What has hurt you the most for being a JW? (page 2)

Chimene

The very worst thing that hurts every day is that I subjected my children to this religion. The pressure they went through because of my bad choice, the loss of Christmas, birthdays, all celebrations that make a childs world fun and memorable, the pressure to conform at the KH and sit like the "good" witness children, the questions from classmates about why they don't do things, etc., etc. The fact that now they don't know what to believe because we are starting over and they went through it all for nothing. I hope I haven't damaged them forever. That is the worst thing, worrying about what I've done to my kids.

Amen elliej, me to, my two daughters, it literally ripps my heart out thinking about what they have missed over the past ten years

I regret the stupid decisions I made because I believed the end was coming soon (quitting school, not getting a good full-time job earlier, not preparing my boys to make a success of college, making the move to CT, never setting up a 401K....blah, blah, blah), but mostly I regret raising my sons in this weird little religion. They not only had to go through the separation and then divorce of their parents, which is traumatic enough, they then had to start living as little dub kids. I hate that I did that to them.

mark hughes

Not being able to speak to or see my parents, sisters and brother for 14 years and the fact that because they are told by a cult, not to, they abide by it.

jojochan

For me it's being alienated by my twin daughters

((((HUGS))))

For me it was this fear of dying at armaggedon for just being human. Feeling that I'm nothing more than an ant in an ant-farm.

And also, putting my schooling on hold to get a firm hold of,"the real life"

Being socially inept to have a normal emotional relationship, but getting through it finally. But also, busy preparing for somthing, instead of just living a life, enjoying what has been given to you to enjoy that sunset, to enjoy that sunrise with a loved one. To enjoy those walks on a saturday morning with a cup of joe in your hand.

Just my two cents...

jojochan.

Mastodon

SLUGGA SAID:
Losing my childhood, adolescence and young adult hood. I would have loved to have had the kind of life that my worldly mates had. Behaving like a kid instead of an adult all my life, the discoveries of adolescent life, hanging out with mates that *I* liked instead of people that went to the hall, awkward fumbling around with the opposite sex, getting drunk (chucking up because of it) experimenting with life and growing as a person, period. I resent the dubs for taking that away from me.
My toughts exactly. I'm a 100% with you.

Gordy

At a time in my life I needed love and support from "Jehovah's loving organisation" they ran in the opposite direction. That above all set me on the road to leaving.

My JW wife and two JW daughters (28 & 22) have not spoken or had contact with me, since February 2001. A consequence of their so-called love.

Country Girl

The whole goddamned ball of wax. I haven't been one for 20 or more years, and it still infiltrates my waking life every chance it gets.

twinkletoes

One of the most hurtful, was when I first started studying with the JWs, I believed them about the sacredness of Blood. I was pregnant with my second child and knew that I would have problems with Blood (I'm rhesus negative, my first son is rhesus positive - this then creates the problem of jaundice in the second baby) My second child was born and was very ill (jaundiced because of incompatibility of blood) I refused a blood transfusion for him, but (thankfully) his father (not a JW) over-rode my decision. A transfusion was given to him. But even though thirty years have gone by, my son still cannot really understand how I could have been prepared to allow him to die. I was so brain-washed, and its so hard to try to make up for this stupidity, although my son doesn't hold this against me now. He knows just how much I really love him.

Twink

greendawn

I resented the lack, of brotherly love and warmth they were promising you before you joined, you leave the world your friends and family to find a really cold and uncaring environment.

streets76

Having all my child-like enthusiasm and ambition sucked out of me at a very tender age and replaced by a relentless sense of misanthropy. Imagine you're five years old and your mom is reading to you and showing you the illustrations on pages 208 and 209 of From Paradise Lost to Paradise Restored. Not a recipe for growing up normal.

What has hurt you the most for being a JW?