“The Global Center for Religious Research (GCRR) has established the world’s first and most comprehensive psychiatric research group to study the causes, manifestations, and treatment options for those suffering from religious trauma (RT). GCRR has built a team of approximately 30 licensed psychiatrists, therapists, sociologists, university professors, religion scholars, and Ph.D. candidates from around the world, all who specialize in the field of trauma research.”

Church Abuse Survivors: This is THE. MOST. IMPORTANT step we can take for addressing religious abuse — by helping those in a position to make it a diagnosable condition based on empirical research. When we can diagnose, we can treat. Then there will be resources available in an official capacity, and religious trauma will officially enter into conversations about mental health. The goal post is here — because if we can diagnose religious trauma as child abuse, then the next step is the ability to report it as abuse.

That there is light at the end of this tunnel — especially in an age in which the Moral Majority is clenching its fist around red states to create smaller versions of the theocratic dystopia into which hope to transform the entire country — fills me with such hope. Donate to GCRR’s vital research if you can. And if you cannot — share it with those who may. We can all do our part as a community of survivors to raise awareness about the depths and scope of religious trauma.

I love you. Remember to be kind to yourself and to each other. No matter where you are in your journey right now, remember: you are not broken, you are not fallen, you are not alone, and help is on the way.