Wise Jezebel: Dr. Laura Anderson On When Religion Hurts

This episode is sponsored by Better Help. Today we welcome Wise Jezebel and former fundie Dr. Laura Anderson to the ALBC huddle. She’s a psychotherapist, podcaster, and smarty-pants content creator specializing in helping people come back from the sneaky scars of high control religion. She’s also the author of the next book you need to read. Seriously. We cannot recommend it enough and it’s called: When Religion Hurts You: Healing from Religious Trauma and the Impact of High Control Religion. Dr. Anderson is here with us to talk about her story, the ways and means of culty church trauma, and the non-linearity of the healing process. In case you need another reminder that toxic churches, some mainstream American religious communities, and even your culty as fuck personal development organization can be traumatizing: This episode is for you. Let the unpacking commence. NOTES:  Dr. Laura Anderson, PhD, LMFT is a therapist and trauma resolution and recovery coach in private practice specializing in complex and developmental trauma and the dynamics of power and control of culty religions. She’s a writer and educator who specializes in religious trauma. She’s founder and director of the Center for Trauma Resolution and Recovery, an online coaching service for folks recovering from adverse religious experiences and cults. And she co-founded the Religious Trauma Institute, a training institute focused on helping the helpers in their trauma-informed healing work. You can listen to her on her own podcasts The Wise Jezebels and Sunday School Dropouts. She lives with her dog, Phoebe, in Nashville, Tennessee.   Find her online on her own website,  on her own podcasts The Wise Jezebels and Sunday School Dropouts,  on and social media: @drlauraeanderson: Instagram (also TikTok & FB),  @traumaresolutionandrecovery (IG & Facebook) @religioustraumainstitute (IG & Facebook) @wisejezebelspod (IG) @sundayschooldropoutspod (IG) Hashtags: #religioustrauma #whenreligionhurtsyou   Though our pod spans the culty religious fallout gamut, this one pairs well with the June two-parter Shiny Happy Wife: Tia Levings on Christian Fundamentalism (Tia Levings is co-host of The Wise Jezebels) and Leaving the Fold: Dr. Marlene Winell on Religious Trauma Syndrome. See also: Our episode about Attachment Theory with the deep and amazing Alexandra Stein. Also…Let it be known far and wide, loud and clear that…   The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty fuckwad.   OTHER LINKS: Check out our lovely sponsors Join ‘A Little Bit Culty’ on Patreon Get poppin’ fresh ALBC Swag Support the pod and smash this link Cult awareness and recovery resources   CREDITS:  Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames Production Partner: Citizens of Sound Producer: Will Retherford Co-Creator & Writer: Jess Tardy Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin