Welcome to Tender & Twisted: a true crime podcast with a therapeutic lens. We break down curious cases, taboo topics, and infamous stories by exploring the humanness beneath the headlines. As queer mental health professionals ourselves, we’re drawn to intensity and strangeness, and aim to explore it all with curiosity, compassion, and understanding. Join us as we unpack the mental health of cult leaders and individuals convicted of severe offenses through an anti-racist social justice lens.
Tender & Twisted
Claim This Podcastby Lex and Jess G.
5.0(2 reviews)
12 episodes
Updated Daily
Accepts GuestsHas SponsorsLocation 🇺🇸
Podcast Overview
Welcome to Tender & Twisted: a true crime podcast with a therapeutic lens. We break down curious cases, taboo topics, and infamous stories by exploring the humanness beneath the headlines. As queer mental health professionals ourselves, we’re drawn to intensity and strangeness, and aim to explore it all with curiosity, compassion, and understanding. Join us as we unpack the mental health of cult leaders and individuals convicted of severe offenses through an anti-racist social justice lens.
Language
🇺🇲
Publishing Since
9/8/2025
1 verified contact email on file for Tender & Twisted
Pitch yourself as a guest, propose sponsorships, or reach out directly to the host.
Recent Episodes
January 26, 2026
Jodi Hildebrandt: From Therapist to Cult Leader
<p>In this episode, we take a deeper dive into Jodi Hildebrandt — a former licensed therapist who presented herself as a moral and spiritual authority and later became a central figure in a widely reported child abuse case.</p><p>You may remember Jodi from our Ruby Franke episode, but today we shift the focus fully onto her: her background, her belief system, and how a person trained in mental health moved from therapist, to life coach, to claiming a unique access to “truth” — while facing serious ethical and professional consequences.</p><p>We explore Jodi’s upbringing in a strict LDS household, her early fixation on purity and moral perfectionism, and how reported trauma, rigid belief structures, and a desire for control appear to have shaped the framework she later imposed on others. We unpack her professional rise, her involvement in porn addiction treatment, the violations that led to the suspension of her therapy license, and her eventual rebrand into Connexions — a hierarchical, faith-based coaching model that framed obedience as healing and disagreement as moral failure.</p><p>From there, we examine the people who were impacted: former clients, members of Connexions, her own family, Jessi (her nibling who has publicly shared their experiences), and the Franke children — whose suffering was reportedly framed as “treatment.” We discuss how isolation, fear, and spiritual authority were used as tools of control, and how Jodi embedded herself into families and decision-making structures.</p><p>This episode isn’t just about one person — it’s about what can happen when unregulated power goes unchecked, when belief replaces evidence, and when systems fail to intervene. We also look at Jodi’s arrest, court proceedings, and public statements following her conviction, as well as how she continues to describe her actions.</p><p>Content Warning: child abuse, spiritual manipulation, coercive control, abuse of power</p>
January 12, 2026
Candy Montgomery: The Cost of Perfectionism
<p>On the morning of June 13, 1980, in the quiet suburb of Wylie, Texas, Candy Montgomery went to her friend Betty Gore’s house to pick up a child’s swimsuit. By the end of that visit, Betty was dead — struck forty-one times with an axe by a woman who had once been her closest ally.</p><p>In this episode, we unpack one of the most disturbing and psychologically complex true-crime cases of the 1980s, recently re-imagined in Love and Death (HBO) and Candy (Hulu). But beyond the headlines and dramatizations, this story is really about emotional repression, gendered expectations, and what happens when a “perfect” life becomes a pressure cooker.</p><p>We explore the world that shaped these women — a tightly knit Methodist church community where politeness, conformity, and appearances mattered more than emotional honesty. Candy Montgomery was everything this world rewarded: organized, cheerful, socially fluent, and endlessly accommodating. Betty Gore, by contrast, was isolated, newly postpartum, struggling, and quietly unraveling while her husband carried on an affair with Candy.</p><p>As we trace how a carefully planned affair spiraled into betrayal, jealousy, and finally violence, we examine the psychological forces at play: dissociation, suppressed rage, high sensation-seeking, and the breaking point of a woman who had spent a lifetime being “good.”</p><p>We also dig into the controversial trial that followed — including the use of hypnosis, the dissociation defense, and how Candy’s presentation as a soft-spoken, respectable white woman shaped the jury’s decision to acquit her. What does it mean when the justice system believes someone who looks safe? And what happens when empathy and accountability collide?</p><p>This is not just a story about murder — it’s a story about motherhood, repression, desire, and the dark things that can grow inside a life that looks perfect from the outside.</p><p><strong>Content Warning:</strong> graphic violence, homicide, infidelity</p>
