Spiritual Wounding

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Many of the people I work with have outgrown the religious traditions they were raised in, or have stepped away from communities that once felt nurturing but later became restrictive or toxic.  Yet their longing for meaning, connection, and spiritual depth remains.  Just in a new form.

In our work together, I honor that longing.  I welcome those who wish to explore the spiritual dimension of life in ways that feel authentic and life-giving, whether within or beyond traditional frameworks.  

For some people, the religious beliefs and community they were part of were not only constricting, they were abusive.  Religious trauma can leave deep emotional and spiritual scars, creating shame, confusion, and a painful disconnection from your authentic self.

Religious trauma can feel like a wound to the soul.  A fracture between who you were told to be, and who you really are.

When the religion has been toxic or abusive, healing can be even more complicated.  Sometimes personal spirituality is so caught up in the control of the abusive religion, it can be hard or even impossible to distinguish between the two.  

When you’ve given your life to ministry, stepping away can feel like losing not only your vocation, but your identity and your way of belonging in the world.  Many former pastors, missionaries, teachers, and faith leaders come to therapy carrying exhaustion, doubt, and a longing to rediscover what feels true.  

You can feel very lonely, especially when community and career are centered around agreeing with beliefs internally you haven't had for a long time.

The call that once guided you may now feel silent, or it may be asking you to listen in a new way.  In this work, we tend both the heartbreak of religious burnout and the quiet beginnings of spiritual renewal.  

We make space to grieve what was lost, reclaim your inner authority, and explore a spirituality that is grounded, personal, and alive again. 

In Depth therapy, healing begins as we turn inward to listen to parts of self that were silenced or exiled in the name of faith or belonging.  

Through dreamwork and gentle exploration of the unconscious, therapy can help you reclaim your inner voice, and restore a living connection to the sacred within.

Depth therapy helps you to transform your pain into wisdom, self-trust, and spirituality that feels true to you.

Each person carries within them the capacity to grow, heal, and become more fully themselves.  Sometimes that unfolding takes us down unexpected paths, paths we never imagined we'd be on, yet somehow feel truer to who we are becoming.

For many years I taught at a Christian university, and though I no longer participate in organized religion, I continue to hold a deep respect for the importance of personal spirituality and meaning-making in people's lives.