Being a spiritual person is like getting closer to God and salvation. The goals become easier if you follow a group or community to follow a path that leads you to spiritual growth.
Today, most of us are connected to one or another spiritual group, following their ethics wholeheartedly. However, it becomes hard and painful if anyone experiences conflicts in a spiritual place.
We go there to heal, to feel better, to grow, and when things go wrong, it heavily affects us. In this blog post I will share some of the Effects of Spiritual Abuse you need to know before connecting anywhere.
Before going to the effects of spiritual abuse, Let’s understand what is spiritual abuse in the first place.
What is Spiritual Abuse?
If I have to say straight I will say spiritual manipulation is a form of emotional manipulation from the authority. It may not be correct but If the authority tries to gain control over you in any way, it’s called spiritual abuse.
Yes, Every spiritual place has some rules and ethics to follow which require to give time and strength to a person to accept and follow. Such abuses might be common in some places where regular gathering happens.
Spiritual Abuse can happen to individuals, families, or groups as well. These people can make you feel guilty, useless, or fear you for not following their rules and regulations.
Also Read More about 7 Intense Physical Symptoms of Spiritual Awakening.
Now let’s see what are some of the painful Effects of Spiritual Abuse.
Painful Side Effects of Spiritual Abuse
Loss of Trust in Spiritual Leaders
As we all know we connect to spiritual places to ease our life by uplifting our energy. When something wrong happens in spiritual places where you go with pure and positive intentions, your trust seems broken.
One of the first and foremost Effects of Spiritual Abuse is broken trust. You might feel cheated or not visit that spiritual place again. You lose faith in spiritual and religious leaders.
Such thoughts of betrayal can question one’s integrity and find it difficult to trust again. In other words, it can hurt your core belief which is the foundation of any spiritual growth.
Spiritual Confusion and Doubt
Spiritual abuse can develop an inner conflict in one’s mind. We all go to holy places to clear our mind, cleanse the clutter from our lives, and create peace in mind and heart.
When any conflicts happen in spiritual places you feel connected, self-doubt is a common emotion one can feel. When things happen against our belief it changes the impression of any holy places.
Everyone carries thoughts about the beliefs they have been taught since childhood. One of the Effects of Spiritual Abuse is that one starts to question their past spiritual beliefs.
Emotional and Psychological Distress
Spiritually, I believe is not just a thought but the strongest emotions of a person. Spiritual people like you and me have the strongest relationship with God and His teachings.
When any manipulation happens or things happen against our beliefs, anxiety, depression, and guilt are common emotions. One can feel unworthy or manipulated which may lead to psychological distress.
Not being accepted by spiritual groups or places with your own beliefs can create self-blame in you. The Effects of Spiritual Abuse are painful and can disturb your emotional state if not resolved in time.
Isolation and Loneliness
When one connects to the spiritual or religious place they intend to be a part of the community or family of godly place. When things go opposite to one’s beliefs, one might feel hurt and isolate themselves.
Be it their own choice or feeling ignored by others, spiritual leaders can cause loneliness. They might withdraw themselves from the holy places, community, and other spiritual leaders.
The fear of judgment can create guilt and shame which may lead to loneliness. One of the painful Effects of Spiritual Abuse is going into a deep sense of isolation and loneliness.
Fear of Exploring Other Beliefs
One of the common traits I have seen in spiritual people is they like to explore various beliefs and activities. When one experiences spiritual abuse, it creates fear in them.
The abusive experience not only hurts a person’s beliefs but also develops a fear of going to other communities or spiritual places. It can create a sense of negative consequences every time they think about exploring.
This fear can stop the person from visiting other holy places, meeting new people or connect any other community. In other words, such Effects of Spiritual Abuse can present a person to find a healthy and fulfilling spiritual path.
Also Read More about Importance of Goal of Spirituality.
Difficulty in Setting Boundaries
When one connects to a spiritual place, they place their faith in God and the leaders. When spiritual abuse happens, when personal boundaries are violated.
When boundaries are broken or things happen against someone’s beliefs and values it becomes difficult to set boundaries again. These conflicts or pain can cause an emotional weakness in a person that can affect all of the areas of their life.
Such circumstances can also make it hard for them to say no to things that are against their values or make them feel guilty or shameful. It’s one of the Effects of Spiritual Abuse that makes the victims struggle in life.
Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms
Every bad phase, which typically disturbs the peace of mind, lasts longer than expected. When the emotional core is touched negatively, a person requires a lot of time to heal or let things go fully.
I believe every spiritual person, in the beginning, goes through an emotional rollercoaster. One of the Effects of Spiritual Abuse is to experience PCOD- post-traumatic stress disorder.
Sometimes, it affects so much that a person stops trusting anyone or feels neglected in any spiritual or religious conversations. In other words, spiritual abuse can affect a person at psychological and emotional levels.
Loss of Spiritual Identity
Many people developed their identity as a spiritual or religious persons. Unfortunately, when they experience any such abuse, they fear losing or in reality, lose their spiritual identity.
The abused person may feel disconnected from themselves, the beliefs they have been living, or the values they have been standing for. It’s one of the long-term effects of Spiritual Abuse that is challenging to overcome easily.
Reclaiming spiritual power or rebuilding the same beliefs is not easy for everyone, especially the person who is new to the organization. They might even need support to overcome and heal themselves.
Also Read More about How to Protect Yourself From Evil Eye
Distrust in Organized Religion or Spiritual Communities
Getting Spiritually abused or manipulated by someone who is known for spiritual ethics is far more painful than any other situation. People connect to spiritual places with the belief that this place is holy.
Holy places are often considered to spread peace, love, and brotherhood. When the manipulation or such things happen in there, it raises questions. One of the negative Effects of Spiritual Abuse is dispute or distrust in such communities.
This horrible experience can lead to limiting a person’s communications to other spiritual persons or communities. Such situations not only limit their growth but other opportunities to heal or their personal growth in life.
1- What does spiritual pain feel like?
Spirituality is known to heal not give pain but for sure the journey is a roller coaster. The spiritual journey is not about the plain surface but cleaning the surface to shine like a plain.
Spirituality is all about healing, releasing, and leaving everything you have been holding for a long time. Therefore, spiritual pain is hell-like pain unless you accept it and let it pass.
2- Does karma affect rebirth?
Every act, whether it’s good or bad, is known as Karma. Karma is what creates a person’s destiny, as per all the religious talk. Rebirth is for everyone and Karma does affect the rebirth.
The past Good Karma gives a good life in the next birth and the bad Karma account gives a bad or poor life in the next birth. A person’s current karma does affect the person’s rebirth and the quality, and experience of the next life.
Final Words: Being a spiritual person, I believe any manipulations in the places you are connected with can hurt you deeply. However, all we need to understand is that we go there to learn to serve not attached.
When we expect or attach to any place or person, any small mistreatment can cause hurt or pain. I am not supporting any manipulation or spiritual abuse but giving you a tip to protect yourself from any such experiences.
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