Andrew Kerbs

Practitioner,  He/Him/His

SPECIALTIES

• I support those who are going through Deconstruction, Religious Trauma, life transitions, identity, and existential issues, healing from Purity Culture and Adverse Religious Experiences, and engage in grief work with my clients.

• I meet with individuals: children age 6 and above, teens, and adults!

• My flat rate for sessions is $165

Growing up in a fundamentalist religion, including going to a religious school, taught me that to truly love Jesus I needed to be persecuted, that the world would hate me and I needed to be prepared to ‘lay down my life’, even being killed for my faith—and if I wasn’t ready to do that, it meant I wasn’t a real Christian, didn’t love Jesus enough and possibly wasn’t even saved. This caused immense amounts of anxiety and trauma from the time I was a small child. After high school I made the “rebellious” decision to go to a state school instead of a religious school and began my deconstruction process; graduate school brought along even more of my own healing and I realized that doing my own healing work was the only way that I could help others heal.  

Though I am still unpacking my conservative Christian background, I am able to use my personal experiences in a professional setting to help others heal from their own trauma. I enjoy working with young and middle-aged adults who are working through their own existential issues that are having an impact on their daily life and functioning—which often includes trauma and other aspects of identity as they deconstruct from their faith of origin and process adverse religious experiences. While I utilize a variety of approaches, I gravitate toward Internal Family Systems, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Grief work and somatic-based trauma modalities to work with my clients. One of the ways I have found to be helpful for myself and my clients to get back into the body is through Brazilian Jiu Jitsu which I consider both a spiritual and healing practice. 

I enjoy reading non-therapy books (like history, theology, fiction, and poetry), writing, chatting with folks in my online community and am known to re-watch the Lord of the Rings Trilogy (extended edition only!) many times over!

I love motorcycles and a good IPA beer—especially since my childhood church frowned harshly upon it! When the weather allows, I enjoy snowboarding, backpacking, and all things wilderness related!

Some of the resources that have been helpful for me in my own healing journey include: The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini  as it had a profound impact on me and my relationship with my father. Also, the book Things Might Go Terribly, Horribly Wrong by Kelly Wilson which helped me both professionally and personally as it’s written by one of the leading researchers and practitioners in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. And of course, everything Brene Brown has ever said or written!

• Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Lenoir-Rhyne University (2017)

  
  

  
  

  
  

Instagram

@deconstruct_everything

Daniel Miller

 Practitioner, He/Him/His

SPECIALTIES

• My clients are typically dealing with religious trauma and adverse religious experiences, faith deconstruction, legacies of purity culture, LGBTQ+ identity, allyship, and parenting, loss of social community and shared meaning, transitions within or out of professional ministry positions, and changing experiences of masculinity. I collaborate with my clients to help them find ways to process their trauma so they can be “at home” in their own bodies and the world around them, leading daily lives that are meaningful and fulfilling. I take their lead, tailoring our work together around their aims and goals.

• I meet with individual adults as well as LGBTQ+ teens and their parents.

• My flat rate for sessions is $165

I grew into adolescence and adulthood fully immersed in the subculture of American evangelicalism, and I was a true believer. I sought to live the kind of life and be the kind of person, in all dimensions, that my religious tradition told me I should. I received my undergraduate degree from a sectarian college affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, went on to earn a ministerial degree (the Master of Divinity) from a Southern Baptist seminary, and served as a pastor in a conservative evangelical church in Seattle, WA, for five years.

Over the course of my time as a pastor, I became disillusioned with evangelicalism. The two most decisive reasons for this were my affirmation of issues related to social justice, and my affirmation of LGBTQ+ individuals and communities. I abandoned evangelicalism almost twenty years ago and pursued additional academic studies, first in theology and later in the very different field of religious studies, eventually earning my Ph.D. from Syracuse University.

This background provided me with an intimate understanding of the complexities of religious identity and its effects (positive and negative) on individuals, society, and culture, as both a former “insider” and as an “outsider” with the critical tools necessary to analyze these issues. A few years ago, reflecting my desire to use this background and these skills to help others in a more concrete way, I co-founded the podcast Straight White American Jesus. My work on the podcast increasingly brought me into contact with others who had been traumatized within different religious subcultures (for example, American evangelicalism, Mormonism, conservative Catholicism). It is through this show and my role with CTRR that I am able to focus on helping others to understand the dynamics of American religious and cultural conservatism in relation to politics and culture and recover from their own religious trauma.

When I'm not working and co-hosting a podcast, Straight White American Jesus, you’ll find me enjoying time with my kids, playing video games, and rooting for the Denver Broncos.

Some books I’ve found both insightful and helpful include Shameless: A Sexual Reformation by Nadia Bolz-Webber, Pure: Inside the Evangelical Movement that Shamed a Generation of Young Women and How I Broke Free by Linda Kay Klein, Beyond Trans: Does Gender Matter? by Heath Fogg Davis, White Too Long: The Legacy of White Supremacy in American Christianity by Robert P. Jones, In an Unspoken Voice by Peter Levine, and The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk.

