I grew up in a very strict and sheltered environment where my dad believed girls needed rules, chores, discipline, and to be taught to listen and obey. If we did something wrong, he believed we needed to be spanked. I was homeschooled, attended church twice a week, and regularly participated in Bible studies. Because of how I was raised, I sometimes feel like I’m very different from the rest of the world and am still trying to understand how to fit into a society with values and experiences that are so different from what I grew up knowing.
"It sounds like you grew up in a very structured environment with clear expectations about behavior, family roles, faith, and discipline. That kind of upbringing can leave someone feeling both grounded in certain values and disconnected from people whose experiences were very different.
Many people who were raised in strict homes find that adulthood involves sorting through what they genuinely believe, what helped them, what may have hurt them, and how they want to relate to a much broader world.
Trying to understand where you fit does not mean abandoning your upbringing.
It means learning how to navigate life as your own person.
You are not the only one who feels this way.
People from sheltered religious homes, military families, strict cultural backgrounds, and even highly secular environments such as myself, often experience a similar adjustment when they encounter lifestyles and beliefs they were never exposed to growing up.
It is okay to take your time, ask questions, and learn about others without feeling pressured to become like them.
Your past is part of your story, but it does not have to limit your ability to connect with people who have different experiences."
"What part has been the hardest for you, understanding other people, feeling understood by them, or figuring out what you personally believe apart from how you were raised?"
