Purity Test, Perfectionism, and Power in Relationships

About this episode

The episode explores the impact of purity culture on relationships and personal development through a discussion with therapists.

In the conclusion of this two-part series, Andrew and Laura reunite with therapists Julia Postema and Jeremiah Gibson to reveal how purity culture reaches far beyond the bedroom. The conversation pulls back the curtain on the "Internal Panopticon," exploring how religious conditioning manifests as perfectionism, decision-making paralysis, and the compulsive emotional caretaking often found in high-control environments. The guests discuss how these evangelical patterns are frequently replicate...

People in this episode

Hosts: Andrew, Laura

Guests: Julia Postema, Jeremiah Gibson

Topics covered

• purity culture
• perfectionism
• relationships
• emotional caretaking
• religious conditioning

Keywords

• purity culture
• perfectionism
• relationships
• emotional caretaking
• religious conditioning
• Internal Panopticon

More episodes of Sunday School Dropouts

• Wrapping Up Purity Culture · June 2, 2026 · 1h 4m
• Holy Disobedience with Melissa Duge Spiers · May 26, 2026 · 57 min
• Let’s Talk About Sex, Baby! (Re-air) · May 19, 2026 · 1h 13m
• Transitioning out of Purity Culture (Re-Release) · May 12, 2026 · 1h 4m
• The Manosphere and the Fundamentalism Pipeline · May 5, 2026 · 1h 26m
• The Secret Psychology of Mormon Wives: Marriage, Conflict, and the Taylor & Dakota Dynamic · April 28, 2026 · 1h 19m