• Bachelor of Arts in Religion, Oklahoma Baptist University (1998)

• Master of Studies in Theology, Oxford University (2001)

• Master of Philosophy in Religion, Syracuse University (2005)

• Doctor of Philosophy in Religion, Syracuse University (2008)

• Certification in Clinical Trauma Professional Training Levels and 1 and 2 (2022)

  
  

• Straight White American Jesus Podcast, Co-Host

• Instagram: @straightwhitejc

• Twitter: @straightwhitejc

Sherah Pettus

Associate Practitioner, She/Her/Hers

SPECIALTIES

I love supporting:

• PKs and church leadership kids

• Dating/sex after purity culture

• Marriage during/after deconstruction

• Grief

• Reconnecting to self

• Boundaries

• I see individual adults.

• My flat rate for sessions is $135

I am not really sure I can say I actually deconstructed in the traditional sense (if there is one). I started waking up to my own oppression in the church spaces I had been a part of my entire life. Which feels like saying a lot because I feel like I exist in some of the most privileged spaces because I am a fairly good looking white woman. I started becoming more educated on patriarchy, the sexual binary, misogyny, capitalism, racism, fat phobia, systemic oppression, and white privilege. 

My ability to see patterns began to expose to me the harm occurring in the churches and ministries I had grown up in and I was a part of. Through this my faith did change in a massive way. In a liberating way. In a social justice kind of way. As I continue my education around these things, it is my honor to get to work with those who are also on their way out into freedom even when that means exiting the Christian faith.

This process has given me a unique approach to healing by identifying patterns, integrating boundaries, redefining self-care, and exploring the true meaning of self-trust. I believe that the foundation for living a big, beautiful life is healing our relationships with ourselves.

“You can never know everything and part of what you know is always wrong. Perhaps even the most important part. A portion of wisdom lies in knowing that. A portion of courage lies in going on anyway” - Lan Mandragoran, Wheel of Time

My favorite day is cool and crisp, with a bit of rain, so I can curl up in a cozy blanket among my plants and read the latest Sarah J Maas book. I adore fantasy fiction, comfy clothes, and cool weather. I have over 15 plants that are slowly becoming an obsession, and they are climbing the walls of my home. When I have the time, I enjoy cooking and trying new foods.

I am a sucker for a personality test, so here are mine: Myers/Briggs: INTJ Enneagram: 5, DISC: CD

Some of my favorite resources include: 

Books : Set Boundaries, Find Peace by Nedra Tawwab; The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work by Dr. John Gottman, PhD; The Great Sex Rescue by Sheila Gregoire; Rootbound: A Mothers Journey, A Daughters Pain by Melanie and Amanda Huggard.

• Central Baptist College – AA in Counseling (2003)

• Christ for the Nations Institute – AA in Practical Theology (2008)

• Internship at Vancouver BC Stream Ministries – Certificate of Completion (2010)

• Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry -  Certificate of Completion (2016)

• Simpson University - BA of Psychology (2019)

• National University - MA in Marriage and Family Therapy Spring (2025)

Kim Johnson

Associate Practitioner, She/Her/Hers

SPECIALTIES

• I support individuals navigating childhood trauma, religious disorientation and/or faith crisis/deconstruction/deconversion and those going through life transitions. Grief work, meaning-making and existential-anxiety support are a few of my favourite territories. I'm a great fit for creatives, deep-feelers, HSPs and heart-centered folk who yearn to cultivate a grounded life and spirituality uncoupled from their previous adverse religious experiences. I have experience with prophetic culture and purity culture.

• I see individual adults.

• My flat rate for sessions is $135 and I have a sliding scale ranging from $40-100

I didn't grow up in a religious household, but the summer I turned ten, Billy Graham was preaching on my grandmother's television set. Without being born again, he said, we were hell-bound, but with a simple prayer, we would be spared. He called it "The Good News", but it sounded like terrible news to me. I looked around the living room to see if anyone else found his words appalling, but my grandmother and my uncle were both nodding in agreement. On the TV screen, I watched as droves of people got up out of their seats to go forward to receive salvation (years later, I learned that many of those people were hired by the marketing team). In that moment, I made a decision: I must be the one who's wrong. I said the prayer, repeating silently after Billy, and thus began my life as a church-going, "on-fire", "plugged-in" Christian. Sunday School teacher at 16, worship leader at 18, youth pastor at 20, internationally-distributed worship leader and recording artist by my mid-20s. Somehow I'd gone all in without even realizing that the foundation of my belief system was fear and shame. Because of this, I was also numb to the other ways religion was violating me and others. When it all reached a tipping point at age 26 and my faith crisis-ed, my world opened and also crumbled.

My healing path has been about tending to the little me who didn't run screaming from my grandmother's living room that day, but instead, succumbed to self-abandonment. A life-altering depression and the birth of my first daughter became an open door into my own deepest experience. But as the years went by, I found that the harms were still imprinted somewhere inside me. I was diagnosed with c-PTSD and suffered severe chronic fatigue. My marriage collapsed. Deeper healing began when I started practicing yoga (despite the stern warnings of Mark Driscoll!) and began to understand the data my body was giving to me. I learned to soften around constriction, befriend the terrible feelings and trust myself again. Slowly, my trauma began to thaw.

