PTSD

Welcome to De-Commissioned, a place for former members of the Great Commission movement (aka GCM, GCC, GCAC, GCI, the Blitz) to discuss problems they've experienced in the association's practices and theology.

You may read and post, but some features are restricted to registered members. Please consider registering to gain full access! Registration is free and only takes a few moments to complete.

[Cult Proof]

Some of us might have ptsd from our church experience. That is so sad and NOT at all what Jesus desired Christianity to bring to the world. It’s also a clear statement of shame on an organization that says it most accurately follows New Testament Christianity.

In our family of six, half of us have ptsd. Yes, that means one of our four kids has ptsd from church abuse. That’s really sad.  AND I am so proud of her; she can tell you who bullied her and she can tell you with compassion who is truly a nice person but who is trapped.

Some people on this site are from years back. I deeply appreciate their voices of history as they affirm my much more recent experience of abuse and leaving gcc. Together we have a shared history and present; we are a voice of strong evidence that these churches were and remain abusive and even unchrist-like.

If you or someone you know is suffering from ptsd because of church abuse I wanted to offer you this resource. http://www.readingremy.com/spiritual-abuse-post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd/  If you have other resources on ptsd please share them in kindness and sensitivity.

My God bless us, lead us, and heal us.  My His peace and mercy and truth be ours today.

[Janet Easson Martin]

This is copied from Reamy Diederich’s site.  I have made bold some statements that may be of interest to readers here.  It seems this is likely the biggest reason that too many former members of GCx struggle with PTSD when encountering “religious triggers” that take them back to traumatic abuse they once were trapped in.  One painful result is that too many are distressed in hearing some or even all religious jargon.  


Spiritual Abuse and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Posted on September 12, 2017 by F. Remy Diederich

In writing Broken Trust, I purposefully sought out input from survivors of spiritual abuse. As I heard back from these people, they shared a common experience. Many of them were easily triggered by words and experiences that the average believer finds normal.

For example, singing a popular worship song in church, hearing a particular Bible verse quoted, or even being introduced to a pastor might trigger a “fight or flight” response: a sudden panic attack or intense anger. Possibly both.

What I find troubling is the guilt that often accompanies this experience. People often conclude that their negative response to these spiritual inputs mean that something is wrong with them. They must be defective to have such an adverse reaction to a spiritual experience. Maybe they are the problem.

PTSD doesn’t have to come from one powerfully traumatic experience. It can come from the slow drip of the stripping of your dignity that happens with spiritual abuse.

 

Stephen A. Smith blogs about spiritual abuse at libertyforcaptives.com. He wrote an article called, “Crock Pot Trauma” that I recommend you take the time to read. Here is an excerpt from his article:

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV) classifies and describes various anxiety disorders, one of which is post traumatic stress. Part of the classification of post traumatic stress is the reaction to the traumatic event:

Triggered panic attacks
Agoraphobia (fear of being trapped, or loss of control around people)
Avoidance of places or people which remind us of the traumatic event or situation
Restricted expression of affect (difficulty feeling happy or loved)
Depression
Irritability
Trouble with nightmares or lack of sleep
Hypervigilance
Exaggerated startle response
Flashbacks
Inability to function in relationships
Sense of a foreshortened future
Feeling trapped, detached or estranged from other people.

While not every spiritual abuse victim suffers these symptoms, some do. I have experienced all of these symptoms during the past five years—and I know folks from my former church and other cult-like groups who have experienced similar symptoms. Indeed, the church consulting agency that helped our church disband recommended that the church be shut down entirely. They did this because almost every member of the congregation was traumatized when they entered the church building. In a manner of speaking, we were all spiritual POWs now set free. Yet many of us still carry psychological chains.

If you have experienced this kind of abuse, you are not defective. You don’t need fixing. You need healing. Your soul has been ravaged. It’s not your fault, no matter what others say or what you might feel. If you have experienced some kind of spiritual abuse, please consider that you might be suffering from PTSD. It’s a very serious condition that requires outside help from a professional.

