Prisoner of Patriarchal Presbyterian Pedagogy: Alia’s Story

CC image courtesy of Pixabay, Bilder_meines_Lebens. HA note: The author’s name has been changed to ensure anonymity. “Alia” is a pseudonym. I grew up in the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America. It was a small denomination, and I hope it’s getting smaller. In the RPCNA, only preachers and elders could be part of the governing body of the church: and

I Will Listen: Emily Maynard’s Thoughts

“These harmful ideas are hurting real people. Real women. Sitting on my real couch. Unraveling real lives. This isn’t a problem just found in ‘legalism’ or particularly heavy-handed churches. It’s not an ‘out there’ or ‘just find another church’ situation. This is everywhere.”

Mental Health — From Shame to Seeking Help, Part Seven: Lana Hobbs the Brave

“I’m still pretty messed up. I still deal with depression and hypomania. I still struggle with the stigma and other unhealthy ideas from my fundamentalist upbringing. I will always be bipolar, and I might always have to fight against the negative self-beliefs in my brain since childhood. But I will learn to handle them better.”

Mental Health — From Shame to Seeking Help, Part Six: Unashamed of Taking Evil Pills

“I felt like all these people were flocking around me to praise God, without really caring about the state of my mind, body, or heart. They just wanted to hear a testimony. There, with the stress, the frustration at church, and the knowledge my solution was a villified little pill, I had a panic attack in the middle of all those women.”