The following is an excerpt from Dr. Laura E Anderson’s book, When Religion Hurts You, where she identifies high control religions (HCRs) as potential sources of complex trauma.
“Treating complex trauma is hard because in many cases there is not one specific overwhelming incident. I have many clients who comb through the details of their lives trying to figure out the thing that happened to them. Many are dismayed when they are unable to point to one event, and they feel a sense of shame for the ways their body is responding.
“I submit, however, that religious trauma can result from many smaller but overwhelming and sometimes dangerous things that happen over time.
“It often takes my clients some time to let this sink in—it’s okay if it takes you some time too. Again, trauma is not what happened to us but the way our nervous system responded to what happened to us.
“So even though nothing ‘big’ happened in the HCR, the fear, overwhelm, danger, instability, and lack of safety took its toll.” —Laura E Anderson, When Religion Hurts You
In the WMSCOG, there is constantly a sense of fear that the church knowingly instills in its members. Aside from the implanted phobias of death and hell, even the “faithful” members are taught to constantly be on their guards: “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!” “Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”
Such teachings drive members to devote more and more of their time, money, and effort to the church, leading to an incredible amount of stress and mental and physical fatigue. There is always a fear of being the next one called out and publicly shamed through rebuking or being conspicuously removed from one’s missions and shunned.
After leaving the WMSCOG, I couldn’t understand why I felt like I was traumatized. I thought I was faking it, overreacting, or just messed up in the head and delusional. But my body and mind were simply responding to the years of fear and stress compiled through my experiences in the cult.
I highly recommend Dr. Anderson’s book, which not only helps to identify the ways complex trauma and religious abuse can manifest in high control religions, but also illuminates a path of healing.