[Janet Easson Martin]

I believe PTSD may be more prevalent among former members of GCx than we realized.  Perhaps because we didn’t know what we were struggling with was a common disorder with those who have been spiritual abused.  Maybe we even wrongly thought we just don’t love God enough.  But anxiety and flashback associations triggered by a constant and traumatic stripping of our dignity seem to be the way the depths of our soul recalls and reacts to abuse.  It seems to occur deep within us.  This former GCx member below describes her responses to something that should have been good, but had turned into something oppressively painful.


Since leaving a GC church less than a year ago, I've slowly backed away from most things related to Christianity.  I haven't lost my faith or belief in God, but I don't have a desire to read the Bible, go to church, listen to Christian music, read Christian books, etc...I was heavily involved before leaving (had daily devotions and a regular prayer list, attended multiple Bible studies a week, only listened to Christian music), and I feel like I want/need a break from it all.  I still feel like my relationship with God is strong and I pray almost daily, but everything I read or do related to Christianity seems to remind me of GC teaching (mostly false teaching or at least a little misguided), and I haven't developed the ability to discern/correct the negative thoughts in my head yet.  

Eventually, I would like to become involved in a church again, but I get anxiety when I think about it now.  I hope that these feelings will change as I continue to work through doctrines/beliefs that I now consider to be incorrect or guilt/fear-based (like continually dying to your preferences and "giving up your rights", complete submission to church or husband).
-Brokenyetfree    [left ~ 2012]

[Vince Capobianco]

Jim is answering GCI questions right now on
https://www.facebook.com/JimMcCotterLIVE

[Janet Easson Martin]

The above post of advertisement for McCotter does not represent or support the vast majority of former members of GCx for whom this site was created.


Be wary of false preachers who smile a lot, dripping with practiced sincerity. Chances are they are out to rip you off some way or other. Don’t be impressed with charisma; look for character. Who preachers are is the main thing, not what they say. A genuine leader will never exploit your emotions or your pocketbook. These diseased trees with their bad apples are going to be chopped down and burned.

“Knowing the correct password—saying ‘Master, Master,’ for instance—isn’t going to get you anywhere with me. What is required is serious obedience—doing what my Father wills. I can see it now—at the Final Judgment thousands strutting up to me and saying, ‘Master, we preached the Message, we bashed the demons, our God-sponsored projects had everyone talking.’ And do you know what I am going to say? ‘You missed the boat. All you did was use me to make yourselves important. You don’t impress me one bit. You’re out of here.’  

Matthew 7:15-23     The Message (MSG)

[Huldah]

It's cruel to promote a false teacher on the very forum where so many of the readers have suffered, sometimes severely, under the leadership of that teacher.

There's hope for those who leave the movement. God has not abandoned you. If you need professional help, you're not being "a bad witness." You're a person who's been injured, much like the victim of an assault and robbery. It's just that your injuries aren't visible, and the things you were robbed of are intangible.

I know that some of you who've left are believers, but you no longer feel like you want to believe. That's normal. You don't have to pressure yourself to get right back into church. Take as much time as you need. In my experience, not every Christian will understand what you've been through, and unfortunately, some will be judgmental. But there are safe people out there, and eventually you'll find them. How do you know if they're safe? Well, I don't have an expert answer, but I really appreciated people who had the ability to listen without criticizing me for joining in the first place (I was already being hard enough on myself, thank you very much!) and without feeling the need to solve my spiritual problems immediately or insisting that bounce back immediately. So I guess I'd sum up a safe person as "a good listener, who loves you and treats you with respect."

It's also perfectly normal if you can't read your Bible right away. When you feel ready to read again, consider getting a different translation than you're used to. This really helps if you still hear certain verses in "the voice" of the false teacher, or if certain verses are closely associated with something that really messed with your mind.

If you decided after you left that you never were or no longer are a believer, I'm so sorry that this was your experience of Christianity. I can't say I blame you if you finally decided, "Enough is enough," but what a tragedy that you were turned against Christ by the very people claiming to represent him. I'm so very sorry.