Waking Up Archives

Your Marriage Abuse Cycle Exercise [Episode 341]

August 19, 2025

Have you ever felt like you’re starring in a rerun of your own life? Same arguments. Same heartbreak. Same fake flowers and empty promises. It’s called the abuse cycle, my friend.

In this episode, I dive deep into an exercise that one of our Flying Free members shared in the private forum. She mapped out her relationship’s specific abuse cycle, and what she discovered was pretty important.

Nothing changes when nothing changes. Oof. That one landed.

Praying for a Miracle—When the Miracle Might Be You Walking Away [Episode 337]

July 22, 2025

What if the miracle you’ve been begging God for—the divine intervention, the total transformation of your emotionally bankrupt marriage—is actually you walking out the door?
In this episode, I pull back the curtain on my own bathroom-floor prayer sob sessions (complete with cold tile and mascara rivers) and challenge the dangerous theology that says staying in abusive marriages = holy martyrdom.
If you’ve been stuck in a cycle of “pray harder, suffer longer,” it’s time to consider that the still, small voice urging you to get out might actually be God.

Military Marriage Abuse: Elizabeth’s Story [Episode 336]

July 15, 2025

Ever wondered what it’s like to be married to someone who swears allegiance to both their country and their ego? Meet Elizabeth, a brave survivor of emotional, spiritual, and psychological abuse within a military marriage. Spoiler alert: It’s not all flag-waving and family barbecues.

Am I Being Emotionally Abused? [Episode 293]

September 17, 2024

Have you ever wondered, “Am I really being emotionally abused? Is it considered emotional abuse if my spouse is lying to me? Gaslighting me? Ignoring me? What are the kinds of mistreatments we can actually call ABUSE?

My friend, this is a question I’ve been answering for other women for almost a decade now. This is my my life’s work. My passion. Let me help guide you just a little bit in today’s episode as we do a deep-dive on emotional abuse: what it is, how it destroys lives, and what we can do about it.

A Story that Perfectly Describes Emotional Abuse [Episode 272]

April 23, 2024

Today’s podcast episode features a chapter from my new book, All the Scary Little Gods. It’s an analogy I wrote several years ago when I was trying my darndest to explain my situation to people who couldn’t wrap their brains around it.

In the years since that time, I’ve heard from countless Christian women how much it helped them understand what they were going through. Today you can listen to this story as it was recorded for the Audible version of All the Scary Little Gods. I hope it helps you find clarity and hope.

And maybe even a few laughs along the way.

Ten Steps Out of an Emotionally Abusive “Christian” Marriage [Episode 254]

December 19, 2023

Getting out of an emotionally abusive marriage is one of the hardest things you could ever do. But the life and healing it can bring after you have finally left the grip of abuse makes this difficult journey worth it.

In today’s episode, I want to outline a ten-step pathway if you or someone you love is considering getting out of an emotionally and spiritually abusive relationship. Come with me as we climb the ladder out of hell.

Category: Waking Up