If you grew up in a high-control religious environment, you may have heard a story like this: During a time of war, a group of Christians is hiding together, quietly praying. Armed soldiers burst in and demand that anyone who follows Jesus stand up…

Like many people this week, I watched the Severance Season 2 finale. (Don’t worry—no spoilers here if you haven’t seen it yet!)  It got me thinking: there are a lot of parallels to religious trauma in the storyline of this show and what the characters are navigating. Fans of Severance, this one’s for you!

For years, I was conditioned to believe that a man and a woman being alone together—regardless of the context—was inappropriate or dangerous. Even after leaving that world behind, I was surprised by how quickly that old conditioning crept in during a simple lunch with a colleague.