True dat Jimmy! I get so tired of the idea that we are only injured because we choose to be, or can't grow up etc. etc. I have done extremely well for myself. But it's been in spite of my upbringing. It's been a very very hard road. Myself and all of you out there that have overcome deserve major kudos for just being alive and not in a gutter. I think of it rarely, as evidence by my posts on actual JW related threads. But I am fully aware of how much of me is made up of that history. I would challenge those who say they are not effected as to being either disingenuous, or not that bright. Flame away any insulted by this, but think on it in your deepest heart.
Is it possible for a child to be exposed to JWism and not be damaged by it?
by Mickey mouse 140 Replies latest jw experiences
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Vinny
How can anybody NOT be affected when you lose your very own close family because of the JW policies?
How can anybody NOT be affected when you lose hundreds even thousands of friends and acquaintances because of the JW policies?
How can anybody NOT be affected when you know you have been labeled, judged and being shunned as a willful, sinning, prideful, world-loving, Godless Apostate?
How can anybody NOT be affected when everything you thought was true for 10,15, 20, 30 years or more is an outright LIE?
How can anybody NOT be affected when you think about all the times wasted in field service, meetings, talk and preparations, JW bible studies, assemblies, demos, gatherings, personal study and more?
How can anybody NOT be affected when all those years of meetings and indoctrination comes back to the front of your mind simply from reading something in the news or through normal conversations?
I have spoken to four young EX-Witnesses (that were all raised in the JW faith) recently, but have not gone to the Hall for a while. When I asked all four if they still feel like they will be destroyed just because they don't go to the Hall any longer, ALL FOUR SAID YES. This is because it's all they ever hear growing up as a JW from parents, meetings, literature etc.
Now folks, that 4 for 4 that (((STILL FEEL))) they will be destroyed. MANY EX-JW's have dreams, occasional doubts and other negative similar thoughts as those four kids I talked to. One was just two days ago, and the other three weeks ago. The third was about a year ago. And the 4th always says this.
People who were JW, but are no longer JW, definitely need support and encouragement and have 100 percent been damaged in many ways.
In my book, there is no doubt about it.
But through information and logic we can erase many of those wrong, negative and unhealthy views today over time. But I don't think ANYBODY that leaves the JW religion will ever be 100 percent free from all of the JW "STUFF".
Is the price we have to pay sometimes.
Vinny -
JimmyPage
(((APPLAUSE))) for Vinny!
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Vinny
Led Zeppelin Guitarman says:.."(((APPLAUSE))) for Vinny!"
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Lady Lee
Is it possible for a child to be exposed to JWism and not be damaged by it?
That is sort of like asking if a child exposed to abuse will be damaged by it.
Some people have a natural resiliency so might come away with few scars. After they leave they are able to adjust easily to the real world.
Some will be so damaged from life in the JW world they cannot adjust. Some stay of course and believe they are well-adjusted. But being happy wearing a straightjacket can feel "normal" to some people. Some stay and are miserable. Some leave and are miserable. How can a child raised as a JW really be happy about being marginalized at school, at being deprived of so many normal and perfectly harmless things, like hobbies and sports, which they have no time for because they are going to meetings and preaching? Knocking on the doors of classmates. Not celebrating any holidays. Being taught that every non-JW person they know will be slaughtered. They dress different, act different. Pretending these things don't hurt is unrealistic.
But in between the two are those many, many who fall somewhere in the middle. They recognize the damage and find ways to deal with it and go on to lead happy productive lives.
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beksbks
But in between the two are those many, many who fall somewhere in the middle. They recognize the damage and find ways to deal with it and go on to lead happy productive lives.
Exactly. I kind of look at it like we are all climbing the mountain of life, some of us (born in dubs in this case) are climbing that mountain with a broken limb. Do most of us stand at the bottom of the mountain whining? No. Do we deserve extra credit for making it up in spite of our handicap? Hell yes.
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sammielee24
((You could say Jehovah's Witnesses are not "normal" in some respects because in a few significant areas they diverge from what modern liberal societies deem proper. But then who is to say conformity to what society views as "normal" is always desirable either. If you leave JWs and seek to become utterly "normal" then is not that simply swapping one sort of heteronomy for another? ))
A JW child is taught that he/she should not get close to anyone outside the faith because they will all die at Armegeddon. That has lasting repercussions to any child that continues to be an active JW as they age. A child is taught that they will never graduate from high school because the end is coming. They are told they need not get an education because the end is coming. They are told they should not have children or get married because the end is coming. They should not worry about saving for the future because the end is coming.
My sister in law who is now 61, turned down the opportunity to take a 6 week course in home care because the end is coming. She never had kids because the end is coming. She has no relationship with anyone other than a JW because there is no point in getting close to someone as the end is coming. We could go on to infinity...
Exposure does damage...the more involved the parents are, the less interaction the family has with people outside the society, the more damage that is done.
sammieswife.
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IP_SEC
I do not feel 'damaged' by my JW childhood.
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Junction-Guy
Maybe you were not, perhaps you are one of the lucky ones?