I really like most of the episodes, but there are several guests that I don’t find believable. I also understand that there’s no perfect victim, and that people make mistakes, but the guest that was laughing about how she and her friend would call in bomb threats to schools just made me ill. Impossible to be sympathetic and I had to turn it off.

I don’t understand all the 1 star reviews. Not every single episode is going to be to your taste, these are peoples lives. And downvoting a podcast because you don’t like the guests stories is wild. They’re the only platform that focuses on just stalking and at least giving victims a voice, what are y’all doing other than judging from your couch? Keep up the great work guys!

I loved in the beginning , but it’s a disappointment lately!

I typically love the show. It’s always my first listen on Tues mornings. But this episode (241) was just incredibly bad. I’m not sure what happened re: the typical vetting process, but someone was out to lunch on this one. The interviewee was all over the place and provided nothing coherent whatsoever on her allegations (other than some untoward social media postings about her). I’m hoping this was just a one-off rather than a harbinger of episodes to come.

Keep up the good work!!

Ep 238 In-Law Obsession was terrifying for mothers and I think we have all experienced a little of it and never really realized that it truly is another form of stalking and control! This is such a great podcast and fills a space in the podcast world that is so desperately needed! I want to hear even more of her in law stories!

Like the show but so many times it sounds like the person is not telling the whole truth or exaggerating. It so obviously one sided and as in the in-law story, she appears so petty and rather than a stalking situation, it just sounds like a “I hate my in-laws” situation. Is this really a stalking situation? Hmmm…idk

So many and so long. Sheeesh

the two most recent edits have awkward pauses and non-sequiturs that should be edited out. the lease you could do after these victims share their stories is edits edit.

I used to like this podcast but now I couldn’t believe how many commercials in one episode. These are 5-6-7 minutes long, when driving your stuck to listen. I can’t do it. It annoyed me that much.

I came over here from another podcast and I am soo disappointed in the quality of the interviews and storytelling. Also, the lady that wrote they book "My Rock My Hard Place" should have listened to all of the publishers that told her it wasn't a good book title. It's terrible and quite frankly sounds sexual. Maybe if she changed the title the book would have attracted a larger publisher. Also, the show description never quite matches the show itself. There was one episode where a woman was getting stalked by her in laws until law enforcement got involved but it in no way explained what happened or what they did to stop her in laws from stalking her. It also randomly cuts off for a commercial (sometimes mid sentence) and doesn't pick up where it left off when the show comes back. Sloppy editing and storytelling overall.

I was suggested this show, I do love first person true crime stories. I appreciate that they let these survivors sit and tell their stories. I’m sure that it gives these individuals who have been stalked a way to find their own voice. What I do not like is that they clearly put in zero effort into vetting these people and their stories. Episode 204, the man “claims” he was an Olympic contender and was a big shot on his college swimming team, this notoriety was integral to his story. With an easy google search you can see that none of his sporting history was true. That down to his acting credits were fake. The only reason why I found this out was because this man’s story seemed so outrageous and with my limited knowledge of collegiate sports and acting credits I figured it out. So now I question why a podcast with sponsors and a large platform didn’t take the 5 min to do the due diligence. You can hear what little effort there is in the production of this podcast. Sometimes the audio quality is so bad it’s unenjoyable to listen to the episode. Sometimes background noise, static and food noises directly into the mic make it hard to hear. The hosts do not seem to host/interview their guests well at all. Some guests are great story tellers others need more direction and just ramble. It’s unfortunate because you want to hear their story, they just need direction. This could be a really great podcast if there was more effort put into it than sitting down in front of a mic and pressing record.

