and stuck

• The root connection between early attachment wounds and addiction

• Michael Cusick’s powerful “Five W’s” framework: wretchedness, weakness, woundedness, warfare, and wiring

• The “delta” — the gap between what we know to be true (no condemnation!) and what we actually feel — and why information alone doesn’t close it

• What freedom actually is: not the absence of sin, but the presence of your deepest desire

• Why transformation doesn’t happen through information — and what actually moves the needle

You’ll walk away with:

A fresh, grace-soaked understanding of who God is toward you — even on your worst days. Whether you’re in recovery or just weary from trying harder, this episode will help you exhale and come home. Sacred Attachment is not just for people in addiction recovery — it’s for anyone who has ever felt like they’re failing at the Christian life.

You can find more resources from Michael Cusick at:

https://restoringthesoul.com

https://michaeljohncusick.com

 

Learn more about our programs: https://living-truth.org

 

The Living Truth Podcast; Conversations that shed light on the deeper issues that unlock healing from porn addiction, sex addiction, and sexual betrayal.

#LivingTruthPodcast #ChristianRecovery #FaithAndHealing #AddictionRecovery #MenInTheBattle #WomenInTheBattle #LivingTruth

What to Do If He Relapses: Creating a Relapse Safety Plan for Clarity and Stability with Lyschel Burkett

What would you do if a relapse happened? For many partners walking through betrayal, that question feels overwhelming—or even terrifying. But avoiding it doesn’t create safety. Preparation does.

 

In this episode of The Living Truth Podcast, Kristin sits down with betrayal trauma coach Lachelle Burkett to talk about how creating a relapse safety plan can move you from panic to clarity—so you’re not left scrambling in the moment.

 

You’ll learn:

• Why a relapse safety plan actually reduces anxiety (instead of increasing it)
• The difference between a “slip” and a “relapse”—and why it matters
• How to make decisions ahead of time so you can trust yourself in crisis
• The 6 key areas every plan should include (emotional, physical, financial, relational, spiritual, and more)
• How this process restores your God-given agency, wisdom, and stability

This conversation is not about expecting the worst, it’s about equipping you with calm, grounded clarity if the unexpected happens.

 

Because even in the midst of betrayal…you still have choices. You still have a voice. And you are not without support. If you’ve ever felt afraid of “what if,” this episode will help you take a steady, empowered step forward.

Click Here for a free PDF of Lyschel's Relapse Safety Plan

 

Learn more about our programs: https://living-truth.org

The Living Truth Podcast; Conversations that shed light on the deeper issues that unlock healing from porn addiction, sex addiction, and sexual betrayal.

#LivingTruthPodcast #ChristianRecovery #FaithAndHealing #AddictionRecovery #MenInTheBattle #WomenInTheBattle #LivingTruth

Growing Up Emotionally: Why Sexual Sobriety is Not Enough

If the behavior has stopped… why does the relationship still feel disconnected, fragile, or stuck? In this episode of The Living Truth Podcast, Kristin Cary and Michael Cary explore the often-overlooked gap between sexual sobriety and emotional maturity—and why stopping the behavior is not the same as rebuilding trust, safety, and connection.

You’ll gain clarity on:

• Why sobriety alone doesn’t restore trust or relational safety
• What emotional immaturity can look like in everyday interactions
• How unresolved wounds and “younger parts” continue to shape adult patterns
• The difference between defensiveness, shutdown, and true emotional growth
• Why betrayed partners need safety and stabilization first—not pressure to “move on” or “work on themselves”
• How couples can begin moving toward genuine intimacy, not just coexistence

This conversation is especially relevant for:

• Women who feel confused or discouraged that things still don’t feel “better” after sobriety
• Men who have stopped unwanted behaviors but sense there is still more growth needed
• Couples who long for deeper connection but find themselves repeating the same patterns

Sobriety may remove destructive behaviors—

but emotional maturity is what allows a relationship to be rebuilt.

Growth in this area takes time, humility, and a willingness to stay present in the process.

There is no shame in feeling stuck.

There is an invitation into something deeper.

 

The Living Truth Podcast; Conversations that shed light on the deeper issues that unlock healing from porn addiction, sex addiction, and sexual betrayal.

 

#LivingTruthPodcast #ChristianRecovery #FaithAndHealing #AddictionRecovery #MenInTheBattle #WomenInTheBattle #LivingTruth #SurrenderedSexuality #JulieSlattery #AuthenticIntimacy #ChristianHealing #BetrayalTrauma #SexualIntegrity #CovenantLove #FaithAndSexuality #TraumaInformedFaith #IdentityInChrist #ChristianWomen #MenInRecovery

Autonomy & Faith: Reclaiming Your Voice Without Rebellion | Part 2 with Anna Seiple

What happens when blind, unquestioning obedience is expected — and silence is spiritualized? How does a lack of healthy developmental autonomy impact marriages, families, churches, and women navigating betrayal?

 

Drawing from developmental psychology and research on spiritual trauma, Kristin and licensed counselor AC Seiple unpack:

 

• How shame forms when autonomy is not nurtured in childhood
• How spiritual systems can unintentionally cause harm when power is misused
• Sexual autonomy inside marriage after betrayal
• The cost of fearing relational rupture when we use our voice in marriage, ministry, and faith communities
• How humility and healing can restore autonomy in Christ

 

This conversation is especially meaningful for women navigating betrayal trauma, pastor’s wives, and anyone wrestling with how to exercise their God-given voice without labeling themselves as "rebellious."

 

Autonomy is not the enemy of faith.

What if it is actually one of the ways we love God — and others — most fully?

 

This episode explores autonomy, shame, spiritual trauma, and sexual betrayal recovery through a trauma-informed Christian lens.

 

🔗 Connect with Anna Christine Seiple: https://www.acseiple.com/

 

📖 Learn more about our programs: https://living-truth.org

 

The Living Truth Podcast; Conversations that shed light on the deeper issues that unlock healing from porn addiction, sex addiction, and sexual betrayal.

 

#LivingTruthPodcast #ChristianRecovery #FaithAndHealing #AddictionRecovery #MenInTheBattle #WomenInTheBattle #LivingTruth #ChristianHealing #BetrayalTraumaRecovery #SpiritualTrauma #FaithAndAutonomy #WomenInMinistry #PastorsWife #SexualBetrayalRecovery #TraumaInformedFaith #HealingInChrist #ChristianCounseling #EmbodiedFaith