Trauma Therapy: LDS Mission Trauma- A Sensitive Topic
This is a hard topic to talk about. It’s a hard topic for me to write about because it can be a sensitive topic to dance around. In church, it seems like nobody is talking about the difficult experiences of serving a mission. Rest assured, I’m not here to diss on missions at all but I want to share with you what my clients have shared with me. I am not here to tell anyone what they should and shouldn’t believe. This blog post is not to blame anyone or anything. My goal is to just help you get the help that you need, bring awareness to why you might have negative beliefs about yourself, and help you develop the faith you want to have.
LDS missions are a big part of LDS culture and are often coined as “the best two years”. There are a lot of expectations and hype around serving missions. There is also a sense of obligation to serve and fear of consequences if you don’t serve a mission. It could be all of your siblings served missions, and even if you don’t actually want to go you don’t feel like you have the option. Some people even give the impression that you’ll be behind in life if you don’t serve a mission. People talk about what a spiritual high an LDS mission is and how it shapes and forms your testimony. Blessings are promised to you and your family if you serve a mission. If you are a woman and feel that if you aren’t married by the time you turn 19, you are obligated to serve a mission when you don’t want to or are afraid to.
Sometimes LDS missions aren’t what you hoped they would be
What happens when you serve a mission, and it didn’t end up being the “best two years”? This is the space where nobody feels they can talk about it. Even in therapy, my clients are afraid if they share what happened or didn’t like their mission they are being someone who speaks negatively about the church. My clients actually don’t always realize their missions are where they learned to think negatively about themselves. Sometimes people come home from their missions and feel shame for not being perfect, they feel they’ve let God down, or they could have worked harder. There is nothing more heartbreaking than to see someone feel like even God is disappointed in them. My clients have shared having negative experiences with their mission companions and being mistreated by them but not feeling they could say anything to anyone. It was a lonely and isolating experience. Men I have worked with have shared dating fears to admit their missions were less than ideal because what would the women they are dating think about this? I know that there are also people who can’t admit to anyone including themselves that some of their mission experiences sucked. Returned missionaries might try and rationalize their experiences as a good learning experience, and while that may be true in some situations, these experiences also had a negative impact.
What I want you to know about your LDS mission
I want you to know it’s ok to acknowledge that your mission might have been negative. It doesn’t mean you are a bad person. It doesn’t mean you are less faithful. Sharing that your mission had negative parts doesn’t mean you are apostatizing. It also doesn’t mean that God is disappointed in you or that you aren’t good enough. It’s important to acknowledge these experiences so you work through them, and so those experiences don’t impact the rest of your life. Accepting the reality of your mission experience is part of processing it. I think it’s important regardless of if you are in or out of the faith at this point. Being able to heal from what happened can help you not feel as hurt and angry as well as help you live your life in a more genuine and peaceful way.
Trauma therapy can help you work through your LDS mission trauma
A big part of healing from your experiences is therapy. Returned missionaries might come up with depression and anxiety that they never experienced before. These might be symptoms of needing to work through feelings and negative beliefs you might be holding onto. Therapy can help you do all of these things. People who have gone to therapy report feeling fewer symptoms of depression, and anxiety. Therapy is for everyone including men. You are not weak or lacking faith if you go to therapy. I think it’s an example of having strength and self-awareness. I also want to assure you that I’m not here to change your beliefs. I want to help you heal and decide what's important to you. You deserve it.
Begin trauma therapy for LDS mission trauma near Provo, Utah
You don’t have to have those past experiences rule your life. Trauma therapy can help. This Utah County Counseling Clinic has a trauma therapist who can help. To begin trauma therapy follow the steps below:
Sign up for a free 15-minute phone consultation with Marcus Hunt
Complete online forms and schedule a first session with a PTSD therapist
Begin trauma therapy
Online Therapy in Utah
I provide online therapy in Utah to help you get the treatment you deserve in a safe and convenient way. Online therapy is just as effective as in-person therapy.
I also provide online therapy for those located in all other areas of Utah such as Logan, Salt Lake City, and St. George, Utah and Cedar City.
Other mental health services provided at Marcus Hunt Therapy
Trauma Therapy isn’t the only service provided at this Northern Utah Counseling Center. Other mental health services Marcus Hunt Therapy provides include premarital counseling, therapy for men, anxiety therapy, marriage counseling, LDS marriage counseling, and PTSD Treatment in Utah.
About the Author
Marcus Hunt is a marriage and family therapist in the state of Utah. Marcus holds a bachelor’s degree in Behavioral Science with an emphasis in Family Studies. Marcus also has a master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Abilene Christian University. Marcus is an EMDR-trained therapist and is passionate about men’s issues. Marcus loves to help his clients work through their trauma so they can have the best lives possible. When Marcus isn’t doing therapy, he enjoys riding his e-bike around and enjoys riding around Salem Pond in Salem.