I recently listened to the episode where family law attorney, Michelle Locke, appeared as a guest. It was almost comical to listen to her blather on about her own children and how she “protects” domestic violence victims. She defended my ex-husband in our initial hearing several years ago. She brought her husband, also an attorney, into the courtroom to help her appearance. Despite my testimony outlining recurrent pregnancy loss, emotional and psychological abuse, and physical threats by my ex-husband, she belittled me the entire time. She treats victims and protective mothers like trash. My ex-husband stumbled into court over an hour late with bloodshot eyes and she tried to explain away his positive drug tests to get him more time with a 12-month old infant he had never cared for. This woman is not what she claims. She does not protect children. She only looks to win her cases and further her career on the stepping on the backs of abused children and battered mothers.

I love listening to crime/stalking podcasts. This one is ok. Some of the episodes and people on them are annoying. Episode 219 was choppy. Meaning, it seemed liked it was pasted together, kept cutting out and jumping forward. So, I stopped listening to that episode. Overall, most of the stories are interesting.

One of my favorite podcasts! They do a fantastic job of giving survivors a platform to share their stories while sharing resources and insight. Sharing these stories is so important as so many often struggle in silence. Keep doing what you’re doing guys!

Edit: had to change it to one star. This Kaitlyn story is insane. She has to keep telling us that she’s not stupid but she went hours away w a man she barely knew, brought her daughter to his house, stayed even though he was on drugs like I would not have someone like this in my life!! Not just for me but MY CHILD. not only is she stupid but a horrible mother. I like the podcast but skip the ex partner episodes a lot. I love that the podcast is spreading awareness but sometimes I don’t want to hear about domestic violence due to having experienced it. I really like the cases not about relationships, its interesting and helpful to hear how to navigate a situation with someone you don’t know at all.

For a sponsored podcast, I find Jaime’s audio to be one of the worst I’ve encountered on any podcast. It is jarring to go back and fourth between the other host and guest with decent sound quality, then to her audio. It sounds like she’s talking on a phone. If she doesn’t upgrade her mic soon, I may not be able to continue listening to it.

I listen to it usually but Jaime sounds like she’s in a tunnel. Jake sounds so good in comparison. She may need new equipment. Her voice is too squeaky as well. You both literally say nothing until the end and it’s always in a random spot “thank you for being on the show” it almost cuts the guest out every time. Why can’t you interview the guests? There’s so many questions. The hosts basically do nothing but a few words at the beginning then the end. It’s obvious Jake’s equipment is higher quality because Jaime’s sounds like shes using the cheapest equipment. It’s pretty bad. The podcast went from ok to now kind of meh…. Interview the guests, ask questions, show some compassion. This isn’t fulfilling just listening. Cmon Jake and Jaime, dive deep. Do something. Its comes across as cheap.

My previous review mysteriously “vanished” so let’s see how long this one stays up. I wasn’t aware shows could remove or not allow some reviews, especially if it’s even remotely critical. Hmmm… Firstly, I’ve always found this show interesting and the content is good and very helpful. Sadly, I too have been a target (I refuse to use the word “victim”) of stalking, not once but twice. So, unfortunately, I can relate to the horrific reality of the guests who are on the show. Second, it’s SO obvious that Jake only does the intro and may pop in occasionally and then doesn’t make an appearance until the very end. It’s not at all seamless and sounds like he’s not a real part of the hosting or podcast. It’s pretty much all Jaime which isn’t bad, it just seems like a bait and switch when Jake gets top billing. Lastly, episode #228 “Charming Harmer - Stalking Belinda” was almost more than I could handle, not because of the subject matter but because of the guest’s voice. Between the grating, raspy (not in a good way) voice to the HUNDREDS of times they said “Um, yeah” or “Yeah, um” or “Well, um.” If the “ums” were taken out of the episode it would have been half as long as it was. I understand that this is how someone speak but can’t/don’t you edit your content before you release it? Smooth it out somehow? Between these two incredibly distracting issues, I couldn’t concentrate on their story. Thank you for sharing these people’s stories. It’s so incredibly important to NOT cover up or downplay the true horror of this crime. I only wish there were platforms such as this when I was dealing with my own experiences.

