Sixteen years later and wow is life different

BlackSwan of Memphis

I have no idea if this is the right place to post this. But. Oh well.

If you're just leaving the Witnesses or questioning and toying with the idea of leaving....

Life goes by Fast. And either you rip the band aid off and deal with it or let it fester and eat you alive.

Ive seen people do both.

But the sooner you face it the sooner you start to heal and figure out who you are and where you're going.

I NEVER would have guessed 16 years ago that I would be where I am now.

And where I am now is far far better then I ever could have believed.

Phizzy

I really started in earnest my Journey to the Sunlit Uplands of Freedom and Peace just behind you, 15 years ago, after nearly six decades in !

Those years of "journey" have flown by, I have grown up, educated myself, and become the Real Me and truly, consistently Happy for the first time ever in my life. You cannot be truly happy in the Cult, whoever you are.

I am so happy for you, may you long continue to enjoy life and receive its Blessings !

Disillusioned JW

I wonder how old are the people who frequently post on this site. I'm getting the impression that a considerable percentage of them are over 60 years old. Does anyone care to state their approximate age? I'm between age 50 and age 60.

TonusOH

I'm in my early 50s, faded quietly over the approximate time period of 1997-to-2012, at which point I was far enough away that "leaving" was painless, as I was already long gone. I don't know if I would have had the fortitude to just rip the bandage off, but I was always a planner.

DesirousOfChange

Disillusioned JW, I think your suspicions are correct. I think most of us here were pretty devout believers for a long time. Which is why it took a lot for most of us to get “disillusioned”. I know I had lots of issues that nagged at me through the years but I simply “compartmentalized” them (or buried them) until there was that “final straw” moment and everything crashed. I finally had to realize/accept that it was all BS. No hocus pocus Holy Spirit directing things. No Shekhinah Light revelations. Over 40 years baptized and 10+ years as an elder. Walking away from all that was emotionally painful. The loss loss of all of our “friends” was especially rough. But fortunately we walked away with our immediate family unified and intact and lost only a few “fringe” or more distant family members. Replacing the network of friends has been the most difficult challenge. In JW World everyone is an automatic friend (tho that friendship is conditional regardless of how close you might think they are). Good luck to all you faders!

The greatest revenge is living a happy and successful life!

JeffT

I'm 71. I became a JW in 1973 during all the pre-1975 hype. Looking back I had about one or two years when I was totally into it, a few years of hanging out with JW friends, got married, and just wanted a normal life with wife and children. I was not very into it for a number of years.

The Watchtower's position on higher education was the issue that finally pushed me over the edge. I wanted a good life for my children. Wife (also a convert) and I DA'd ourselves in 1989 after a year of independent study at the library and joining an XJW support group. (That's what we had before the internet )

All three children have college degrees, two have advanced degrees and the third is thinking about picking up a Master's.

NonCoinCollector

I left Watchtower almost 23 years ago. Even though there have been plenty of ups and downs, leaving that mess behind was one of my best decisions.

Beth Sarim

Just awesome life stories. Keep it up!!

You're lives leaving the JW cult are outstanding examples for any lurkers contemplating leaving the Borg.

Great comments all.