AFFIRM Mental Health Courses
Store My Library
About Contact

Healing After High-Control Religion: A Trauma-Informed Approach to Faith Transitions & Religious Trauma with Mellissa Perry Hill, LPC

Earn Continuing Education Credits (CEs): By listening to this episode, you can earn CEs if you join the Affirm Academy! To learn more and register, visit affirmmentalhealth.com, and click on the "Join the Affirm Academy" button.

SIGN IN: Affirm Academy Members: Log in to get your CEs! If you're already a member, you can log in to your account https://shaina-siber-sanderowitz.mykajabi.com/login to take your post-test/evaluation and get your certificate within minutes.

SIGN UP: Become a member here: https://affirmmentalhealth.com/become-a-member/

Course Information: https://www.canva.com/design/DAGuClYH3k4/ePrdi8BBImIDNOBlEFo82Q/edit?utm_content=DAGuClYH3k4&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link2&utm_source=sharebutton

Episode Summary: In this impactful episode of The Affirming Minds Podcast, Shaina sits down with therapist and religious trauma expert Mellissa Perry Hill, MS, LPC, to explore the deep and often invisible wounds caused by high-control religious environments. Together, they unpack the psychological, relational, and spiritual challenges that arise during and after a faith transition—and how therapists can show up with nuance, compassion, and trauma-informed care.

Mellissa shares her clinical wisdom, personal lived experience, and practical therapeutic tools that help clients reclaim agency, make meaning, and reconnect with themselves after religious harm. If you work with clients struggling with shame, identity confusion, scrupulosity, or spiritual disconnection, this episode is a must-listen.

---

Topics Covered:

  • What religious trauma is and how it uniquely impacts mental health
  • Signs of shame, scrupulosity, and moral injury in former high-control religious clients
  • How to create safe, non-pathologizing spaces for clients in faith transitions
  • Why grounding, somatics, and IFS are powerful tools for healing religious trauma
  • How therapists can stay culturally responsive without pushing an agenda
  • The importance of curiosity, humility, and self-work for clinicians doing this work

---

Resources:

---

About Our Guest: Mellissa is a lifelong learner, therapist, and educator who specializes in helping people heal from religious trauma and navigate major life transitions. She grew up in Southern California in a large family, deeply immersed in a high-control conservative religion. After attending Brigham Young University–Idaho, Mellissa spent 10 years as a stay-at-home mom before going through her own divorce and faith transition—which became the catalyst for her career in mental health.

She earned her master’s degree in professional counseling while working as an educator and now brings over four years of specialized clinical experience to her private practice. Her work is rooted in trauma-informed and somatic approaches, including Internal Family Systems (IFS), EMDR, and DBT. She supports clients in finding healing in the present and building values-aligned futures.

Outside of the therapy room, Mellissa loves hot yoga, beach cruiser rides, hiking with her dogs, brunch, late-night movies, and dancing with friends. She’s a mom to three kids and two fur babies, and she believes healing is a lifelong, embodied process.

---

Conflict of Interest Disclosure: The host, Shaina Siber-Sanderowitz, LCSW, is the Founder of Affirm Mental Health, an accredited CE provider. She receives financial compensation from Affirm Mental Health for the development and delivery of continuing education content. There are no other conflicts of interest to disclose.

Disclaimer: This podcast is for educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for clinical training or treatment. If you or someone you know needs mental health support, please reach out to a licensed professional.

---

This Episode is Sponsored by Jane

This episode is proudly sponsored by Jane, the practice management software that simplifies scheduling, charting, billing, and running your therapy business – all in one place.

Use code AFFIRM1MO to receive a 1-month grace period when you sign up:
🔗 https://jane.app

---

Don't Forget to Subscribe: If you love this episode, be sure to follow The Affirming Minds Podcast wherever you listen to your podcasts. Share it on your socials and help us grow the community of engaged, empowered, and educated mental health professionals.

Join the Conversation: What did you think of this episode? We’d love to hear your thoughts! Tag us on social media with your biggest takeaways!

Find Us Here: https://www.affirmmentalhealth.com

Instagram: @affirmmentalhealth

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AFFIRMMentalHealth

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556924200735

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shaina-siber-sanderowitz-905089249/

TikTok: @affirm_mental_health