One hallmark of gaslighting is the denial of what happened, even in the face of proof. Jehovah’s Witnesses are masters of spin, from the organization itself to the individual members of the cult. When you hold something dear and you call it “The Truth”, you need it to be true no matter the cost. Whether it is the denial of their systematic shunning policies, their failed predictions of the end of the world, their denial of the Australian Royal Commission inquiry into child sex abuse and Jehovah’s Witnesses, or any number of things, what happened didn’t really happen if you ask members of the cult. It is easy to claim truth if you deny any challengers to it, and it is easy to feel alone or crazy when you see things that don’t add up and everyone around you acts like you didn’t see what you saw. The denial can cause a person to question their own reality, thus making them more pliable in the face of such control. This is the second in a series where I’ll break down the ways that the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses is actively breaking individuals down, from what they do to why they do it to the real fruitage that it produces in those impacted by it. Learning what it looks like can help us to see remnants that may lie within ourselves, and perhaps even relationships that we may have kept or gravitated toward in our post-cult lives. Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com You can join The Uprising Project and get help with your career, small business, and finances by going to: https://theuprisingproject.com/join/ Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself. An ExJW podcast and ExJW YouTube Channel

Jess grew up between two worlds, the one at her father’s house and the one at her mother’s. Both involved abuse and created much trauma for her, and as a child she would have to choose which home to stay at. That often meant staying at one home until she could no longer tolerate it, and then moving to the next. Add in bullying at school, by other family members, and the destructive cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses, and Jess had to be stronger than she could ever realize to make it through. Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com You can join The Uprising Project and get help with your career, small business, and finances by going to: https://theuprisingproject.com/join/ Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself. An ExJW podcast and ExJW YouTube Channel

On March 15, 2024, Mark Sanderson of the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses gave an update to his cult followers. This comes on the heels of a country like Norway taking the cult to task for their shunning policies, something that most Jehovah's Witnesses likely won't even know happened, and a court case that the JWs lost. As a result, funding was cut for their religion. This announcement of theirs was a lot of deflecting and obfuscating to make it look like they don't really shun individuals. They're just trying to help. They are the real victims of shunning, after all, not the people that they shun. However, some exciting things came out of this video, like the ability to say a quick greeting to a shunned person if they come back into their house of worship, the ability for grown women to decide if they want to wear pants or not, and grown men to decide if they want to wear a tie and jacket. When a man that has millions and millions of people hanging on his every word speaks, someone has to acknowledge what was really said, and I say the quiet parts out loud for him. Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Struggling with perfectionism, building a social network, codependency, or feeling like you're not enough? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a Cult Recovery Coach. I work with many ex-JWs, along with ex-other groups, and your average person that has never been in a cult that wants better things in their life. Find out more here: https://storyworkscoaching.com I also have an ExJW specific site here: https://exjwhelp.com Please consider supporting the show's Patreon if you appreciate the time, effort, and money that goes into producing these stories at: https://www.patreon.com/shunned You can also join The Uprising Project and get help to grow in your career or small business with a private Facebook group, monthly group coaching call, resources, advertising opportunities, and more at: https://www.patreon.com/shunned Show notes and information on how to be a guest or find other resources for the podcast can be found here: https://shunnedpodcast.com/episodes/ Music provide by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself An ExJW podcast and an ExJW YouTube channel #exjw #jehovahswitnesses #cult

Young Jacob was diagnosed with cancer at just 5 years of age and suddenly found himself in different environments that garnered attention. However, as he would move on throughout his life, Jacob would find himself on the outside looking in, trying to be good enough to qualify to do the things that he saw other Jehovah’s Witnesses doing around him. Jacob discusses these matters, living with autism in the congregation, and how he came to realize that he was raised in a cult. The paper that Jacob wrote about the BITE model and Jehovah’s Witnesses can be found at: https://www.reddit.com/r/exjw/comments/bwi43n/jehovahs_witnesses_religious_cult/?share_id=X6gItqQ6FhpLimP6ExXvf&utm_content=1&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_source=share&utm_term=1 The song that Jacob chose to represent his story is Vindicated by Dashboard Confessional. Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com You can apply to be included in The Uprising Project, where we will be working to lift the ExJW community financially by bringing new opportunities to it, and get more information at: https://exjwhelp.com/the-uprising-project/ Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself. An ExJW podcast and ExJW YouTube Channel

