AES47 Religious Trauma

Religious Trauma Syndrome (RTS) is a group of symptoms that arise in response to traumatic or stressful religious experiences. While Religious Trauma Syndrome is not an official diagnosis in the DSM-5, it is a common experience shared among many who have escaped cults, fundamentalist religious groups, abusive religious settings, or other painful experiences with religion. The symptoms of Religious Trauma Syndrome are comparable to the symptoms of complex PTSD (C-PTSD)

Symptoms commonly experienced by people suffering from Religious Trauma Syndrome :

• Confusing thoughts and reduced ability to think critically
• Negative beliefs about self, others, and the world
• Trouble making decisions
• Feelings of depression, anxiety, grief, anger, lethargy
• A sense of feeling lost, directionless, and alone
• A lack of pleasure or interest in things you used to enjoy
• A loss of a community (family, friends, romantic relationships)
• Feeling isolated or a sense that you don’t belong
• Feeling “behind the times” with cultural happenings
• And many other symptoms of PTSD including nightmares, flashbacks, dissociation, emotional difficulty, etc.

I know a few people with religious trauma, and I also see many people on social media that shared their story on religious trauma. I see most of them usually came from a religiously conservative family, so they feel like their family is forcing them to hold on to a certain religion or belief. So they feel like they don’t have power over their choices, they also feel like their opinion doesn’t matter. Altho sometimes I do see that Indonesia is a “religious” country, we put religion as part of our education by making praying one of our daily routines. 

And sometimes when parents are religiously strict people tend to see that as something that’s positive. But if it gets to the point where the parents start to force their children, that doesn’t really sit right with me. Especially when their children are let’s say the at their teenage years. I think it’s very important to show teenagers that their opinions matter and that they should start forming their own opinions and choices.

picture:https://id.pinterest.com/pin/9288742970604988/