This podcast has taught me the importance of drinking water when you’re being interviewed! I’ve listened to multiple interviews now where the guest obviously had a dry mouth, so they kept smacking and swallowing and talking with a dry, wavery voice. It is MADDENING, especially for people with misophonia! I’ve encountered it in YouTubers who smack over and over, and it’s even worse with a podcast because you only have the voice to focus on. To the people over the podcast: Make sure your guests are well lubricated! You have enough audio issues as it is. We can’t see them, so they should feel free to drink water! STOP THE SMACKING! It’s still happening! The plus of the podcast, though, is the theme and the fact that they give the space/time for the survivors to speak (asking them what their life was like growing up is ALWAYS superfluous, though, so they should skip it). The ads are disrespectful, though—it’s not disrespectful that they exist but their content and their style.

Jaimie’s audio is too much for me. I can’t stand the way it sounds like AM radio.

These stories are so interesting but I always find myself getti bored in the episodes because it’s so lack luster. Unless the person sharing their story is a good story teller, the episodes always fall short and lack a flow that keeps the listener captivated. These could be so so good but they always fall a little short unfortunately

Are they not allowed to upload these to YouTube anymore? I’d love to listen more often but that’s the only way I’m able to lately and I’m not sure why that stopped happening.

Thank you Jaimie, and Jake for continuing to bring awareness to the public about stalking, as it happens more then anyone knows, thank you for allowing these amazing strong warriors to have a voice, and sharing resources. I love the show, I love how you allow them to speak without interruption, and allow them to be heard. Love you guys!

That car salesman episode was the craziest scariest story I’ve ever heard!!!🤪

I love your show. However, the suzie episode was strange. There was no joining the story in any spots. It felt like the story was misding quite a few components. How does the constable even link to the group?

The editing has been funky lately and thus the stories are hard to follow and don’t have the impact that they used to. Past seasons there would be episodes that I wanted to share with my teens. This weeks episode it cuts out mid sentence of the interviewee and is suddenly like a different part of the story. I am not looking forward to new episodes like I used to. DV and harassment awareness is good, not everything is stalking.

I have a love hate relationship with this podcast. I love the idea of listening and learning about stalking but some episodes are all over the place that I can’t even comprehend them. The latest one- Custody and Chaos. It was back and forth back and forth, didn’t make any sense. Highly frustrating. Maybe offer the guest a written timeline of their events.

Some episodes are more compelling than others but they’re all amazing stories about amazing people living through some of the toughest situations. It’s an educational listen, helpful ways to keep yourself safe and what you can do if you find yourself in a similar situation.

I feel like the episodes can be all over the place. I agree with the feedback that one of the recent episodes was so bad, audio-quality-wise, that I couldn’t listen to it. The Libby episode… here’s the thing, I appreciate this podcast for highlighting a difficult topic that’s riddled with misconceptions and I do think it’s incredibly brave for these individuals to share their stories. But if you’re not going to share anything, why come on? I spent the entire Libby episode trying to figure out what actually happened. It was so vague and peppered with adjectives that I was getting frustrated. These emails were ‘SO inappropriate’ and everything was really really bad…. But not one specific example or detail of why. And please hear me, I’m not speaking from the perspective of ‘I wasn’t entertained’ because I fully understand and appreciate that these types of podcasts are meant to be informative and not entertaining. But it’s hard for me to empathize when I spent 40 minutes listening and still can’t tell you what actually happened.

Quite often it sounds like a bunch of questions have been given to someone to record on their own at home and then when they get the answers back, they edit together them asking questions and then replaying the persons pre-recorded responses. This especially seems possible when they ask three questions all at once, and then the person responds

It is so difficult to listen to this podcast because Jaime’s voice is not meant for this medium. It grates. I know a person cannot help their voice, but there are vocal trainings out there. Some podcasters have developed their speaking voice. Jaime just sounds so screechy. I am sure she is a lovely person but I would rather listen to anyone else talk. Sometimes I have to drastically lower the volume because her voice HURTS my ears.