Through gaslighting, one person or one group of people can become the reality check for an individual, whether that person wanted that reality check or not. A person is systematically broken down, detaching from themselves and attaching to the one doing the gaslighting. Cults often employ gaslighting to get oneness of mind, unity, sameness. Jehovah’s Witnesses don’t just tell you what to think and how you should feel, they also demonize what YOU actually think and how YOU actually feel. Your thoughts and feelings are gradually replaced with theirs, as you start to doubt yourself and look to them to tell you if you’re right or wrong in what you think, feel, and how you want to behave in this world. This is the first in a series where I’ll break down the ways that the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses is actively breaking individuals down, from what they do to why they do it to the real fruitage that it produces in those impacted by it. Learning what it looks like can help us to see remnants that may lie within ourselves, and perhaps even relationships that we may have kept or gravitated toward in our post-cult lives. Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com You can apply to be included in The Uprising Project, where we will be working to lift the ExJW community financially by bringing new opportunities to it, and get more information at: https://exjwhelp.com/the-uprising-project/ Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself. An ExJW podcast and ExJW YouTube Channel

Getting baptized as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses is a forever contract with a cult. In Justin’s case, that decision to get dunked in a pool of water was made as a young man, a young man that knew he was gay. Because of that, ultimately he would never be able to be what they wanted him to be. He realized that if he were ever to be disfellowshipped from the cult because he was now an official member and they see being gay as a gross sin, he could now lose contact with his mother, the person that he cared about more than anything. The song that Justin chose to represent his journey is Brand New Me by Alicia Keys. Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com You can apply to be included in The Uprising Project, where we will be working to lift the ExJW community financially by bringing new opportunities to it, and get more information at: https://exjwhelp.com/the-uprising-project/ Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself. An ExJW podcast and ExJW YouTube Channel

The Covid-19 pandemic brought a lot of change to the world. Many started to wear masks for protection. But for many Jehovah’s Witnesses, their facial freedom was about to be granted as a result of something that is seemingly totally unrelated. Will these bearded brothers continue to grow their beards bred in captivity, or will they eventually become the free range beards that we all wish for them? Only time will tell, but this pandemic left its mark on the formerly fresh faces of these men. Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com You can apply to be included in The Uprising Project, where we will be working to lift the ExJW community financially by bringing new opportunities to it, and get more information at: https://exjwhelp.com/the-uprising-project/ Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself. An ExJW podcast and ExJW YouTube Channel

Finding a way out of a cult is one of the hardest things that a human can do. To find one’s own way free, to take a stand against everything you’ve ever known while knowing that it will cost you dearly, is hard. For many it costs them their entire family, and in this episode I talk with a couple that made it out together. That comes with its own unique challenges, and Natasha and Ben were open in discussing their struggles and victories along this path. Under the cover of Zoom meetings held during the height of Covid, Ben saw a path out of the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses. Listen to find out what that path was and how both of them found their way to freedom. The song that Natasha chose to represent her journey is New Beginnings by Moonlight Scorpio, Equanimous, and Nyrus. The song that Ben chose to represent his journey is Anthem Part 2 by Blink 182. Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com You can apply to be included in The Uprising Project, where we will be working to lift the ExJW community financially by bringing new opportunities to it, and get more information at: https://exjwhelp.com/the-uprising-project/ Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself. An ExJW podcast and ExJW YouTube Channel

