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I am an #exvangelical who has been trying to figure out the world since I left church. I have done a lot of soul searching over time, and let go a lot of toxicity I held onto even years after leaving. I recognized my problems, my trauma, even went to therapy. (1/?)
I still struggled to find adequate help with what Im processing. I have felt so distant from the secular world, like I cant relate to them due to my upbringing. Social settings just gave me paralyzing anxiety, because I was afraid they would ask me too many questions (2/?)
I learned from my mistake of telling people I grew up in a cult and even went to Bible college, some people would say "wow thats crazy!" or say insensitive things (for which I dont blame them, a lot of people dont recognize the serious trauma behind religion) (3/?)
But nonetheless I have isolated myself out of fear of having anyone try to relate to me. I dont want to kill the vibe of a social setting when they ask me things like "how was your highschool prom?" and I have to explain that I didnt have one, music was bad, dancing was bad (4/?)
Its just too awkward. I want to get past it, but how?Anyways, I was googling something yesterday about religion, and one of the first search results I got was @marlenewinell article on "Religious Trauma Syndrome". I was not even looking for that information, but holy crap.(5/?)
I started reading the article and I felt SO UNDERSTOOD. I have NEVER felt this way. Here is a golden article, explaining in detail all of my experiences. I was stunned. I scoured through it, reading every single thing. (6/?)
I then saw she had written a book and I was ecstatic. I jumped on Amazon right away, and purchased the Kindle version because no way was I waiting. FINALLY, a book written by someone who understands. It is incredibly well written and SO thorough. (7/?)
I have read everything til chapter 5 so far but I continue reading in amazement that this book even exists. Im so thankful. I finally have a resource that I can give to my therapist so that she can help me. Im so full of hope for once. (8/?)
My trauma has affected so much of my life. I am behind everyone, even those younger than me. Its affected my academic life far more than I even realized. So many issues that stem from RTS and seeing that there`s someone out there trying to educate people is so wonderful!
