Religious Trauma Therapy In Austin

Obedience

Choice

Fear

Joy

Guilt

Compassion

Repression

Freedom

Damantion

Release

In psychology conferences, counseling offices and TikTok feeds, capital T TRAUMA has become the word of the day and with good cause.

Advances in neuroimaging techniques have allowed researchers to explore the neurobiological underpinnings of trauma, EMDR, DBT, Psychedelic Assisted Psychotherapy, and other innovative therapies have become commonplace and popular works like The Body Keeps the ScoreUnf*ck Your Brain, and Waking the Tiger have gone mainstream.

It’s an exciting time to be a therapist, even as this new lens casts a bright light on previously overlooked pains, like purity culture, forced gender conformity, and the pressures of The so-called Moral Majority. 

Obedience

Choice

Fear

Joy

Guilt

Compassion

Repression

Freedom

Release

Freedom

If you’ve experienced the pain of spiritual abuse, the loss of your community, or an assault on your identity at all like what’s described above, know that you are worthy of love and able to heal and grow. Evidence-based therapies, steeped in a human touch, can be the next step in healing. 

You Are NOT Alone

Religious Trauma, as defined by Marlene Winell, isn’t just about where you went to church or what you believe today, it’s about how your experiences fit you and the impression they’ve left on you. 

The guilt and fear of authoritarian belief systems, the suppression of critical thinking and social control, the unrealized promises of perfect obedience, the sexual and gender repression or the fear of hell and damnation aren’t themselves the trauma and may or may not have left you feeling hurt or broken.

The trauma, lowercase or capital T as you like, comes in how those things shaped you and how far that differs from the person you could have become. Square people may fit comfortably enough into rectangular boxes, round people… not so much. 

How We Approach Religious Trauma

We’ve come to recognize that, just like physical trauma, it’s not the fall that matters; it’s the landing.

We recognize that it’s possible to survive a head-on collision, flying through the windshield largely unharmed, or to experience life-altering whiplash from what looks from the outside to be a relatively minor fender-bender.

So too, do we understand that regardless of how big or small the accident or traumatic event was, no matter how painful or searing the injury felt, if never treated, it’s possible to carry around the damage for a lifetime ahead. 

A woman recovering from religious trauma

For all we’ve learned about trauma, its effects on the brain, and its impact on our lives, the best news of all is this: your brain never stops growing, never stops healing, and your life never stops changing. 

Somatic, compassion-based, and psychedelic therapies can help release feelings of fear, guilt, and shame stored in the body. Most importantly, interpersonal neurobiology explains what we’ve always understood- the pain, judgment, and disgust we learned from social wounds require social healing through empathetic listening and validation. 

Mindfulness meditation and existential psychotherapy can help reshape self-critical thinking and distressing beliefs. 

Everyone Is Welcome

No matter where you are in your healing or what belief your faith journey has brought you to, compassionate care and support are available. I’ve worked with current and former Evangelicals, Catholics, Mormons, Mennonites, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Buddhists, and self-described cult members of many stripes. 

Let’s Begin Today

You’re welcome to reach out, even if you just have some questions or are looking for resources.