The sound quality of Mimi is terrible. It sounds like Mimi has a mouthful of Marbles. I couldn’t listen to this episode.

I started this podcast when it was brand new, taking off, and seemingly covering amazing stories of survivors and giving voices to those who are often ignored within our social justice systems. The first few seasons were amazing, most everyone’s stories were incredible to listen to and those episodes really saved my rating here. Well worth the time and listening. What made this podcast so charming in the beginning was the coverage of everyday people’s stories, those who otherwise would’ve remained voiceless and powerless now had a platform to heal through story telling. The shift into big names, tik tok famous, celeb stories (people who already have a platform) has sucked the life out of this podcast for me. Recently with exposure it seems like every episode is a plug for someone else. I understand sharing resources, and the desire to support others in their ventures, but I wish things were a little more selective in who gets this air time, and how often. Certain recent stories have not been compelling and I’ve questioned how much each story has been embellished by the teller in order to give themselves a more compelling background story for launching whatever book/podcast/business they’re starting. I hope after whatever payouts/sponsorships they receive after this season the podcast finds its roots again.

My empathy dissolves when the women— already seeing red flags and numerous signs that severe trouble is ahead— go ahead and have not one, not two but THREE children with their abuser/stalker!! (Looking at you, episode 211) Don’t add to the mess by bringing innocent children into it!

Do you want to know why stalking has never been taken seriously and there’s still so much work to do? Between the church and legal system the patriarchy is alive and well. Women’s issues have never been taken very seriously by the male dominated legal and justice system from the judge, all the way down the continuum to the cop who shows up at your house to figure out what the victim of violence needs. Just ask Gabby Petito. Cops see a smooth talking bro and a female who won’t talk and the patriarchy saunters out of there and goes on it’s merry way. Sometimes, the laws make no sense (gee I wonder why) or cops can’t do anything because laws haven’t been passed to protect women (let’s face it, it’s mostly women). And, laws haven’t been passed because women are, basically, not considered important and Lord, the patriarchy doesn’t want women getting power! Look at the headlines in the news today and you can see that women have to be kept in their place. It’s been going on since whenever humans congregated together and created a social order. Might makes right - and a man who murders a woman, on average, gets a much lighter sentence than a woman who murders a man. I feel sorry for young women today, they think getting choked is a normal part of sex. But I digress, a little, anyway bless you guys and SPARC for fighting the good fight.

Jamie Beebee sounds like a vapid teenager with no interest nor empathy (think Paris Hilton), an awful voice, and her questions sound too scripted and contrived. When she says “I’m sorry for you loss” it’s so disingenuous I cringe. Deptula should lose Jamie IMHO; the podcast is much more relatable and interesting when he speaks. As a side note, the questions would be more effective if more interactive in the forum of a discussion.

Strictly boring. Strictly napping. I’m not sure what I’m missing with the hub bub but there are a lot better podcasts covering similar topics with way less preachy nonsense to check out. Go find you one.

This show was at one point moving and stirring, excellent life experiences from victims/ survivors from stalking. The last year it went horribly wrong. I do agree with some other reviewers recently that the stories this year or lack there are of, are very hard to follow, it’s a lot of people from tick tock, people plugging their social media, their books, or podcasts, shows etc. The first few seasons had substance and now it’s just people repeating themselves, the stories are rambling, they are confusing and seem to go no where. It’s just people rambling. Listen to the first few seasons and don’t waste your time on the last year. The show isn’t worth following anymore - sad but true

I’ve listened for a long time and to each episode and I feel like the last several months you’re struggling to find stories from victims who are able to articulate what happened to them well. Episode 203 was so scattered and the victim was clearly doing house chores or eating during the recording. Dogs were barking, doors were opening and closing, containers opening and closing. She honestly told the story as if she was intoxicated. I feel that you could do a better job keeping the victims on track with telling their stories and that would ultimately have a greater impact on people who may be facing the same situations.

