Growing up, my mother and I were the only ethnic people in the ward. I generally blended in since my skin is fair but that changed when I hit puberty. Suddenly I had wide hips and was the only girl wearing a real bra. I got a lot of comments from adults and I guess…
My brother has suffered for 20+ years because of the extreme shaming coinciding with sexually explicit questioning. It was only about a year ago that he shared his tearful story with me. My brother was a “pleaser” from a young age. He strove to be a model Mormon, citizen and son. As his teenage years…
As a young boy going through puberty, I didn’t know what was going on with my body. I was changing. I remember when I was very young how painful my erections were, and I didn’t know what it meant or why it was happening. I’m sure they talked about it in the maturation program at…
I don’t think it only occurs for children in Church private interviews to receive inappropriate questions during private closed door bishop and other Church worthiness interviews. I was a newly called full time Elder missionary at the Missionary Training Center in Provo, Utah. My home ward and stake had never set me apart for my…
I had great bishops growing up. I always felt like they were sincere in trying to help me be a better person, and to this day, I still appreciate them. When I got back from my mission and started at BYU, I decided to tell the bishop of my new YSA ward that I am…
Mine is not a horrible story with graphic details. It is simply a story of what these questions do to a very normal young man. From the age of 12, my bishops asked me about masturbation. My bishops told me how I should fight Satan when confronted with the urge of self gratification. Each bishop…
I grew up in a “happy” devout Mormon family; and yet I felt completely isolated and alone my entire childhood. My sister and step-dad had such obvious contempt for me we rarely spoke. My mother admitted to me on multiple occasions that she felt she had lost the bond with me as an infant. So…
As a 14 year old, I was in a relationship with a high school junior. This boy convinced me to enter a slightly sexual relationship with him. Being 14 and in love, I didn’t know any better. I felt like I was sexually assaulted by him. Things he tried to do to me, hurt. What…
This is a bit of a different story. A few months after I became primary president, I found out of two additional active men in my ward who are registered sex offenders. I realized I often ask men in the ward to substitute in primary because it was nearly impossible to get men as primary…
Constant shame and guilt, the feeling before and after every meeting with the bishop. Awkwardly entering the room sitting down alone. Three feet away from a man I have never known in my life in the slightest. My guts twisting and churning knowing what questions are to come soon that I in the moment would…