What is Religious Trauma? with Ann Russo

In this powerful episode Devi is joined by mental health advocate and thought leader, Ann Russo for a conversation that speaks directly to the hearts of those healing from religious trauma. Ann brings deep wisdom and compassion as we explore what it means to reclaim your agency after experiencing harm in spiritual or religious spaces.

Together, they dive into the often-unspoken complexities of religious trauma — how it impacts identity, self-worth, and the connection to something greater. Anne shares her groundbreaking Religious Trauma Treatment Model, offering a path toward healing that honors both faith and authenticity, especially for those in the queer community who have felt excluded or erased.

“What is the definition of religious trauma?

If you think of PTSD, know, where depression, anxiety, difficult functioning, challenges in relationship, you're just, overall something has impacted you that making life harder to live in a sense. And in this situation, we're talking about religion and sometimes with PTSD, we can think of it as like a one-time event. I was in a car accident. I'm afraid to be in a car, right?

But with religious trauma, especially if you're raised in the church, you're going through these events over and over and over. So it becomes very, very complex. It impacts the way that you view yourself in relation to creation, deity, faith systems, scriptures, and how you navigate the world in these communities.”

This conversation is a reminder that true healing requires safe spaces, cultural competence, and deep humility from those who hold space for others. Whether you’ve personally experienced spiritual harm or are simply seeking to understand and support others on their journey, this episode invites you into a space of empathy, restoration, and radical self-reclamation.

The Deeply Well Podcast is available on:
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3n5hEIV...

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Deeply Well: Where higher consciousness meets the complexity of being human. Hosted by Well-Being Master Teacher and multi-disciplinary healer

Devi Brown, Deeply Well is a soft place to land for those navigating the quiet, courageous work of becoming whole.Through soul-expanding conversations, guided meditations, and our signature Soul Work, each episode explores what it truly means to heal, to rewire, and to return—to your body, your truth, and your unique path.Created for the seekers, the sensitives, the creatives, and anyone reclaiming peace in a world that often overwhelms, Deeply Well invites you into presence, clarity, and self-mastery—one breath, one practice, one guest at a time.

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Moments to Consider:
0:00 Welcome to Deeply Well with our guest Ann Rusoo.
2:09 Religious trauma, forced belief, is a real thing.
4:05 How did this call find you? Faith, queerness and intersectionality.
8:09 Defining religious trauma.
11:11: What is high control religion?
12:30 The sexual abuse and shame within the church.
15:20 Exploring a religious trauma treatment model that allows people to reclaim their faith.
20:22 Christaphobia.
21:27 Reclaiming personal agency from sexual shame; understanding your beliefs and values.
24:11 Integration, having a harmonious relationship with who you are and your faith.
31:46 Gaps in mental health care when it comes to supporting queer individuals.
36:00 Continuously learning as times change, the difference in generational traumas, healing and challenges.
37:55 Humble. The power of humility.
39:22 Ann’s ultimate hope for how this field is able to evolve in inclusivity.
43:06 Soul Work for stress and anxiety.

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Connect with Ann Russo:
Website: https://www.annrusso.org/
Book, Religious Trauma Treatment Model: https://www.annrusso.org/book/
Youtube:    / @annrussolcsw  

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Connect with Devi:
Website: https://devibrownwellbeing.com/
Living In Wisdom Book: https://www.devibrown.com/book
Instagram:   / devibrown  
Instagram:   / deeplywellpod  
Twitter: https://twitter.com/devibrown?s=21&t=...
Merch: https://devibrown.myshopify.com/

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Devi Brown is a Master Well-Being Educator & Healer, Advisor, Storyteller and Founder of Devi Brown Well-Being. The celebrated voice of daily meditation on the Chopra App and host of the iHeart media podcast, Deeply Well, Brown’s teachings have reached millions of seekers globally and counting. She serves as a well-being advisor for private, high-impact clientele and for Fortune 500 companies, including Chase, Microsoft, Chopra Global, and Overtime. With teachings rooted in spiritual psychology, advanced meditation, metaphysics, energy healing and trauma-informed facilitation, Brown’s mission is centered in the process of individual liberation that leads to community impact and an elevation of consciousness for all beings.
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