Emotional Abuse Archives

Out of the Poisoned Pond: Jennie’s Story [Episode 343]

September 2, 2025

What happens when you grow up in hyper-conservative church culture, marry your Bible camp sweetheart at 20, and then spend decades swimming in a poisoned pond of patriarchy, affairs, gaslighting, and spiritual abuse? Jennie’s story is a real look at what it takes to finally climb out of the muck and into fresh water.

If you’ve ever wondered, “Is it me? Or is this whole thing just completely bonkers?” then pull up a chair. Jennie’s journey from silent suffering to empowered freedom will resonate with every woman who’s ever been told to “submit more, pray harder, and wear longer skirts” while her husband runs wild and gets a pat on the back from church elders.

The "Let Go, Accept, and Love" Tool (and what a mother learned in her custody battle)

How to Find Peace When Your Marriage Feels Toxic [Episode 342]

August 26, 2025

Do you ever feel like you’re drowning in guilt, shame, and Christian “shoulds” while trying to survive a toxic marriage, a brutal divorce, or the aftermath of both? What if I told you that letting go, accepting reality, and loving yourself isn’t just a cliche, but it can actually change everything?

In this episode of Flying Free, I dive into the “Let Go, Accept, and Love” tool (a.k.a. LAL, because who doesn’t love an acronym?). Plus, you’ll hear how one brave mama used these steps in the middle of a soul-crushing custody battle, and she came out stronger, freer, and a whole lot wiser.

Your New Life Starts Now

August 22, 2025

Welcome to the final episode of Season One of The Divorced Christian Woman Podcast! If you’ve made it through the first 365 days post-divorce without stabbing anyone (including yourself), congratulations. You’re our people.

In our finale I gather a roundtable of warrior women (Diana, Loretta, Lisa, and Marie) to talk about what comes after the ashes. (And it’s NOT all sobbing into Häagen-Dazs while reading Leviticus. Haha)

Your Marriage Abuse Cycle Exercise [Episode 341]

August 19, 2025

Have you ever felt like you’re starring in a rerun of your own life? Same arguments. Same heartbreak. Same fake flowers and empty promises. It’s called the abuse cycle, my friend.

In this episode, I dive deep into an exercise that one of our Flying Free members shared in the private forum. She mapped out her relationship’s specific abuse cycle, and what she discovered was pretty important.

Nothing changes when nothing changes. Oof. That one landed.

Grief, Rage, and the Uninvited Guests of Healing

August 15, 2025

What if the emotions you’re trying to keep at arm’s length (like grief and rage) are actually the very things that will set you free?

In this episode, I’m joined by my friend and fellow coach, Diana Swillinger. Today we’re talking about the emotional whirlwind that follows a divorce, especially for Christian women who were taught to be nice, stay quiet, and for the love of God, never get angry.

Well. We got angry. (And we’re still alive!)

He Looked Perfect on Paper: Maile’s Story [Episode 340]

August 12, 2025

Ever fallen for someone who looked flawless on paper, but in real life turned out to be your personal nightmare with a Christian smile slapped on top?

In today’s episode, I sit down with Maile, a bright spark in our Flying Free community, who thought she’d landed in God’s will when she married her second husband. Instead, she found herself suffocating under spiritual gaslighting, emotional sabotage, and escalating violence, all hidden behind the shiny veneer of “good Christian marriage.”

This is a real story of what it looks like to wake up, break free, and rebuild your life, even when you’ve already done the divorce thing once before, and the church ladies are clutching their pearls at you for round two.

Category: Emotional Abuse