My own journey to reclaim my life inspires me to hold space for others navigating similar tender terrain. Using the tools of somatic embodiment, I help clients reconnect with their inner-knowing, address past wounds, and build inner resilience. I also incorporate other healing practices when called for, such as expressive writing, guided meditation and simple ritual.

I live on an island on the wild west coast of Canada. I'm the mother of two nearly-grown daughters and the owner of two cats and one sweet Bernese Mountain dog. I spend time every day in the forest and near the river or the ocean. I recently discovered the term "ecstatic wanderer" and I consider myself one. In my free time I write and perform music under the name Kim June Johnson and play with cyanotype printing. I teach yoga and mindfulness in my small community. During the winter, I host an online writing-practice gathering called "Cozy Sunday Write-Ins".

Some of my favorite resources include:

Books: "The Way of Integrity" by Martha Beck, "Women Who Run With the Wolves: Myths and Stories of the Wild Woman Archetype" by Clarissa Pinkola Estes, "Faith: Trusting Your Own Deepest Experience" by Sharon Salzberg, the grief-ritual work of Francis Weller (his book "The Wild Edge of Sorrow" is always on-hand), the work of Byron Katie and the creative recovery work of Julia Cameron, author of "The Artist's Way".

• Certified Yoga Therapist (C-IAYT)

• Certified Practitioner of Focalizing (CPF)

• Integrative Somatic Parts Work Certificate

Instagram

@healing.ground.embodiment

CTRR Blog

Hello Dear Body

To Journey and Be Transformed: Three Books That Helped

Claycie Gerlt

Experience Intern, She/Her/Hers

SPECIALTIES

• I support those navigating: Complex trauma (including religious trauma), Faith and Religious Deconstruction, Grief and loss, Connection with self, Purity culture, and Anxiety

• I work with adult individuals

I grew up in a small midwestern town right in the middle of the Bible belt, where the Christian faith was interwoven into every aspect of life. Religion and church spaces provided me with safety, certainty, and answers for the tumult that was going on in my own life and family as a child and really, for answers to all of life’s questions. 

In my 30s, I started becoming more acutely aware that many folks in religious spaces did not reflect God’s love and kindness that drew me into my faith as a teenager. Instead, I observed judgment, exclusion, and a lack of understanding and compassion. A social worker through and through, this began to gnaw at me, and reached a peak around the 2016 election. As it did for so many, this kickstarted my deconstruction journey, and during the pandemic I decided to begin my own therapy journey to unpack childhood trauma, purity culture, and the performance mentality I had lived in for much of my life. Through this process, I learned just how disconnected I was from my own sense of self and body, and struggled to even identify my own emotions. After a couple of years of my own therapy work (I’m still a work in progress!) and diving into books, podcasts, and research related to religious trauma, I was motivated by my own healing journey to make a pivot in my social work career and become a therapist, which I have found deeply fulfilling.

Both my professional and personal experiences shape my work with clients, and I love helping those I work with make connections that can aid in helping them find understanding, compassion, and safety within themselves. I work with clients in a collaborative, relational way, working together to find the approaches that are the best fit for each individual’s experiences.

​​I utilize several different therapy techniques, but my favorite approaches involve using Parts Work (Internal Family Systems) as well as EMDR Interventions and Techniques, exploring core beliefs, values and acceptance work, and developing internal safety and nervous system regulation through mindfulness practices. I feel it is a great honor to hold space and create safety for the sharing of one’s story and all of the ups and downs of the healing process.

I’m learning to find pleasure and joy in the small things in life during the phase of life I’m in (mom of two busy kids), as free time isn’t as plentiful as it once was. These days, I enjoy a good meal out at local restaurants, walks with my dog, enjoying drinks and chill time on the back patio with my husband, musical theater, and finding meaning in whatever Taylor Swift album I happen to be into. I love watching my kids experience new things, I deeply connect with music, would live by the ocean if I could, and am slightly obsessed with our shih-tzu, Dexter. I love biking on local trails when time allows, and this is my favorite way to exercise and experience nature. I often devour a good bingeable podcast or series documentary and consider Lost to be the best TV show ever and am always ready to re-watch it!

