Your Faith Has Been Shaken
"The desire to believe is still there."
LDS therapy for faith crisis and religious trauma, in Pleasant Grove, Utah
- Non-judgment and unconditional regard, from the first consultation
- EMDR brought in only when trauma is what is driving the pressure
- An active Latter-day Saint who works the same way with people leaving what they were raised with
- A private practice with no church affiliation; nothing goes to your ward or bishop
You Haven't Said It Out Loud Yet
Not to your spouse. And definitely not to your bishop.
But you carry it with you. This feeling that something is just broken inside you.
You tell yourself you're not going to measure up. You've stopped believing you ever could.
The Pressure's Been There Since the Beginning
A religious upbringing imposes a standard, real or imagined.
You check yourself against it every day, like checking a mirror on your way out the door.
For some people that pressure crossed into trauma, and sometimes into abuse.
Religious trauma is a real thing. And it can be hard to untangle that from your faith and convictions.
Mistakes you've made in the past can begin to feel like permanent character flaws.
What you did and who you are: those are two different questions.
Your Guilt and Your Shame Point Opposite Directions
Guilt is about a thing you did. It points somewhere useful, because you can go address a thing you did.
Shame is a verdict on who you are, and it points nowhere.
Religious pressure collapses the two. It can feel like there's no escape from your mistakes.
Your struggle with addiction stops being a problem you have and becomes who you are. Porn or substances feel like they've permanently tarnished your character.
You can put the shame down and really look at what's behind all that. You can make peace with yourself and your faith.
What Changes with Discernment
Non-judgment is where this begins, and we go at your pace.
- Separate what you've done from who you are.
- Make decisions about faith without the pressure making them for you.
- Talk with your family about belief without it turning into a fight.
- Hold your convictions while releasing the weight of your shame.
How This Work Unfolds
Reduce the Pressure
Non-judgment is the starting point. You’ll have a chance to give me the whole picture, including where faith sits inside it. We’ll assess your unique situation and craft a plan suited to your needs. You decide what goes on it.
Untangle the Past
Trauma treatment comes next, including EMDR if it’s necessary. We’ll address the root cause of the shame with gentle and steady techniques that speak directly to your nervous system, where the trauma lives. What gets addressed is your call.
Peace at Home
Talk therapy follows, and it often extends to family, your spouse in particular. Understanding and resolving trauma is what lets you love the people around you. You choose who else comes in.
Why Trust Me as Your Partner in Healing
EMDR, Brought in Only When It's Needed
EMDR has been my primary trauma treatment for over fifteen years, and I bring it in here when trauma is actually what's driving the pressure.
Inside the Culture, Without an Agenda
As an active member myself, I understand this culture from the inside, and I work the same way with people who are moving away from what they were raised with.
Non-Judgment and Unconditional Regard
Every consultation starts there, and it holds whether you want to strengthen your faith or work out what you actually believe.
- Clinical Mental Health Counselor, Utah
- EMDR
Will you push me to stay, or push me to leave the church?
Neither. I feel strongly about helping people live true to their convictions, and where those convictions land is genuinely yours to work out.
What do you believe yourself?
I'm an active Latter-day Saint myself. The membership is personal and the practice is independent, and what I believe doesn't set the direction of your therapy.
Do I have to be religious to work with you?
No. I apply the same principles with other faiths whenever spiritual support belongs in a clinical conversation.
What if my spouse sees this differently?
That's common, and it's often where the work goes. Talk therapy here frequently extends to family, your spouse in particular, so the disagreement gets addressed instead of avoided.
Is this counseling through my church?
This is my own private practice, with no church affiliation. Nothing you say here goes to your ward, your bishop, or any congregation, and no one is notified that you called.
Live True to What You Actually Believe
The consultation is where we figure out whether the fit is right.
The goal is to live at peace with yourself, your family, and your community, holding beliefs you actually arrived at.
Sessions are billed directly, with superbills provided for out-of-network reimbursement, and costs are explained before the first session.