Religious Trauma Counseling

Do you have major doubts about your faith?
Have you been harmed by your faith community?
Do you have deep rooted fears you are going to hell?
You are not alone.
I can help.

Religious Trauma Therapy Akron

Breaking away from your faith can have a huge  impact on your life, and probably a profound one. You may be left feeling confused, guilty, empty, or bitter. You may be depressed about life or scared of the future. First let’s define what religious trauma syndrome is. 

Understanding Religious Trauma Syndrome

Religious Trauma Syndrome (RTS) is a function of both the chronic abuses of harmful religion and the impact of severing one’s connection with one’s faith and faith community. It can be compared to a combination of PTSD and Complex PTSD (C-PTSD). With PTSD, a traumatic event is one in which a person experiences or witnesses actual or threatened death or serious injury, or a threat to the physical integrity of self or others. Losing one’s faith, or leaving one’s religion, is an analogous event because it essentially means the death of one’s previous life – the end of reality as it was understood. It is a huge shock to the system, and one that needs to be recognized as trauma (Winell).

Religious trauma can manifest in many different ways, and no two people will have the same experience. However, there are several typical signs and symptoms often seen in adults who experienced religious trauma as children, including the following:

• Poor family relationships
• Lack of meaning
• Dissociation
• Grief
• Guilt
• Impeded development (social, emotional, sexual)
• Depressive thoughts
• Anxious thoughts
• Poor decision-making skills
• Lack of self-confidence and self-esteem
• Sense of isolation from community
• Pervasive feelings of shame
• Difficulty forming healthy adult relationships
• Poor interpersonal boundaries
• Sexual dysfunction
• Scrupulosity
• Nightmares and/or recurring uncontrollable thoughts about the trauma
• Avoidance behaviors (i.e., avoiding any thing, person, or place that reminds you of the trauma)
• Health concerns (e.g., sleep issues or appetite problems)

Still Unsure If You’re Ready For Counseling?

I know it can feel scary to come in for counseling. Especially if it is your first time going to therapy! I promise I will make the process as easy and painless as possible for you. Please consider checking out my frequently asked questions page or contact me with other questions, I am here to help!

Religious trauma is not the only thing counseling can help with.

As a mental health therapist, I can also help you to stop struggling with anxious and depressive thoughts, cope with the stressors of college and young adulthood and begin to life your best life. I am passionate about my work with individuals who are teens, college students and young adults. I am an ally of the LGBT+ community and my office is a safe space for all queer and questioning clients.

Are you ready to take the next step?

If you are looking for a counselor in Akron, OH, I can help. My name is Allyssa Dziurlaj, and I am passionate about my work as a mental health therapist. We can set up an appointment for you to begin counseling for religious trauma today.

Resources:

Reclamation Collective 

Leaving the Fold by Marlene Windell

The Liturgist Podcast

You Are Your Own by Jamie Lee Finch

Exvangelical Podcast