Karen is a former Jehovah’s Witness who is taking Tik Tok by storm through sharing her stories and promoting a sense of community for people deconstructing their faith. As an immigrant to the U.S., she discusses how conversion to Jehovah’s Witnesses meant sacrificing her family’s heritage and culture (since JWs don’t celebrate holidays or observe cultural celebrations of any kind) and what reclaiming that has looked like since she left the organization in today’s episode. We also discuss the process by which she was disfellowshipped from JW and subsequently shunned by her community and family (spoiler alert: it’s freaking heart-breaking). We round out the episode by chatting about mental health: the severe lack of understanding & support in Karen's former religion, the toll it took on her, and the journey of self-acceptance and self-love.

Listener discretion is advised due to potential religious trauma triggers and suicidality.


Follow Karen on Tik Tok, Twitter, and Instagram: @curiouskaywalk


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This podcast is executive produced by White Horse Media Group: https://therealwhmg.com/