My mom is a JW and has been diagnosed with FM, as well as one of my brothers and one of my sisters who are also JW's and another sister who is DF'd. It certainly is an exhausting and stressful lifestyle. I remember being tired all the time. Both CF and FM are very real, but I think the stress and depression brought on by the JW way of life definitely aggravete them. I also remember a large number of women who had "nervous breakdowns" It was very common where I grew up. They couldn't take the strain of being in loveless marriages that they were roped into at the age of eighteen just so some horny brothers could get laid, and then raising children and going to meetings and in service and everything else. It was just too much. My .02 cents Suzanne
writegirl
JoinedPosts by writegirl
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M.E (chronic fatigue)...the jehovahs witness disease
by chuckyy ina congregation here in the uk had so many cases of m.e (chronic fatigue) that it was labelled as the jehovahs witness disease.
i must say that in my old cong.
and locally in other congs., there was an abnormally high percentage of people with this problem.why do you think this was the case?????
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Need Info To Send To Sister
by writegirl inokay, here's the situation : i've been lurking on this forum here and there, and it seems like you folks are pretty educated as to the blatant falseness of the jw religion.
i was raised a jw and left about 7 years ago.
i was df'd about 6 years ago.
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writegirl
Okay, here's the situation : I've been lurking on this forum here and there, and it seems like you folks are pretty educated as to the blatant falseness of the JW religion. I was raised a JW and left about 7 years ago. I was DF'd about 6 years ago. I don't know anything about the legal aspects of the company or much about the blatant lies that they tell. I only knew at the time that I was unhappy and that people who claimed to be representatives of god should not lie and cheat and steal from their fellow man. Also I firmly believed that god reads hearts, not time slips, and that I would be fine as far as the lord is concerned. Then I met a very nice man who is now my husband that explained to me that it is indeed possible to be a christian and not a JW. Not being a JW does not have to mean being without god. Okay, that's my story in a nutshell. My sister is a different story. She was DF'd years before me. She is nine years older than me. She still lives under the shadow of JW's though. She talks to my mother on a regular basis, who is a very sweet well meaning lady, but she make her feel like she "needs to do something about the truth". I think Shannon (my sister) thinks eventually someday she will have to "do something about the truth". I"d like to gradually let her in on my not so little secret that JW's do not indeed have the truth, but I don't know how. I think it would be a big burden off of her shoulders and allow her to finally be happy. I know it seems funny that I'm asking how to unconvert someone who's not converted but I'm sure you all can understand what I'm talking about. Any ideas, websites, info, etc. would be greatly appreciated! Thanks! Suzanne
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writegirl
I forgot to mention that the reason I was raised by my dad and not my mother is because he used to beat her and she left him before he killed her. I was eighteen months old. He told her if she tried to take their four children he would find her and kill her. She believed him. I did not find any of this out until I was between eighteen and twenty and I finally sat my mom down and asked her what happened. We had a very tearful afternoon and suddenly everything made sense after I heard her side. The only unfortunate thing is that my mother doesn't see the connection between everything that happened and the witnesses. (She was DF'd while my dad remained in good standing) She is a faithful witness and we no longer have a relationship, in part because I am DF'd (she was reinstated years ago) and in part because every time I talk to her all she can do is ask me when I'm coming back. It's frustrating because I love my mother. She is the mildest, sweetest woman I know. Great qualities that have also been hindrances because she lets people walk all over her.
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writegirl
I stumbled on this site by accident and I'm kind of glad I did. In the past I have typically avoided these sites because most people on them seem newly bitter and I didn't like the tone. I was raised a Witness by an alcoholic father and an abusive stepmother. I was DF'd two years ago after four years of inactivity. I, like others on this forum lost everyone who was close to me, and at the age of twenty one had to completely start a new life. I have never ever regretted the decision I made however, only that I had to lose so many people that I loved. I sincerely believe most of these people are good people, just blinded by a religion that does not encourage free thinking. (to put it mildly) For years I struggled with my decision to leave, thinking that eventually I would have to go back to "the truth" as that was the only way of salvation. It wasn't until I met the man that is now my husband that I was set free. He encouraged me to research the witnesses and see what they were all about. He had done extensive research on them himself. I came across these sites and it never occurred to me that there were people out there with situations so similar to mine. I was so naive for so long. I was married before, at the typical JW age of nineteen, and it was the divorce at 21 that catapulted me out of the religion. My ex husband had coerced me into doing everything but having actual intercourse before our marriage and I felt so guilty for so long, never realizing that it was so commonplace. I thought I must be the only person with a completely f-ed up family life, never realizing that this is the norm for JW families. So many things, and I can't believe how similar some of these stories are to mine. Someday I will print my story in its entirety. It's quite captivating. Until then, I enjoy reading people's posts on their experiences and feel good finally knowing that I am not a horrible person because I left this religion!