Podcasts were an instrumental part of my own journey - hearing stories from people outside of the circle I had been a part of for so long helped me see different perspectives and made everything feel less isolating and more validating on my own journey. Some impactful ones for me are: 

• I Was a Teenage Fundamentalist with Brian McDowell and Troy Waller, 

• Indoctrination with Rachel Bernstein, and 

• The Phil Drysdale Show with Phil Drysdale

• Straight White American Jesus with Daniel Miller and Bradley Onishi, 

• Good Christian Fun with Kevin T. Porter and Caroline Ely

• Why Knowing More About Grief Can Make it Suck Less - TEDx Talk by Lisa Keefauver

• Grief is a Sneaky Bitch with Lisa Keefauver

Books that have been impactful to me include: 

• Pure by Linda Kay Klein

• Leaving the Fold by Marlene Winell

• Jesus and John Wayne by Kristin Kobes Du Mez

• Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents by Lindsay Gibson

• When Religion Hurts You by Dr. Laura Anderson

• Atlas of the Heart by Brene Brown

• Master of Social Work, University of Missouri-Columbia, 2009

• Licensed Clinical Social Worker, 2012

• EMDR trained including intensives and consultations

• Certified Clinical Trauma Professional

Craig Mendoza

Experience Intern, He/Him/His

SPECIALTIES

• Helping clients navigate the complex emotional and psychological effects of religious trauma, such as feelings of guilt, shame, fear, and identity confusion that often arise from these experiences.

• Former ministry professionals, people leaving high-control religions, faith crisis/deconstructing individuals and couples, marriage/relationships during & after deconstruction.

• Establishing healthy boundaries, Rebuilding self-worth, reclaiming autonomy after long-term indoctrination.

• Individuals dealing with chronic anxiety or depression.

• I work with adult individuals and couples, adolescents, and families.

I didn’t grow up in a religious household but during high school, I was drawn to Christianity through the influence of Christian metal music. I never connected with a church until I went to college. In college, I joined a campus ministry, but what I didn’t realize at the time was that this group could be perfectly described as a high-control religion.

In this ministry, I quickly found myself immersed in their teachings and eventually became a staff member, serving for almost four years. Eventually, I began to notice troubling aspects of their doctrine and the rigidity with which they controlled people’s lives—from their thoughts to their relationships. The sense of community and belonging I initially felt was replaced with deep internal conflict as I wrestled with the teachings and the ways they conflicted with my own values.

The hardest part of my journey was deconstructing my beliefs while still being in an environment that discouraged any form of questioning. After much reflection, I made the difficult decision to leave the ministry, even though it meant losing the community and structure I had been part of for years.

Leaving was the beginning of my healing process. I spent a lot of time unpacking the emotional and spiritual impact of being in a high-control religion. Part of the journey included selling my belongings, buying a van and traveling across the country. I worked through the shame and guilt that often accompanies religious trauma and learned how to rebuild my identity outside of the church. This journey is what inspired me to help others through their own healing, especially those who feel trapped or hurt by toxic religious environments.

Now, I use my personal experience to empathize deeply with my clients and help them process their own religious trauma in a safe, validating space. I understand firsthand how difficult and liberating it can be to leave a high-control religious group, and my journey has made me passionate about supporting others as they reclaim their own lives.

One of my biggest passions and stress relief is baking. I have a massive sweet tooth and bread obsession so I try to bake at least once a week. I also love to travel and have driven across the country in my old '95 Volkswagen van. I have two gray cats that love to boss me around and they have my wife and me wrapped around their fingers.

Some resources that have been helpful for me:

Podcasts

• Data Over Dogma - Dan McClellan and Dan Beecher

• Freedom From Spiritual Abuse - Natalie Kember

• Holy Heretics - Gary Alan Taylor

• Holy Hurt - Hillary L. McBride

• Uncertain - Katherine Spearing

Books

• How Jesus Became God by Bart Ehrman

• Emotionally Healthy Spirituality by Peter Scazzero

• Bachelor of Arts in Study of Religion, UCLA, 2017

• Master of Social Work, California Baptist University, 2024

Terri Allred

Practitioner, She/Her/Hers

SPECIALTIES

• Co-occurring religious, relational and sexual trauma; clergy misconduct; somatic and energy healing; uncovering and re-patterning unconscious beliefs that block healing; integrating self-compassion into healing; establishing compassionate boundaries.

• I work with adult individuals.

With deep personal and professional experience in navigating religious trauma, I bring a unique and empathetic perspective to trauma recovery. Raised in high-control religious environments, I learned to equate my personal value with self-sacrifice and the suppression of my own needs. During high school, a sexual assault intensified this trauma, and I struggled in silence, shaped by religious teachings that compounded my shame and isolation. As a leader in Young Life, I witnessed how manipulation and coercive tactics were used to control individuals, fueling my questioning of traditional religious systems.

My academic journey enabled me to deconstruct dualistic views of women, patriarchal religious structures, and the misuse of religious texts to justify violence. Throughout my career, I have served as a crisis counselor, medical and legal advocate, and therapist, working with both survivors and perpetrators of abuse. I specialize in helping individuals who have experienced religious, relational, and sexual trauma. 

I offer a trauma-informed approach to coaching that helps my clients heal and grow in a safe and supportive way. My work with clients focuses on calming the nervous system (somatic regulation), helping them understand their emotions and experiences with compassion, and managing their energy to avoid feeling overwhelmed. Together, we work to explore intuition, work through limiting beliefs, and establish healthy and supportive boundaries. I support individuals through the often painful but transformative process of healing from religious and spiritual trauma, helping them reconnect with their inner strength, develop self-compassion and a personal sense of empowerment, and create lasting change in their life.

