Individual Therapy for Recovery From Religious Trauma & High-Control Groups
Available to Clients in TX, NC, CA and NY.
Sara J. Giles, MSW, LCSW, BCD
You’re not imagining it—this may be one of the most difficult experiences you’ve ever lived through. Leaving a high-control or abusive religious environment can shake the very foundations of your entire world. Even long after you’ve stepped away, the confusion, fear, and emotional residue can linger. It’s common to question reality itself - and to feel deeply confused.
Therapy can help you find solid ground again.
When the World You Knew Falls Apart
Leaving—or being forced out of—a high-control religious group or cult can completely upend your life. Whether you were shunned, disassociated, disfellowshipped, ex-communicated, pressured out, or chose to walk away, everything you once relied on may now feel unstable. The community that shaped your routines, beliefs, identity, and relationships is suddenly gone. You’re left trying to understand what happened and how to begin again.
You might find yourself:
Struggling with daily tasks or feeling disconnected from your body and emotions
Feeling numb, overwhelmed, or like a fragmented version of who you once were
Replaying events, teachings, or conversations, trying to make sense of it all
Grieving the loss of years spent in an environment that ultimately harmed you
Carrying shame, fear, or confusion around family alienation or community punishment
Feeling destabilized without the structure, rules, or certainty the group once imposed—even if it was unhealthy or abusive
Mourning relationships with loved ones who cut ties due to the group’s demands
Questioning your identity, values, intuition, or ability to trust yourself
Healing after coercive control is not linear. Some days you may feel strong and clear; other days grief, anger, or fear can resurface without warning. The pain is real, and the isolation can be profound—especially when your losses are minimized or misunderstood by others.
You don’t have to navigate this alone.
Finding Steady Ground Again
Our work together will focus on understanding the total impact of your experiences in a high-control or shaming religious environment. There is no pressure to find quick meaning or “move on.” Instead, we move through the grief, confusion, and disruption at a pace that respects your history and supports your healing.
Together, we will develop a thoughtful and individualized path forward—one that helps you:
Process the losses you’ve endured with clarity, dignity, and self-compassion
Untangle the complex mix of grief, anger, shame, and confusion
Understand how internalized fear, doctrine, or punishment-based teachings may still be affecting your thoughts and emotions
Hold space for the unanswered questions without allowing them to overshadow your growth
Rebuild a sense of identity rooted in your values, your needs, and your emerging personal beliefs—not in the rules or expectations imposed by the group
For many survivors, the environment included manipulation, guilt and blame, gaslighting, spiritual coercion, sexual or physical abuse, or punitive practices such as shunning, disfellowshipping, or family alienation.
If these experiences are part of your story, we will explore them with care and clinical precision. Your healing deserves the support of a therapist who is experienced in this area and genuinely understands what you’ve lived through.
It’s Time to Get Back What was Taken from You - Your Time, Your Energy, Your Life
Let’s Start the Healing Process
You don’t have to keep carrying this pain alone. Therapy can offer a steady hand, a clear path, and a space to breathe again.
If you’re ready to begin, I’m here.