Actress from Hit Netflix Series Lived in Cult for a Decade: 'Sex Was My Duty'

Bethany Joy Lenz, known for her role in the series "One Tree Hill," has openly discussed the difficult period of her life spent nearly a decade in an organization she identifies as a cult, The Big House Family. Lenz shared details of her experiences in a podcast episode, describing how her marriage, which she believed would bring profound intimacy, ultimately left her feeling more distant from her husband.

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Just do it. It's your duty. It's your job as a wife. The emotions will come later. If you do it often enough, you'll find a way to enjoy it.

Lenz explained that after marrying the son of the organization's leader, she and her husband implemented a schedule for sexual relations to address intimacy issues. She recounted being told, "Just do it. It's your duty. It's your job as a wife. The emotions will come later. If you do it often enough, you'll find a way to enjoy it."

Despite agreeing to this regimen to maintain peace in her marriage, Lenz found it amplified her anxiety and dissatisfaction. The prospect of her husband's return from trips, which would restart the demanding schedule, caused her significant distress. She described a "PTSD" response to airport arrivals, knowing the schedule would resume for weeks.

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I was a little bit blown away that I hadn't had sex before marriage. I believed the promise that if I saved myself for marriage, I would be given an incredible sex life and deep intimacy.

Lenz was married to Michael Galeotti for five years, divorcing in 2012. They share a 15-year-old daughter. She characterized their marriage as having little in common, feeling she had no other options as she was not permitted to date outside the community. While she expresses sympathy for her ex-husband, acknowledging he also grew up in difficult circumstances, she reflects on the marriage's complexity, noting that it resulted in their daughter, and questioning if anything stemming from it could be entirely wrong.

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It was sort of like an arranged marriage.