A few of my favorite early-career resources were: 

• Is Nothing Sacred?  by Marie Fortune

• Touching Our Strength by Carter Heyward 

• Models of God by Sallie McFague

A few of my favorite recent resources were: 

• What Happened to You by Bruce D. Perry, MD, PhD and Oprah Winfrey

• Anchored: How to Befriend Your Nervous System Using Polyvagal Theory by Deb Dana 

• Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself by Kristen Neff PhD

I love water… being in it, hearing it, seeing it.

I have 4 children. Two are furry. 

I dance in the kitchen, grocery store, and pretty much anywhere.

I love ice cream. Mint chocolate chip if I had to choose.

I find joy in both traveling and staying at home to snuggle my furry kids. I am typically reading between six to eight books at a time.  I just retired from a 20-year career as a professional belly dancer. I like to throw pottery…on the wheel, not at things.

• Bachelor of Arts, Religion, Wake Forest University, 1988

• Master of Theological Studies, Vanderbilt Divinity School, 1992

• Neuro-Linguistic Programming and Hypnosis Practitioner Certificate from The Alchemy Institute, 2023

• Reiki Master Teacher of the Usui Tradition, 2024

• Enneagram Certification, 2022

• The Resilient Heart ™ Trauma-Sensitive Heart Math ® Certification, 2023

• Complex Trauma Training, Therapy Wisdom  (with Bessell van der Kolk and Linda Thai), 2023

Instagram

@allred_coaching_consulting

Facebook

Allred Consulting/Holistic Leadership Academy

Bethany Peake

Practitioner, She/Her/Hers

SPECIALTIES

• I have extensive experience supporting individuals with trauma and complex trauma, including childhood trauma and experiences within high-control religious environments. I approach each person as unique and deserving of deep compassion and unconditional positive regard, making my approach highly person-centered and individualized.

• I am trained in Internal Family Systems, a modality that I find deeply effective in fostering healing. I also integrate insights from Attachment Theory to help clients develop internal security. Additionally, my research on the effects of patriarchal systems on religious ideology informs my understanding of their harmful impact, allowing me to guide clients toward healing and new, empowering ways of relating to themselves and the world.

• I meet with adult individuals and couples.

I remember the moment I accepted I had been traumatized in the context of religion. I was hiking alone, struggling with anxiety, internal rage, and self-criticism, wondering why I couldn’t align what I knew cognitively—“I am safe, I am good, I am lovable”—with my physical sensations and emotions. As a therapist, I had worked with trauma survivors but hadn’t recognized my own experiences as trauma until that day. I suddenly understood that the fear, dread, and survival responses I felt were rooted in memories—both explicit and implicit—growing up in rigid, controlling religious environments. These environments taught me to fear eternal punishment, view myself as fundamentally flawed, and internalize shame about my body through Purity Culture. This manifested in disordered eating and internal conflict over my desire to lead, while growing up with beliefs that limited women’s roles in leadership.

At 18, I left a full-ride scholarship to attend a Bible school connected to a ministry later exposed for spiritual and sexual abuse. In this environment, I witnessed how prophetic narratives were used to manipulate and control. I eventually left in my early twenties and began to question and reorient my beliefs. Although my perspectives deeply changed, the trauma lingered. That day on the mountain, naming my experiences as trauma was profound and allowed me to begin a more embodied healing journey. My healing journey has felt like a homecoming—a return to a place of safety and wisdom within myself that I didn’t realize I carried.

Engaging in self-compassion and embodied spiritual practices has allowed me to find safety and security internally, rather than looking for this security outwardly in rigid, black and white fundamentalist systems (both religious and non-religious). This journey has been filled with pain and grief, but it has also been rich with goodness and beauty. This experience has made me passionate about providing a safe, welcoming, non-judgmental space for others to explore their own stories of trauma, grief, and healing. I believe deeply in the possibility of healing because I have experienced it myself.

I love mountains and so enjoy hiking and camping and being immersed in nature. I thought I was an introvert for most of my life, but have recently realized I am actually a shy extrovert! I love being with people, but I also love a good solid day to myself filled with reading, researching, and being outside. I love to bake anything with a lot of carbs (and have an admittedly naive and romanticized dream of owning a bakery)- but I hate cooking! I am married to my best friend. We met when we were 16, and we have evolved, changed, and grown together. I also have three incredible kids who fill me with so much joy and love I can sometimes barely contain myself. 

Some of the most influential healing resources that I recommend to people:

• Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself by Kristen Neff 

• The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk 

• Richard Rohr's books, particularly The Universal Christ and Falling Upward 

• This AND That by David Benner

• Secure Relating by Sue Marriott and Ann Kelley

• The Wisdom of Your Body by Hilary McBride

• No Bad Parts by Richard Schwartz

• Beyond Shame: Creating A Healthy Sex Life on Your Own Terms by Matthias Roberts. 

• Transcending Trauma: Healing Complex PTSD with Internal Family Systems Therapy by Frank Anderson

• Pure: Inside the Evangelical Movement that Shamed a Generation of Young Women and How I Broke Free by Linda Kay Klein

• Shameless: A Case for Not Feeling Bad About Feeling Good (About Sex) by Nadia Bolz-Weber.