Many people don’t realize that Jehovah’s Witnesses were among the many that were persecuted and brutally murdered by the German Nazi Party. Growing up, this was put to me as both a source of unusual pride but was also used to instill fear in me that someday this would likely happen again… to us, because it was always about us. We were told many JW centered stories about the event, and although I always knew intellectually that it was primarily the Jewish people that were targeted, it always felt like the event was really focused on us as Jehovah’s Witnesses. A trip in 2023 to St. Louis, and a spontaneous visit to the Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum that we didn’t know existed until we were there, sparked a lot of feelings about that event and the portrayal of it by the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses. This is my personal experience. Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com You can apply to be included in The Uprising Project, where we will be working to lift the ExJW community financially by bringing new opportunities to it, and get more information at: https://exjwhelp.com/the-uprising-project/ Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself. An ExJw podcast

Tana was raised in a home where her parents weren’t on the same page. Her mother, a devout participant in the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses, raised her to follow that path. Her father, a racist man that struggled with alcohol and rode bikes, clearly had other views of life. These differences caused her tremendous problems growing up, but when a blood transfusion was needed for a 15 year old and disfellowshipped Tana after a horrific accident, it was Tana’s father that came in to save the day. The song that Tana chose to represent her journey is Closer by Goapele. Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com You can apply to be included in The Uprising Project, where we will be working to lift the ex-JW community financially by bringing new opportunities to it, and get more information at: https://exjwhelp.com/the-uprising-project/ Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

Behold the tale of the Smurf doll and the Kingdom Hall. A legend told by adult Jehovah’s Witnesses that made it across the United States and to other continents as well. Learn about this legend, and share your own stories of demons and fear promoted by the cult below in the comments. Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com You can apply to be included in The Uprising Project, where we will be working to lift the ex-JW community financially by bringing new opportunities to it, and get more information at: https://exjwhelp.com/the-uprising-project/ Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

When Caressa’s 18 year old sister started dating a “brother” from another congregation that was 37, an elder close to the family said that he didn’t like the guy and that he was bad news and that they shouldn’t be dating. No details were given, but it was foreboding. For the next few years Caressa, just 8 years of age, would face the abuse of that man. In time her story would come out, but unfortunately it would fall on deaf ears in the congregation, despite taking it to the police. A full decade later that “brother” in the congregation, still in good standing, would harm more innocent children and the congregation would disfellowship him. Who knows how many people he may have hurt in all of that time. For Caressa, this life of abuse and manipulation from her family, the cult, and this predator, left her no safe space. At the age of 17 she would ghost her family in search of safety, and a life of her own. This is her story. The song that Caressa chose to represent her story is Redemption Song by Bob Marley Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com You can apply to be included in The Uprising Project, where we will be working to lift the ex-JW community financially by bringing new opportunities to it, and get more information at: https://exjwhelp.com/the-uprising-project/ Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

The Uprising Project is a new initiative in the community of former Jehovah’s Witnesses to help these individuals with opportunities to find financial footing in a world that they were isolated from. According to one study by Pew Research of various religions and their incomes, Jehovah’s Witnesses had the lowest percentage of six figure household incomes at just 4%, while having the second highest percentage of household incomes below $30,000 per year at 48%*. As a cult that promotes financial control by discouraging the pursuit of education, demonizing networking with anyone that is not of the same faith, and encouraging a lifestyle of devoting as much time to their religious pursuits as possible, it is no wonder that the group would struggle financially. Add to all of that the psychological warfare of abuse that leaves many feeling like they have no intrinsic value as an individual, and the subsequent extreme shunning for those that leave the group, and many continue to struggle after leaving. Financial stability is the basic ability to survive, and people need to survive before they can truly ever heal and have a possibility to thrive. The Uprising Project seeks to bring resources into the community to help individuals rise from the effects of prior abuses. Applications for inclusion in this project can be found at: https://exjwhelp.com/the-uprising-project/ The Rights and Religions Forum, and the Fellowship mentioned in the episode, can be found at: https://rarforum.org/fellows/ *https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2016/10/11/how-income-varies-among-u-s-religious-groups/ Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

