CORE SPECIALTY
Religious Trauma Therapy
Online in Arizona & Washington
You didn't leave because you're broken. You left because the system was.
What religious trauma therapy actually is
A system told you who to be, what to want, and who you'd lose if you got it wrong. You left — or you're planning to — and now there's a version of you underneath all of that, still figuring out what's actually yours. That's the work. Some people call the aftermath Religious Trauma Syndrome. Whatever you call it, it's real, and it's treatable.
What it can look like
Sometimes it's obvious. Sometimes it just feels like anxiety with no name attached.
Anxiety or panic that shows up around specific people, holidays, or old rituals — even ones you don't participate in anymore
A hard time trusting your own judgment, or needing permission before you make decisions
Guilt with no clear source — just a low hum of "you're doing something wrong"
Numbness or dissociation when the topic of your old faith comes up
Trouble knowing what you actually want, separate from what you were taught to want
YOU’RE PROBABLY IN THE RIGHT PLACE IF:
You're deconstructing a faith you were raised in and don't know who you are without it
You've been shunned, excommunicated, or cut off from family over your beliefs or identity
A past therapist nodded along but clearly didn't get LDS, evangelical, or high-control religious culture
Purity culture is still running in the background of how you see your body, sex, or relationships
How I work
Relational, parts work, trauma-informed care. Absolutely zero interest in what you should or should not believe, or where you land. I left too. I'm not going to hand you a new rule book to replace the old one.
EMDR Trained
Relationally-Focused
Lived Faith-Transition Experience
Common Questions
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It's not in the DSM. but that doesn't make it less real. It's a recognizable pattern that often overlaps with anxiety, depression, and complex PTSD. You don't need a formal diagnosis for it to be worth treating.
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Strict rules aren't automatically harmful. The line usually shows up in control: punishment for questions, shame as leverage, isolation, fear that overrides your own judgment. Not sure which one describes you? Bring it in and we'll figure it out together.
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No. Plenty of clients start while still questioning, still attending, still unsure where they'll land. You don't need to have it figured out first — that's what the work is for.
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No — this isn't a deconversion program. It's about telling apart what's actually yours from what got handed to you under pressure. Where you land is your call, not mine.
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Yes. EMDR and trauma-informed talk therapy both hold up fine over video — and a lot of people find it easier to say the hard stuff from a space that's comfortable and actually theirs.
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No — private-pay only, priced through our Equitable Payment Structure. A superbill is available if you want to try for out-of-network reimbursement yourself.
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Not right now. I'm seeing women and gender-nonconforming adults. Wayward's team is growing, and that will open up. Join the waitlist to hear when it does.
RELATED READING
Purity culture and its long-term effects →
Leaving the LDS church: what to expect emotionally →
People-pleasing after a high-control upbringing →