• Learning to See Podcast with Brian McClaren

• On Being Podcast with Krista Tippet

• Therapist Uncensored Podcast with hosts Sue Marriott and Ann Kelley

Holy Hurt Podcast with Hilary McBride.

• Bachelors of Science in Human Development and Family Studies, Colorado State University 2014

• Masters of Arts in Mental Health Counseling, Colorado Christian University 2018

• Currently a doctoral candidate exploring the connection between attachment theory and God image formation

Elizabeth DeVaughn

Practitioner, She/Her/Hers

SPECIALTIES

• Complex and religious trauma

• Domestic violence and dynamics of power & control in relationships

• Boundaries

• Anxiety

• Family of origin issues

• Vystopia (the PTSD, anxiety, depression, and feelings of rage and helplessness a new vegan can experience as they perceive living in a dystopic world that exploits and abuses animals and the Earth)

• Exploring forms of spirituality outside of religion

• Interabled relationships

• I work with adult individuals

My healing journey began over fifteen years ago, when I was feeling increasingly debilitated by shame, ruminating thoughts, perfectionism, suicidal ideations, self-harm, social anxiety, strained relationships, and panic attacks that made it hard to function.  Through therapy, I began to unravel how my personal trauma of enmeshment, instability, and power and control in relationships led to these manifestations.  Through compassionate parts work, cognitive techniques and body-based interventions, I began to find healing and pattern change.  I learned that I myself was not dysfunctional; rather, my body brilliantly helped me survive my circumstances.

Slowly, I learned how to cultivate deep, fulfilling relationships rooted in reciprocity, accountability, and resilience. I found that life-giving relationships require seeing each person as distinct and valid, building capacity to navigate the inevitable conflicts in a way that promotes safety, and embracing the messy, imperfect process of repair. This journey has been life-altering in the best way, creating availability within me for more secure, joyful attachments than I thought possible.

Over a decade ago, as I started working with domestic violence victims, I also began questioning the religious establishments I was entrenched in. What was touted as love started to seem more like power-over dynamics. I couldn't help but see links between the power and control my clients were experiencing in relationships and macro-level power and control in many religious institutions.This led me down a path that I'm still very much on, which is deconstructing power and control systems on micro and macro levels.

Today, my deconstruction journey has led me to an eco-feminist path of deep intersectionality, with the goal of doing everything I can to further liberation of all beings. From deconstructing my own internalized white supremacy, to a vicarious trauma that led me to ethical veganism, I am more committed than ever to helping people heal the deepest root cause of internalized power and control structures that perpetuate traumatic relationships. 

When working with clients,  I use modalities like Somatic Experiencing, Internal Family Systems, attachment, experiential, nature-based, and art techniques. My guiding principle is Sovereignty—in stark contrast to fundamentalism, I believe that each person knows exactly what's right for them, and that no one should ever have authority over them. I consider my job as a coach to simply help my client discover and trust the True North they already have within them.

Obsessions: Halloween, witchy crafts, cats, being outside, morning coffee on the porch with my husband, WhatsApp rants with my besties

Favorite shows: True Blood, Cobra Kai, The Office, Schitt's Creek, The Golden Girls

Fun facts / truths: 

• I would much rather be hiking than doing pretty much anything else. 

• My cat and I take walks together every day.

• My husband and I live as an interabled couple and we're staunch advocates for disability rights. 

• I'm a very social introvert (meaning I get pumped for social plans the week before, then panic and try to get out of it the day of)

• Sarcasm is my love language.

• My favorite day would start with an early morning hike with my cat, connecting with Spirit with tea/coffee on a porch with a view, then a witches tea party with badass womxn, rounding it out with crafts, vegan cheesecake, and a few episodes of The Golden Girls.  In bed at a reasonable hour.

Some of my favorite resources include: 

Books: 

• Waking the Tiger by Dr. Peter Levine

• My Grandmother's Hands by Dr. Resmaa Menakem

• What it Takes to Heal by Prentis Hemphill

• It Didn't Start with Me by Mark Wolynn

• In Defense of Witches by Mona Chollet

• The Flesh and the Fruit by Dr. Vanya Leilani

• Decolonizing Therapy by Dr. Jennifer Mullan

• The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben

• Women Who Run with the Wolves by Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés

• Polyvagal Exercises for Safety and Connection by Deb Dana

• Parts Work by Thomas Holmes

• Mary Magdalene Revealed by Megan Watterson

• Eastern Body Western Mind by Anodea Judith

• Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology, Western Kentucky University, 2006

• Master of Arts degree in Counseling, Trevecca Nazarene University, 2013

• Somatic Experiencing® Practitioner in Training, Beginning Level II

• Level II Trained in Emotionally Focused Therapy for Couples

• Level II Trained in EMDR

• Trained in Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Website: www.elizabethdevaughn.com