Natasha grew up in Belgium and found herself in a world of abuse at home. Others, noticing the outward countenance as a result of that abuse, referred to her as “the little girl without a smile”. Being raised in the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses, she would be pushed into baptism at 17 years of age under false pretenses. As a result, just 6 months after being baptized, Natasha disassociated and left the cult behind, resulting in her shunning. Although the adults around her couldn’t see what was really going on, a little girl named Yvette saw Natasha for who she really was and provided a safe space for her to be herself. The song that Natasha chose to represent her story is What’s Up by the 4 Non Blondes. Support today’s guest by leaving her a comment HERE Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

Growing up as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses is hard. Kids want to fit in and are forced to be different. For Andrea, the cult reinforced the authority of her mom, and her mom ruled with fear. Under the ever watchful eye of a mother looking to mete out corporal punishment, the beatings were so bad that her sister took some for her out of fear that she would be killed. Their mother would die of cancer while they were still young, and Andrea’s older sister cared for her while the congregation that had been silent about the abuse remained aloof. Only once it was thought that Andrea might need to be reprimanded by congregation elders did anyone reach out to her. Thus began the journey to freedom that she always wished to find. The song that Andrea chose to represent her story is Luka by Suzanne Vega. Support today’s guest by leaving her a comment HERE Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

So yeah, I created my own cart to help people get another side of the story that Jehovah's Witnesses try to tell. I felt it would be a good idea to have a companion to the JW carts, the Awake to one's Watchtower of sorts. Thank you to those in my local area, including several never JWs, for giving me tips on where to find the carts. You made this possible. If you want to start your own cart, you can find all of the files and links to everything mentioned at the following link: https://exjwhelp.com/exjw-activism/ Please subscribe to follow the journey and as this project continues and grows, you'll be the first to know when I make adjustments to the cart or release new files on various subjects that you can download for your own cart. These projects all have real costs attached to them. Parking, tolls, gas, cameras, equipment, carts, and so much more time than you would ever think editing and producing it all. Each episode of the regular Shunned Podcast takes probably 8 hours or so from start to finish, including fielding correspondence and making posts to share and production, editing, etc. My cart videos take a lot of time to produce. And I have websites and such that I put time and money into as well each month to host files for this project. So please consider supporting my Patreon at: https://www.patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Struggling with perfectionism, building a social network, codependency, or feeling like you're not enough? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a Cult Recovery Coach. I work with many ex-JWs, along with ex-other groups, and your average person that has never been in a cult that wants better things in their life. Find out more here: https://storyworkscoaching.com I also have an ex-JW specific site here: https://exjwhelp.com

When a person leaves the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses they may still find themselves attached in ways that they had not considered from a legal standpoint. This interview with a legal professional gives us insight into various topics, from going from our former no blood stance to a pro blood stance, what we need to consider when it comes to wills and insurance, as well as the topic of emancipation for minors. In this episode the following resources are mentioned: 1. An advance directive notification card that you can carry in your wallet – Click Here 2. The Jehovah’s Witness Blood Refusal Card: Ethical and Medicolegal Considerations for Emergency Physicians – Click Here 3. Kenesha’s Website – Click Here Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

In the concept of gaslighting, one person is trying to create the reality for another person in order to gain or maintain control of them. Jehovah’s Witnesses are masters of gaslighting, weaponizing what is near and dear to others against them, shaming them for who they are and what they want in this life. For Taylor there was massive internal confusion as she got older and realized that there were parts of her personality that didn’t actually come from the cult’s influence. Those parts of her, such as the very normal and natural attraction to someone else, created great inner conflict and external turmoil in a world where her desires weren’t allowed. And thus the realization that gaslighting can be internalized and turned against ourselves felt overwhelming to a young person not equipped to deal with the ramifications and grief caused by a life lived according to the influence of those with power around her. She realized that in order to continue to live the life she was given, she would have to gaslight herself out of things that she actually wanted. Ultimately she would come to grieve the parts of her that were lost during those times, the time lost, the people that could never truly love her for who she was but rather a vision of who they wanted her to be, and she would go on a quest to find herself. It is said that grief is just love without a home, so she went on a journey to find that home in herself by learning to love a person that others were incapable of loving because of their desire for control. You can find Taylor and her work on Instagram as mothandmooncommunity at: https://www.instagram.com/mothandmooncommunity/ Support today’s guest by leaving her a comment HERE Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

