Religious Trauma Recovery Support Group

An 8-week, trauma-informed support group for healing from religious harm, spiritual abuse, and shame-based systems

This 8-week support group offers a steady, compassionate space for adults healing from religious trauma, spiritual abuse, coercive control, and fear- or shame-based belief systems.

Rather than treating religious trauma as a personal failure or lack of faith, this group understands it as a response to systems of power, control, and conditioning that shape the nervous system, identity, relationships, and sense of safety.

Participants are supported in building autonomy, grounding, self-trust, and meaning-making — at their own pace, and without pressure to believe, disbelieve, or arrive at any specific conclusion.

You do not need to be religious to participate. This group welcomes people who are still practicing, questioning, deconstructing, or fully secular.

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  • Adults (21+) located in Rhode Island

    This group is open to queer, transgender, neurodivergent, immigrant, Black, Indigenous, Asian, and other racially marginalised participants, as well as anyone impacted by religious trauma or spiritual harm.

  • Pricing and insurance coverage available upon inquiry.

    Sliding scale options may be available.

  • A trauma-informed support group focused on understanding and healing from religious or spiritual harm.

    This group integrates:

    • Psychoeducation

    • Somatic grounding and nervous system regulation

    • Cognitive reflection and reframing

    • Narrative and meaning-making practices

    This is a support group, not a replacement for individual trauma therapy. It is designed to complement personal care and honour each participant’s capacity, consent, and pace.

  • 75-minute weekly sessions
    Evening sessions
    Exact schedule provided upon registration

  • Virtual (Zoom)
    Link provided after registration

  • 8-week series
    Upcoming start dates available — please inquire for details

  • Affirm religious trauma as a legitimate form of trauma

  • Understand how faith-based systems shape identity, coping, and self-perception

  • Reduce shame, fear, and internalised self-blame shaped by doctrine

  • Rebuild autonomy, consent, and self-trust

  • Process grief related to loss of community, belief, or belonging

  • Support identity reconstruction and values clarification

  • Foster connection in a respectful, non-pressured group space

GROUP GOALS

WEEKLY OVERVIEW

Week 1:
Orientation, Safety & Group Agreements

  • Introductions and shared intentions

  • Defining religious trauma and spiritual abuse

  • Consent-based group agreements

  • Grounding and orienting to safety in the body

Week 2:
Understanding Religious Trauma

  • Power, fear conditioning, purity culture, authoritarian structures

  • Trauma responses (fight, flight, freeze, fawn)

  • How belief systems shape behaviour and identity

Week 3:
Shame, Guilt & Internalised Beliefs

  • Differentiating shame and guilt

  • Identifying doctrine-based self-criticism

  • Beginning cognitive reframing and self-compassion

Week 4:
Body Autonomy, Consent & Somatic Healing

  • How religious trauma lives in the body

  • Reconnecting with bodily autonomy

  • Consent as a healing practice

Week 5:
Grief, Loss & Estrangement

  • Loss of community, family, rituals, or identity

  • Navigating ambiguous loss

  • Making space for non-linear grief

Week 6:
Triggers, Rituals & Reclaiming Meaning

  • Identifying triggers (holidays, music, scripture, spaces)

  • Boundary-setting and exposure pacing

  • Creating personal grounding or meaning-making rituals

Week 7:
Identity Reconstruction & Values Clarification

  • Exploring identity beyond doctrine

  • Clarifying personal values and agency

  • Making space for spiritual, secular, or hybrid meaning

Week 8:
Closure, Integration & Future Support

  • Reflecting on growth and resilience

  • Integrating tools and insights

  • Sharing resources and next steps

  • Closing ritual

THIS GROUP MAY BE A GOOD FIT IF YOU:

Are healing from religious trauma or spiritual abuse

Carry shame, fear, or guilt linked to faith-based teachings

Have experienced loss of community or belonging

Want a trauma-informed, consent-based group space
Are seeking support alongside or outside individual therapy

THIS GROUP MAY NOT BE THE RIGHT FIT IF:

You are seeking this group as a replacement for individual trauma therapy

You are currently experiencing active suicidal ideation requiring a higher level of care

You are seeking theological debate, conversion, or belief validation

You are engaging in self-harm that requires immediate medical intervention

If you’re unsure about fit, we encourage you to reach out to discuss.

GROUP FACILITATOR

Specializes in Systemic & Interpersonal Trauma, Neurodivergence & Spiritual/Religious Harm, Care for LGBTQ+ & Military Communities

Delilah Milagros Santos-Kane, LCSW (She/Her)
 Licensed Clinical Social Worker - Rhode Island

Delilah offers trauma-informed, culturally responsive care grounded in narrative, cognitive, somatic, and strengths-based approaches. She centers autonomy, consent, pacing, and nervous system awareness, and brings experience supporting clients impacted by religious harm, military service, identity-based stress, and systemic trauma.

Meet Delilah

INTERESTED
IN JOINING?

Space is intentionally limited to support safety and connection.

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