Instagram: @elizabethmdevaughn

Tami Widmer

Practitioner, She/Her/Hers

SPECIALTIES

• Deconstruction & identity recovery, complex trauma, depression, eating disorders, parenthood/postpartum care, LGBTQ+ folks, military personnel/veterans and/or their partners

• I meet with adult individuals and couples

After 25 years of being an “All-Star Christian”—raised in the church, deeply invested in my spirituality, with a Bible degree in hand and plans to be a missionary—I grew tired. Tired of over-serving, of being a flawless example, and of imposed limits because I am a woman. While earning my graduate degree in counseling, I realized that the religious dogma I once internalized began to feel like it was choking me. Simultaneously, I was experiencing personal losses – so when it felt like life was unraveling, I began therapy to explore the pain I was experiencing in the religious system. Through this process the tiny, perfect box that my life once fit in, blew open and the former right answers and assurances I previously clung to were no longer available to me. My process of deconstruction did not feel like a conscious choice, but instead a response to the gradual, intuitive movements of my soul. As I opened my heart to the world and myself for the first time, I outgrew my Christian worldview. Now, nearly a decade after my faith began dissolving, I am still healing and discovering the Wild (natural and free) woman within.

My own journey inspires my work with my clients. If you feel like you’ve lost part of your soul and are ready to recover hidden treasures that were there all along, I will voyage with you. If you are tired of sleepwalking—going through the motions of life, and want more out of life, I will explore with you. If your heart is broken and you’re not sure how to heal it, I’ll stand by you as it mends. If you have been hurt by religious systems, leaders, or entities and need someone to enter that space with you, I will help you find the safety to do that. Or if you don’t even know where to begin, if life feels scary and unknown—you are in the right place. I enjoy working with clients who are or have experienced Trauma, adverse religious experiences (including repressed femininity, toxic masculinity, shame culture, etc.), eating disorders, loss and bereavement, depression, veterans and partners of veterans, LGBTQ+ folks and parents (such as moms needing postpartum support). In our sessions, I pay attention to emotional and bodily cues and encourage nonjudgmental curiosity about whatever issue, emotion, or topic you are dealing with. This approach (called Internal Family Systems) allows you to create a healing relationship with yourself, which is the foundation for resilience in your external world. Previous clients tell me they experience genuine warmth and empathy in our relationship. I am here to support your journey as each individual is unique.

Outside of work, I'm a married mother of 3, so there is never a dull moment. I feel most alive when I am outdoors, hiking and breathing. I also love painting, a good cup of coffee, training for triathlons, doing my own therapy/holistic growth (yes, I find this fun!), traveling, and a glass of wine with some Netflix & chill.

Some of the resources that have been influential in my own healing journey include: time, nature, camaraderie with friends on similar journeys, IFS training and therapy, poetry (David Whyte, John O'Donohue), The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron, Belonging by Toko-pa Turner, and Bill Plotkin’s books.

• Master of Arts in Licensed Professional Counseling from Denver Seminary (2013)

CTRR Blog

• You Are Good

• From Fawning to Freedom: How Religious Trauma Can Impact Women

Casey Bain

Practitioner, She/Her/Hers

SPECIALTIES

• I specialize in working with clients who are looking to connect more fully to their authentic self after going through experiences like deconstruction, religious trauma, and/or childhod trauma. My specialties include working with anxiety, OCD, impacts from trauma, or impacts from being LGBTQ+ in a non-affirming environment.

• I meet with adolescents and adult individuals.

• My flat rate for sessions is $165

I have always been a big feeler, so even as a kid I always felt aware and connected to the hurt and sadness in the world alongside the joy. Growing up in Evangelical Christianity, I experienced comfort and connection through my faith, but also experienced the harm of things like purity culture and the extreme pressure to be a certain way. I've been going through my own deconstruction process over the past few years, shedding parts of religion I began realizing were harmful and even causing trauma in people's lives. I did a deep dive into understanding religious trauma and healthy spirituality, and have become passionate about learning how to become more fully myself, and to trust my body and intuition. When it comes to my work as a therapist, my first experience with therapy was as a client myself, working on healing some of my past wounds. It was an incredible experience, and I fell in love with the therapy process, and am now so grateful to be able to do the same kinds of healing work with clients that I’ve experienced myself. Going deep into people's stories, hurt, and spiritual experiences feels like a natural outpouring of who I am and how I connect with others.

The experiences I have had in my own upbringing serve as an inspiration for the people I get to work with. Though I have had experience working with many different individuals, I find myself gravitating toward young adults and women as well as individuals who are exploring childhood trauma. I also enjoy working with individuals who are deconstructing and healing from church hurt and religious trauma stemming from evangelical and fundamentalist forms of Christianity, as well as those who are exploring sexuality. I use various modalities to work with people such as embodiment and internal family systems (IFS). I absolutely love working with kids and parents in addition to working with trauma.

When I am not working, you’ll probably find me drinking coffee while reading my newest book, or finding a new TV show to binge—usually with a glass of wine in hand! I love routine, and creating rhythms for day-to-day life that help me connect to my own spirituality- like reading, being outside, moving my body, and spending time with the people I love.