Thank you to all of the wonderful people that donated this year for our “day” of giving. Because so much is received, it takes more than a day, but we were able to do the following in September 2023. An accounting is below, and mirrored in the video: Amount Raised – $707 (Thank you soooo much to all of you that gave generously!) Accounting: $200 – Ladies at thrift store $20 – Two libraries, book suprises $160 – Tips across two small local taco restaurants $53 – Basketballs from Walmart $274 – Soup, tuna pouches, snacks for little pantry from Walmart Total – $707 We paid for any meals, gas, tolls, etc. ourselves and used the amount donated that came in after fees and such charged by various payment processors like PayPal and Venmo for our totals. Professional one on one Cult Recovery Coaching services, helpful videos and articles, more information about ExJwHelp Day itself, and other resources can be found at: https://exjwhelp.com/ Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Struggling with perfectionism, building a social network, codependency, or feeling like you’re not enough? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a Cult Recovery Coach. I work with many ex-JWs, along with ex-other groups, and your average person that has never been in a cult that wants better things in their life. Find out more here: https://storyworkscoaching.com Please consider supporting the show’s Patreon if you appreciate the time that goes into producing these stories at: https://www.patreon.com/shunned Here is the text used in our message to those that would find and read the ex-JW books in the library: If you’re reading this book, you’re likely in a spot where life is starting to look different. You might even be scared reading this, but if you are, that shows that what you’ve been taught is very fear based, and you should absolutely question why someone would do that. Why would someone want to control what information you are exposed to? Courage isn’t the absence of fear, but feeling the fear and doing it anyway. You are about to take a courageous step, one of many that can unlock a life that is founded in actual truth, not just what you’ve been told is true. So take heart that others like you are out here, that we love you, that we’ve been wherever you are today, and that you are doing the right thing for yourself even if it doesn’t feel like it in the moment. There are other wonderful people out here that were hurt by something that was supposed to be good. Take this and go buy yourself your favorite coffee or treat. This money was donated by others that are out here. You are not alone. With real love that doesn’t shun, we send hugs and treats. ThisJwLife.com ShunnedPodcast.com ExJwHelp.com

Daniel knew from a young age that the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses was supposed to come first in his life. In his teenage years Daniel would start to realize that something wasn’t right and that “The Truth” wasn’t actually true, and he took those doubts to his father. His mother would soon be diagnosed with cancer that would take her life, and in that time he would push his doubts aside and try to give his mom something by getting baptized, as the religion was the focal point for the family even as they rallied around his mom. Later in life, as a father himself, Daniel would start to realize his disconnect again as he tried to indoctrinate his own kids, which would lead him to the discoveries that real research can bring. Ultimately it would cost him certain relationships because of their stand for the religion, but he had to do what was right and not simply what the religion he was given pushed upon him. Daniel referenced two resources in his episode: Carl Sagan – The Demon-Haunted World – Science as a Candle in the Dark The Great Courses , specifically a course on critical thinking. Upon researching it I found that Your Deceptive Mind – A Scientific Guide on Critical Thinking Skills can also be found on Amazon as an audiobook that looks much cheaper if you aren’t into all of The Great Courses and I’ll link that HERE Support today’s guest by leaving him a comment HERE Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let’s talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information. Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com Leave us a review on iTunes Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram. You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show. This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah’s Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment. Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.