Religious Trauma Therapy
When leaving was the easy part
I help people across Ohio untangle religious trauma: the fear, shame, and identity loss that can follow high-control religion, purity culture, or a painful faith transition. I have professional training and lived experience here.
Who this is for
- People deconstructing or leaving a high-control religious environment
- Anyone carrying shame, scrupulosity, or fear of punishment that outlasted their beliefs
- People grieving the community, certainty, or family closeness that faith used to provide
- Those still practicing a faith who want therapy that will not push them in either direction
How I work
- This work is about your values, not mine. Whether you land in a new faith, no faith, or somewhere unresolved, that is yours to decide.
- I use Coherence Therapy, Internal Family Systems informed work, and reparenting approaches, with continuing education through the Religious Trauma Institute.
- We go at the speed of trust. Religious trauma taught many of my clients to override their own instincts. Therapy should not repeat that.
Fees
Sessions are $100 for 50 minutes, paid through Ivy Pay (cash, credit, debit, HSA, or FSA). I can provide a superbill for out-of-network reimbursement. Details on the fees page.
Questions people ask
Is religious trauma a real diagnosis?
Religious trauma is not a standalone DSM diagnosis, but the effects are real and treatable, and they often show up as anxiety, OCD-like scrupulosity, depression, or PTSD symptoms. We treat what is actually happening to you.
I am still religious. Is this for me?
Yes. Plenty of my clients keep their faith. My job is not to talk you into or out of anything. It is to help you separate what harmed you from what you freely choose.
Will you understand my specific background?
I will not pretend to know every tradition from the inside, but high-control systems share recognizable patterns, and I have both training and lived experience with religious harm. You will not spend sessions educating me from zero.
Not sure if I am the right fit? That is exactly what the free consult is for.
Fifteen minutes, no pressure, no paperwork. You ask questions, I answer honestly, and if I am not the right therapist for you I will help you find someone who is.