I also enjoy exploring the world through traveling to new places, going on long walks with my dog, Milo, doing yoga, paddleboarding, and spending time outside anytime it's warm. On weekends my partner and I love having other couples over for games and drinks, and we like doing home projects together. 

Some of the resources that have been of particular influence on me are: The Universal Christ by Richard Rohr, Shameless by Nadia Bolz-Weber, Finding God in the Waves by Mike McHargue, Untamed by Glennon Doyle, and The Most Beautiful Thing I’ve Seen by Lisa Gungor, as well as The Liturgists podcast.

• Master of Science in Mental Health Counseling from University of North Texas (2018)

• Somatic Experiencing and Internal Family Systems

  
  

  
  

Instagram

@unravelingfree

CTRR Blog

Religious Scrupulosity: When Religious Trauma and OCD Intersect

Nicole Clifton

Associate Practitioner, She/Her/Hers

SPECIALTIES

• I support individuals navigating faith deconstruction, healing from purity culture, LGBTQIA+, religious trauma and adverse religious experiences, life transitions, boundaries work, identity, chronic illness/ableism, and body image.

• I see individual adults.

• My flat rate for sessions is $135

I grew up in the Christian church, incredibly involved, truly the poster child for the “good Christian girl.” - youth group, singing on the worship team, volunteering in ministry, etc. After high school, to take my faith even more seriously, I decided to attend a small Christian college. It was during my undergrad years that the first igniting events of my faith deconstruction occurred, namely some significant changes in my family of origin. I felt like so many Christians “didn’t get it” and could only offer trite clichés, not knowing how to truly enter into my pain and grief with me as I watched my family shift. Through this, I began to wrestle with faith, God, the Bible, theology, and the like.

After under-grad, I worked at another Christian university for almost a decade. In this season during my 20s, my own faith deconstruction continued its slow burn, with the flame getting bigger as the years went on....and as that environment created many opportunities/challenges to wrestle with so many topics. So many of the things that so many of us have struggled with and shifted on - theology around LGBTQIA+ folx, racism in our country and its overlaps in the church/politics, the negative impact of purity culture, diet culture/fatphobia, ableism, the toxic positivity and spiritual bypassing that were rampant in many of the Christian spaces I was in, the presidential elections of 2016/2020, the pandemic, etc.

While I had seen a few other therapists earlier in my 20s to process issues in my marriage around sexuality (many internalized toxic messages due to purity culture), I finally found the right fit with the right therapist in 2018. She helped me truly start to integrate all that I was processing around sexuality & my marriage, and helped me connect that with my deconstruction and the spaces where I had been harmed. We did some significant work (including EMDR), and it helped me find some healing within my own body and shifted how I engaged with my shame.

There is always more healing and more growth to pursue, of course, but there is such a softer, kinder, more compassionate framework for that change now.

I married my college sweetheart and thankfully we deconstructed together, so I'm deeply grateful for the journey we've been on. I LOVE to read and the front room of my house is basically a mini-library. I'm a big Disney and Harry Potter fan. I deeply enjoy a good glass of wine & a piece of cheesecake. I don't have any pets, but watch more nature documentaries than basically anyone I know. I love musical theater and grew up around the performing arts - so I can sing, play piano, used to play violin (and even played in a hand bell choir at church growing up). My comfort re-watch shows include things like Schitt's Creek, Gilmore Girls, Stranger Things, New Girl, Modern Family, The Big Bang Theory, Friends, and Once Upon a Time.

Enneagram - 8w9; Myers-Briggs - INFJ; StrengthsFinder - Input, Empathy, Communication, Developer, Connectedness, Achiever, Learner, Discipline, & Individualization

Some of my favorite resources include :

Music : "Hell Together" by David Archuleta, "You Might Not Like Her" and "If It's Not God" by Maddie Zahm, "Sunday" and "Jordan" by Joy Oladokun, "Woman" by Joy Williams, "Jesus Jesus" by Noah Gunderson, Preacher's Kid by Semler, "Believe Me" by James and the Shame, "I Quit Church" by Matt & Toby, "The Middle" by Audrey Assad, and "Show Yourself" by Idina Menzel

Podcasts: The deconstruction podcast episodes of Ear Biscuits, hosted by Rhett and Link of Good Mythical Morning. (Episodes 226 & 227, 275 & 276)

Books : The Body Is Not An Apology by Sonia Renee Taylor; Daring Greatly by Brene Brown; Secure Love by Julie Mennano; What Doesn't Kill You by Tessa Miller; Untamed by Glennon Doyle; Pure by Linda Kay Klein; Come As You Are by Emily Nagoski

• Master of Science in Psychology from Grand Canyon University (2014)

• Bachelors of Science in Counseling and Ministry from Arizona Christian University (2011)

• Certificate in Somatic Trauma Therapy

Instagram

• @nicoleclifton_inyourcorner

Facebook

• Facebook: Nicole Clifton - AlwaysNYourCorner

CTRR Blog

Ditching "Good Vibes Only:" Healing from Toxic Positivity & Spiritual Bypassing