Exploitation

Being used or exploited within a religious or spiritual context

Being manipulated into giving money, labor, or loyalty to a religious organization or leader. Tithing enforced through fear. Being told your salvation or standing depended on what you gave. Financial or labor exploitation dressed in spiritual language.

If some version of this is part of your story, you already know that the hardest part is rarely the memory itself. It is carrying it in a world that mostly does not want to hear about it. This fellowship exists so you do not have to carry it alone, and so you never have to explain it to someone who has no idea what it means.

What can follow an experience like this

No two people carry the same experience the same way. These are some of the effects that people with this experience often describe. Having some of them, all of them, or none of them says nothing about how real what happened to you was.

Complex or ongoing trauma and its effects When trauma happened repeatedly, over a long time, or at the hands of people who were supposed to care for you, the effects go deeper than a single event. Depression Not just sadness. Not knowing who you are, or experiencing multiple parts or identities A self that shifts depending on who you are with. Falling into the same role in every relationship The role you played in your family of origin follows you. Financial devastation or losing everything Financial ruin is often what trauma leaves behind. Not knowing who to trust Trust that was broken, repeatedly, by people who were supposed to be safe. Shame or feeling like something is broken in you Not guilt about something you did. Problems with authority or people in power The original experiences with authority figures, parents, teachers, institutions, abusers, shaping the automatic response to anyone who holds power.

Nothing on this page is a diagnosis, and nothing here decides what is wrong with you, because nothing is wrong with you. Something happened to you. This page exists so that when you are ready, you can find people who understand it from the inside.

You do not have to carry this alone.

Bridge of Hope Recovery is a free, anonymous, peer-led fellowship for trauma survivors. Meetings run throughout the week by phone, by video, and in person. No cost, no waitlist, no one asking for your real name.

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