Great show and content! Thanks for giving stalking victims a voice to be heard. I know I learn a lot from each. Appreciate both hosts taking heir time to put out the content weekly. Keep up the great work!

The stories that these stalking victims share are heartbreaking and shine light on a serious issue that needs more attention and legal ramifications. I commend them for their bravery in coming forward about these traumatic experiences. However, the hosts leave much to be desired. I find their line of questioning to be shallow and reflective of a 90s talk show, vs the hosts on true crime pods like “Morbid” or “Monsters who murder” who have in-depth knowledge of the subject matter and offer informed and sensitive commentary. Also, the ads completely lack self-awareness: why are we subjected to Jamie’s diatribe about stupid bikinis when women are sharing experiences of being targeted and vulnerable? Why are we being asked to put in the code “stalking” for discounts, which cheapens the severity of the issue at hand? Would you ask one of Ted Bundy’s victims to type in “serial killer” for an insurance discount? It’s pretty repulsive IMO - put at least some level of thought into your format.

I came to this podcast via another one that is really good. The stories seem to be interesting but hard to follow because all of a sudden it seems that the story jumps and they are talking about someone who wasn’t mentioned before, and they are an important piece in the story I want the whole story, not pieces of a puzzle

A great way for victims to share their stories, but so many ads that it feel inappropriate/inappropriately read given the topic. Also the host Jamie has SUCH a loud and grating voice which makes it really hard to listen to. They need to figure out the audio, because her voice doesn’t sound like that based on an Instagram video I saw of her

I’m an OG listener, and I’ve always liked the stories and the awareness that the stories raise. But lately, HALF the show (sometimes more!) is an episode of another podcast! And not even a good one! It’s an annoying one that isn’t even remotely related with two frat boys talking about financial investments. Not only is this annoying and sneaky to your loyal listeners, but it really seems disrespectful to those voicing their stories. It’s pretty obvious that this project has changed from a service to the community that you both had interest in and passion for to a money grab. Idk how much more I can take before I unfollow.

Love this podcast. Hate the add on podcast. I’ll keep giving 1 star til it stops.

As a listener of this show, I really appreciate the way the hosts give survivors a platform to share their stories. However, I often feel that the two hosts are the wrong people to be providing this platform. The more ads you put in an episode, the more money you make from it. I often find that an ad is put right in the middle of a survivors most vulnerable moments which feels exploitative and greedy. I also feel that there could be a lot more care put into the interviewing process. The tone from the hosts often feels as if they are gawking at a museum exhibit rather than empathizing with someone who has gone through unimaginable circumstances. There may be more care taken by the hosts that gets edited out, but personally I would like to hear the hosts get vulnerable too. If you’re going to profit off of these peoples stories, you might as well put some emotion on the line. I don’t know. The survivors’ stories are well told and educational, but the hosts need to cut the ads in the middle of the stories and have more empathy with the survivors they seem to just be poking and prodding at.

Lately, the Second half of the show is an episode of a different podcast which is so annoying! Great show though.

Strictly Stalking is one of my favorite podcasts. I’ve been listening for years. The content is powerful and the first-hand narratives from Survivors of stalking is nail biting. We know the outcomes can be deadly. I work in mental health and these wounded, abusive personalities are out there. They need professional intervention but insight and motivation are generally poor. Kudos to the hosts, Survivors and advocates of domestic violence.

I want to start off my review by stating that I’ve been a listener since 2019 and will continue to listen as I find the content overall very interesting and relateable. However, there are frequently guests who seem to be on to just advertise their own social media platforms or they straight up have a personality disorder. I have experienced stalking related to DV in the past and often it’s more complex than just blaming the stalker. I wish the some of guests were more self aware, or the hosts had the integrity to not air interviews with individuals who are still mentally IN the situation or have not had enough time away from the situation to be able to present their story well. I hope the hosts consider this for their future guests.