When I was young I remember hearing about the sex scandals occurring within the Catholic Church and the Boy Scouts of America. I remember being disturbed that these organizations were hiding predators and I was naive to believe that the same was not happening within the Mormon Church, that my own abuser was being protected.

Abuse changes us and even though it may not be taken seriously or acknowledged for the harm it causes, I decided to be one joining the movement in disclosing the reality of my abuse and did so in an attempt to help any who are like me.

One of the main reasons why I have chosen to be so truthful about my past is because for nearly all of my life I truly believed that what I had lived through was normal, even though I was internally suffering from severe self-loathing and depression.

I am very much in the space of learning how to let go of people and things that have meant so much to me. Most of my life I believed in the “eternal family” concept, meaning that the family I was born into, and the family I created, would be a part of me forever, so long as we followed the Mormon rules.