Are You ANGRY That You Were Once A JW?

by minimus 27 Replies latest jw friends

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  minimus
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  Phantom Stranger

  Not any more. Required forgiving myself...after that the rest was easy.
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  Flip

  Absolutely not! Being forced by my parents to be a cash consumer of Jehovah's publications and an unpaid performer so Jehovah's earthly corporation can retain its Government sanctioned tax-exempt status, is an experience relatively few people get to have.
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  cypher50

  No, I'm not angry or bitter. That would mean rejecting that there was any good out of being a Witness and I still can't do that (I do have good memories for parts of it)...I am sad that there are so many people that I would still consider friends (even if they don't consider me one) who still believe the lies of the WTS.
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  cyber-sista

  Since I haven't been out that long I am still processing a lot of anger--feeling ripped off, lied to, cheated out of time and health and money and life. BUT at least I'm out now and have a lot of support from family and non-jw friends and places like this to turn to. Kind of a roller coaster of emotions to go through, but from what I read it gets better after time if you use the proper tools to help yourself. But yes, quite honestly I am still at times in the angry stage and would like to shout in the streets how wicked and damaging the whole WT thing is, but I will contain myself from being overly zealous and causing further damage to myself and others.

  cyber-crabby
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  pudd

  lots of mixed emotions. anger possibly in there somewhere!
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  yxl1

  yes i'm angry. I had my childhood taken away by a book publishing company. On the whim of the local elders we had our TV thrown out and any books that did not come from the WTS were either distroyed or given away. The physical abuse increased and I was forbidden to see anybody outside school that wasnt a witness. I was forced to sit through hours of mind numbing rubbish each week and had to spend whatever freetime I had studying for the next meeting. During school holidays, It wasnt unusual for us to spend 6 straight hours preparing for each meeting. How anyone can stay saine after spending that amount of time studying for the book study is beyond me.

  Most of the shitty things that happened in my life growing was directly caused by the WTS, our over zealous, ignorant and pious congregation.

  Angry? You f**king bet I am!!
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  LyinEyes

  I am angry that I didnt get to do many of the dreams I wanted as a JW child, I didnt get to further my education and have the career I wanted in my 20's.

  I am angry that I was associated with the JW's because of the child abuse issues, the suicides, the many depressed ones being told they are not good enough.

  I am angry for the lives lost , blood transfusions, the political card, brothers slaughter in Malawi, the UN mess. GB hypocrites!!!!!

  I am not so much angry that I was a JW anymore .......I have realized that the things I am angry about , I can fix. I can go back to school. I can find a belief system, a faith. There are alot of things that I thought the WT took away from me forever. But thinking that way , only would hold me in a state of anger and I would never move on the best that I can.

  Mostly I am Embarrassed to have to admit that I was once a JW. To my amazement most people I talk to about it are so non judgemental, but they really dont know all the lies and hypocritical GB like we do. It is bad enough to tell some that I was a JW, I surely dont want to tell them all the crazy things we did in the name of religion. I am afraid they will think I am seriously off my rocker.
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  yxl1

  Mostly I am Embarrassed to have to admit that I was once a JW. To my amazement most people I talk to about it are so non judgemental, but they really dont know all the lies and hypocritical GB like we do. It is bad enough to tell some that I was a JW, I surely dont want to tell them all the crazy things we did in the name of religion. I am afraid they will think I am seriously off my rocker.

  I know what you mean, but you shouldnt be embarrassed. Use every situation to let people know the dangers of the WTS. Use your experiences to make people aware of what being a JW is like. Dont get me wrong, I dont go knocking on peoples doors telling them about the evils of the WTS, but in everyday converstation if the topic rears its ugly head, I ALWAYS give a good witness. In doing so, I've opened the eyes of many work collegues, one who was actually having a bible study with her neighbour. Most people who I work, who may have listened or bought magazines from the dubs in the past, will now either give a polite "no thanks" or will raise the paedophile issue before slamming the door. Either is good in my view.
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  blondie

  Actually, my anger centered more on the sexual abuse by my parents and how my childhood had been taken from me. I realized that my anger was stealing my "present" life from me, the only life I really could live. I didn't "forgive" my parents but I have let go of the resentment. I have been in several support groups for alcoholism (ACOA, Al-Anon) and for abuse. The people I met showed me how to successfully live a good life now and how to avoid letting the past poison the present.

  I do what I can to help people see the dangers of the WTS.

  Blondie