When were troubled we look for help where we can find it. If its not friends and family then you might end up looking into self-help.

The industry is worth billions every year, which is no wonder since most of us have dabbled in at least reading a self-help book at one stage or another.

However, there is a dark side of enlightenment.

Where there are desperate people, there are those waiting to offer help for a price, of course.

Self-help gurus are especially big in where else? the US, where seminars, wellness camps and retreats are held for people to get better.

But it all comes with a cost.

In 2009, more than 50 followers of self-help guru James Arthur Ray approached the conclusion of a five-day Spiritual Warrior seminar they paid 8,000 or more to attend.

Rays instructions to followers towards the end of the retreat were to shave their heads, sit in a sweat lodge, and avoid drinking water.

Things didnt go well.

Rays workshop, in Sedona, Arizona, resulted in the deaths of three people, who died after taking part in the sweat lodge ritual.

Here, the mother of one victim, Kirby Brown, speaks in the Guru trailer.

Ray was later found guilty on charges of negligent homicide and sentenced to two years in prison.

According to Wondery, though, hes back in business.

The build up to the ill-fated retreat is covered in Guru, a new podcast from Wondery, hosted by Matthew Stroud.

This new series looks at the incident and how dangerous the self-help scene in the US where the industry is worth an estimated 10 billion can be.

James Arthur Ray isnt the only self-help guru people should have been wary of

Gure, Wondery, Apple Podcasts

Things might be a bit doom and gloom at the moment, but Give Me Some Good News is here to help.

Stand up comedian Nathan Caton is fed up of the negativity in the mainstream media.

So along with radio presenter Rich Wolfenden, Nathan gets a guest on Zoom and asks them to do one thing. Give him some good news! A bit like the anti-Room 101.

Have you ever been so excited about something that someones told you to calm down?

Then this is the podcast for you.Friends and broadcasters Sarah Gosling and Becky Hand are joined each week by a guest known for their enthusiasm to chat about whats gotten them enthused over the past week in culture, work, and life in general, and who inspired them to be like that.

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Pick of the Podcasts: Guru, Calm Down Dear, Give Me Some Good News - The Sunday Post