Becoming a Fundamentalist Trad Wife Almost K*lled Me

Tia Levings discusses her new book “I Belong to Me” as a continuation of her healing journey after escaping a deeply controlling Christian patriarchal environment. Her first memoir, “A Well-Trained Wife”, focused on surviving ab*se and indoctrination, while the second book explores what comes after leaving: trauma recovery, identity rebuilding, and deconstruction. Tia describes how religious extremism, purity culture, and patriarchal systems shaped her from chiIdhood into adulthood, conditioning her to suppress autonomy, accept ab*se, and remain emotionally dependent. She shares how these systems impacted her development, relationships, s*xuality, and sense of self, ultimately culminating in a near murd*r-su*cide escape from her marriage and a decade-long process of healing.

Watch our follow up LIVE stream with Tia: https://www.youtube.com/live/u6ZF-2sWQQc?si=A85Rc0jd8zxAMiG3

Watch our initial interview with Tia: https://youtu.be/878zW1sqai8?si=t8a0soYA80NCl91a
Pt 2 with Tia: https://www.youtube.com/live/CI8_9zL09SY?si=rwEAQwblBcQZ7M1R

Find and support Tia!

Order “I Belong to Me” (Book and website): https://tialevings.com/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/tialevingswriter/
Substack: https://tialevings.substack.com/
Linktree: http://linktr.ee/TiaLevings


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Chapter Marks

00:00:00 Intro
00:10:14 Overview of Tia's story
00:14:10 Interference in development milestones
00:19:39 Purity culture
00:28:04 The real world impacts of purity culture teaching
00:32:43 Fight, flight, freeze, & fawn trauma responses
00:37:27 Neurological responses to trauma & triggers
00:46:12 Connections between trauma and arousal
00:52:47 Getting stuck in a trauma response
01:00:22 CW: SA, Therapy modalities
01:09:35 Taking accountability
01:21:15 Boundaries and expectations
01:25:56 Final thoughts


**Disclaimer: Thanks for joining us at Cults to Consciousness. This storytelling podcast is meant to be for entertainment purposes only and does not substitute for medical advice. We may discuss triggering topics and we ask that you make your personal mental health a priority.

This podcast provides a platform for guests to share their personal experiences and opinions. The views expressed are solely those of the guest and do not necessarily reflect the views of the hosts or producers. Any allegations discussed are unverified and represent personal accounts only. All individuals mentioned are presumed innocent unless proven otherwise. The podcast assumes no legal responsibility for statements made by guests.**