December 22, 2025
Psychedelics: Mental Health & Meaning-Making
<p>In this episode, we take a thoughtful, grounded journey into the world of psychedelics — not as a trend or a cure-all, but as a powerful lens for understanding consciousness, mental health, and the stories we tell about ourselves.</p><p>We explore psychedelics through history, culture, and neuroscience, asking why humans across time have been drawn to altered states — from Indigenous spiritual practices to modern clinical research. We unpack what it means to be a psychonaut, tracing the evolution of psychedelic exploration from the 1960s counterculture to today’s renewed interest in therapeutic and medical settings.</p><p>Along the way, we discuss influential figures like Timothy Leary, Ram Dass, Ken Kesey, and Michael Pollan, and examine how psychedelics moved from laboratories to living rooms, from taboo to treatment, and back into serious scientific inquiry.</p><p>From a mental health perspective, we break down how psychedelics interact with the brain — particularly the Default Mode Network — and why quieting the mind’s inner narrator can lead to profound shifts in perspective, reduced rumination, increased emotional flexibility, and new pathways for healing trauma, depression, and addiction. We also explore concepts like ego dissolution, neuroplasticity, and why the “afterglow” phase is such a powerful window for change and integration.</p><p>Finally, we walk through the anatomy of a psychedelic experience — set and setting, the phases of a trip, emotional intensity, meaning-making, and integration — with an emphasis on respect, preparation, and psychological safety.</p><p>This episode isn’t about encouraging use — it’s about understanding why these experiences can be so impactful, how they work in the brain, and what they reveal about the human need for connection, healing, and expanded awareness.</p><p>Whether you’re curious, cautious, or deeply interested in the science of the mind, this episode invites you to explore what happens when the usual stories loosen — and something new becomes possible.</p><p><strong>Content Warning:</strong> discussion of substance use and mental health</p><p><br><strong>Disclaimer:</strong> This episode is for educational and entertainment purposes only. We are not providing medical or therapeutic advice. Psychedelic experiences are highly individual and may not be safe or appropriate for everyone. Always consult qualified medical or mental health professionals.</p>
12 total episodes available
Similar Podcasts
Discover related shows you might enjoy
The FOX True Crime Podcast w/ Emily Compagno
Fox Audio Network
Female Criminals
Parcast Network
True Crime & Cocktails
Art19
RedHanded
RedHanded
Snapped: Women Who Murder
Oxygen
Morbid
Ash Kelley & Alaina Urquhart
Crime Junkie
Audiochuck
Casefile True Crime
Casefile Presents
Hidden History with Dr. Harini Bhat
Rewind Studios
Deep-dive analytics for Tender & Twisted
Frequently asked questions
Have a different question and can't find the answer you're looking for? Reach out to our support team by sending us an email and we'll get back to you as soon as we can.
- What is Tender & Twisted?
- How often does this podcast release new episodes?
This podcast updates daily.
- Where can I listen to this podcast?
This podcast is available on 4 platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and more. You can also use the RSS feed directly.
- Does this podcast accept guests?
No, this podcast does not typically feature guests.
Legal Disclaimer
Pod Engine is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or officially connected with any of the podcasts displayed on this platform. We operate independently as a podcast discovery and analytics service.
All podcast artwork, thumbnails, and content displayed on this page are the property of their respective owners and are protected by applicable copyright laws. This includes, but is not limited to, podcast cover art, episode artwork, show descriptions, episode titles, transcripts, audio snippets, and any other content originating from the podcast creators or their licensors.
We display this content under fair use principles and/or implied license for the purpose of podcast discovery, information, and commentary. We make no claim of ownership over any podcast content, artwork, or related materials shown on this platform. All trademarks, service marks, and trade names are the property of their respective owners.
While we strive to ensure all content usage is properly authorized, if you are a rights holder and believe your content is being used inappropriately or without proper authorization, please contact us immediately at hey@podengine.ai for prompt review and appropriate action, which may include content removal or proper attribution.
By accessing and using this platform, you acknowledge and agree to respect all applicable copyright laws and intellectual property rights of content owners. Any unauthorized reproduction, distribution, or commercial use of the content displayed on this platform is strictly prohibited.