Content Warning:

This episode contains discussions of adoption trauma, physical abuse, sexual assault, incest, pregnancy resulting from rape, religious trauma, and deconstruction. Listener discretion is strongly advised.

In Episode 16, we sit down with George, a trans man who courageously shares his story of survival, identity, and religious deconstruction.

George recounts his experience of adoption, the abuse he endured within his family, and surviving rape by a sibling—an assault that resulted in a child. He speaks honestly about how Christianity and religious expectations were used to silence him, enforce shame, and deny safety, and how stepping away from those systems became essential to his survival and healing.

This is a deeply vulnerable conversation about trauma, truth-telling, gender identity, and what it means to reclaim your life when faith communities fail to protect the most vulnerable among them.

The Awakening is a space for religious trauma survivors to share their stories of how they survived, deconstructed, and began healing. We believe survivors. We name harm. We create room to breathe on the other side of faith.

🎶 Intro/Outro Music: Your Poison by Rox Knox

💬 Connect with your hosts:

Heather — @happyheather | @happyheathersmiles

Tamara — TikTok: @feralatheistjezebel321 | Instagram: @tamarajo321

📩 Interested in being a guest?

Email us at theawakeningpod@gmail.com

This episode covers intense and traumatic experiences. Please take breaks as needed and prioritize your well-being. Support is valid. Rest is allowed. You are not alone.

If you like what you here, check out other great pods on the BIG Media LLC Podcast Network!

Barrett and Zac host The All About Nothing: Podcast, discussing everything from news and politics to entertainment and sports! All About Nothing, but All About Something too!

Zac and Barrett host What The Pod Was That with Cari Simmons, available everywhere you listen to podcasts.

Take a deep dive down the rabbit hole with Amii on the pod Welcome to Wonder Land.

Check out Black White and Blue In the South, With Dr. Jumelle Brooks and Bill Kimler!

Politically Speaking with Erica Sampson, Kirsten Pruitt, and Emily Mayer is a sharp, engaging podcast breaking down politics with insight, wit, and a fresh perspective.

The Preach Jacobs Podcast is hosted by Columbia South

How the Church Still Pushes People Away

This week on The Awakening Podcast, Tamara and I sit down with David, a gay man whose story challenges one of the church's greatest lies.

David grew up in a loving, affirming home, supported by his family and encouraged to be fully himself. And yet, the church still did profound damage. Through shame-based theology, subtle messaging, and spiritual pressure, David internalized harm that ultimately led him to deconstruct out of Christianity entirely.

Today, David identifies as an atheist, not because he lacked love or support growing up, but because the church could not offer him a God that felt safe, honest, or life-giving.

In this conversation, we talk about:

1. Why affirmation at home doesn’t cancel out church harm
2. How theology, not family, is often the deepest wound
3. What deconstruction looks like when belief no longer makes sense
4. The freedom — and grief — that can come with walking away

This episode is especially important for parents, allies, and anyone who believes the church is harmless if someone is “loved enough” elsewhere.

Follow, add, and subscribe so we can go live with you, hear your stories, and continue building a space rooted in honesty, healing, and accountability.

Heather

TikTok: @happyheather

Instagram: @happyheathersmiles

Tamara

TikTok: @feralatheistjezebel321

Instagram: @tamarajo321

📺 YouTube

@TheAwakeningPodcast

📘 Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/share/1C9xMvSeRw/

📩 Interested in being a guest?

Email us at: theawakeningpod@gmail.com

Intro & Outro Music: “Your Poison” by Rox Knox

If you like what you here, check out other great pods on the BIG Media LLC Podcast Network!

Barrett and Zac host The All About Nothing: Podcast, discussing everything from news and politics to entertainment and sports! All About Nothing, but All About Something too!

Zac and Barrett host What The Pod Was That with Cari Simmons, available everywhere you listen to podcasts.

Take a deep dive down the rabbit hole with Amii on the pod Welcome to Wonder Land.

Check out

A Story of Adoption, Trauma, Faith, and Reclaiming Identity

This week on The Awakening Podcast, we sit down with Hal, who courageously shares his deeply personal and painful journey through adoption, loss, religious trauma, and self-discovery.

Hal was adopted from Russia and came to the United States at just 22 months old, where he was raised by his mom and dad. After the devastating loss of his mother to cancer, Hal went on to attend Clemson University. While there, he suffered a traumatic brain injury that altered the course of his life.

During his recovery, Hal found himself surrounded by a group of Pentecostals who attempted to cast demons out of him, interpreting medical trauma as spiritual failure. The harm deepened when his father told him he was going to hell for being gay, leaving Hal wrestling with shame, identity, and belonging.

Today, Hal identifies as spiritual and no longer associates with the God of the Bible, choosing instead a path focused on healing outside of the religious frameworks that caused him harm. Hal has chosen to remain private, and we deeply honor that choice.

This episode is raw, tender, and profoundly human — especially for those navigating:

1. Religious trauma
2. Parental rejection
3. Spiritual abuse
4. Identity after faith

You are not alone.

Follow, subscribe, and add us so we can go live with you, hear your stories, and continue building a community rooted in honesty, healing, and accountability.

Heather

TikTok: @happyheather

Instagram: @happyheathersmiles

Tamara

TikTok: @feralatheistjezebel321

Instagram: @tamarajo321

📺 YouTube

@TheAwakeningPodcast-w6s

📘 Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/share/1C9xMvSeRw/

📩 Interested in being a guest?

Email us at: theawakeningpod@gmail.com

Intro & Outro Music: “Your Poison” by Rox Knox

If you like what you here, check out other great pods on the BIG Media LLC Podcast Network!

Barrett and Zac host The All About Nothing: Podcast, discussing everything from news and politics to entertainment and sports! All About Nothing, but All About Something too!

Zac and Barrett host What The Pod Was That with Cari Simmons, available everywhere you listen to podcasts.

Take a deep dive down the rabbit hole with