Episode 32

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Published on:

7th Sep 2025

Escaping the Cult, Reclaiming the Self

This powerful episode is a full-body exhale for every woman who's been told to "just move on" while silently unraveling inside. Martha shares her harrowing journey from growing up in a religious cult to confronting the trauma stored in her body — and what it really takes to heal.

✨ We talk nervous system regulation, inner child work, vulnerability as a superpower, and the raw truth about choosing healing even when it's hard.

  • Escaping a religious cult at 26
  • The myth of “I’m finally free”
  • How trauma shows up in your physical body
  • Why healing is a forever journey
  • Doing it scared — and doing it anyway
  • Tools that helped Martha disrupt survival mode
  • What it means to be a battle angel in the world of trauma recovery


🎙️ What We Talk About:

  • What most people don’t understand about trauma
  • Somatic symptoms of unresolved pain
  • The trauma response we mistake for personality
  • Why generational trauma doesn’t stop unless you stop it
  • The healing power of faith, energy, and intuition
  • Moving from “I survived” to “I reclaimed my life”

🔑 Key Takeaways:

“You are not your trauma, but healing is a choice only you can make.”
“There’s no pill for what trauma does to the soul.”
“Your nervous system doesn’t know the difference between big-T or little-T trauma.”
“We cannot thrive while dragging our pain behind us.”


🙌 Why This Episode Matters:

This is not just another healing story—it’s a mirror for every woman who buried her pain under performance, religion, silence, or shame. Martha doesn’t just talk about survival. She embodies what it means to disrupt it.


If you’ve ever questioned whether your trauma was “bad enough” to warrant healing, this episode will shake you.


💬 Connect with Martha:

🌐 www.trauma-x.org

📱 Instagram, Facebook, TikTok: @marthagloriacari


🔗 Resources & Links:


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Show artwork for Survival Mode Disrupted with Leticia R Francis

About the Podcast

Survival Mode Disrupted with Leticia R Francis
Disrupted Unapologetic Conversations about Survival Mode
Survival Mode Disrupted is not just a podcast. It's a rebellion.

A raw, unfiltered space where we finally stop pretending we're fine and start telling the truth—the truth about the trauma we've carried, the identities they had to wear to survive, and the radical decisions we made to break free.

Because here's the deal: survival mode isn’t just a season. It’s a damn identity. One that so many were forced to adopt just to get through life, to stay safe, to stay needed, to stay sane. But eventually, it starts costing you more than it protects. Your peace. Your purpose. Your power.

This podcast is for the disruptors—the people who were told to stay small, stay silent, stay grateful for crumbs… and said “hell no.”

Hosted by Leticia, The Survival Mode Disruptor herself—a trauma recovery mentor, speaker, and woman who has lived through the fires of abuse, betrayal, and breakdown and still chose to rise—this show dives deep into the unapologetic exits from survival mode that no one talks about.

You’ll hear from women (and a few brave men) who walked away from toxic relationships, soul-sucking careers, generational dysfunction, religious trauma, cultural expectations, and the lies they were taught to believe about themselves. Not because it was easy—but because staying would’ve killed something sacred inside of them.

These are the stories of bold pivots, quiet courage, and messy but miraculous rebirths.

Each episode is a conversation—a disruption—meant to wake something up in you. Whether it’s a guest sharing the moment they chose themselves for the first time, or Leticia dropping a truth bomb that makes you question everything you’ve normalized, this podcast is here to shake the foundation of your survival mode identity and replace it with something truer. Something freer.

We’re not here for surface-level self-care tips or fake empowerment slogans.

We’re here to talk about what it really takes to:

Reclaim your voice after being silenced.

Reinvent yourself after being broken down.

Rewrite your story when everyone else wants you to stay the same.

Release the guilt of choosing YOU.

This is for those who are done performing. Done pleasing. Done pretending.

It’s for the ones ready to exit survival mode—not slowly, not quietly, but disruptively and unapologetically.

You won’t leave this podcast the same.
You’ll cry. You’ll rage. You’ll laugh.
You’ll see yourself in every story.
And more importantly, you’ll remember who the hell you are.

Welcome to Survival Mode Disrupted.
It’s not just a podcast.
It’s a movement.
And your exit begins here.

About your host

Profile picture for Leticia Francis

Leticia Francis

I am not here to inspire you—I am here to activate you.

As a Survivor, Keynote Speaker, and Trauma Recovery Mentor, I know what it’s like to fight battles no one sees. I also know that breaking free is possible. My work is about disrupting survival mode, exposing trauma-driven success cycles, and giving women the blueprint to reclaim their lives.

🔹 200+ podcast features & speaking engagements
🔹 Global Women of Choice Award Winner 2022
🔹 Creator of the Survival Mode Exit Plan
🔹 Host of Survival Mode Disrupted Podcast