You left religion, but your shame didn’t. Here are 15 books for leaving religion (memoirs, trauma-informed reads, and razor-sharp truth) to help you rip out the old wiring, reclaim your brain, and build a life that doesn’t require permission from imaginary authorities.

You left the pews, burned the prayer journals, and kicked God out of your head, so why does the shame still hit like a truck? In Part 1 of The Phantom Pew, Courtney Heard digs into Religious Trauma Syndrome (RTS), fear conditioning, and why your body can still panic long after your beliefs are gone.