In this raw and emotional deep-dive, Laurel shares her powerful story of growing up in an extremely orthodox Mormon household as the youngest of eight children. From uncovering her Danish-Mormon ancestry to dealing with abuse, purity culture, and her father's secret polygamist "revelation" that led to his excommunication, Laurel reflects on how early trauma, sexual repression, and church doctrine shaped her identity. She opens up about her mission to Poland, her battle with anxiety, shame, and identity within the church, and how the toxic dynamics of Mormon Young Single Adult (YSA) culture pushed her to the edge. Ultimately, Laurel's journey of deconstruction—triggered by political events, therapy, and research into church history—leads her to reclaim her sexuality, leave the church, and finally begin to heal. Topics include: abuse, purity culture, sexual trauma, polygamy, depression, and suicidal ideation. Viewer discretion advised. Show notes can be found on the Mormon Stories blog here: https://www.mormonstories.org/my-mormon-bishop-dad-was-excommunicated-for-polygamy/ Timecodes: 00:00:00 Introduction 00:07:35 What her ancestors went through was sex & labor trafficking 00:15:40 They had an “extremely orthodox” Mormon household 00:22:52 Experiencing separation anxiety when her oldest sister went on her mission 00:26:36 Her baptism 00:33:13 Discussing her father’s infidelity 00:44:33 Her perspective on this affair as a child 00:59:16 Her father is excommunicated 01:10:15 Strange EFY experience 01:22:22 Performing in the Oakland Temple Pageant 01:29:50 Going on the church history tour as a child 01:38:12 Teen experiences that formed her adulthood 01:40:50 Confessing to her bishop 01:49:51 Discussing Prop-8 & making gay friends 02:03:56 Decided to go on a mission 02:20:16 Received revelation on her mission 02:26:42 Discussing the Young Single Adult ward 02:35:55 Learned to shut down her attraction 02:53:17 Was called as a relief society president in the family ward as a single woman 03:12:26 Her deconstruction begins 03:18:14 She “broke” when trump was elected & decided to go to therapy 03:28:04 Dating in the church was not working for me 03:34:04 Decided the only person she could trust to talk to about this was her ex-mormon brother 03:40:52 Feeling that her life is going to get better now 03:47:07 Laurel decided to resign from the Church 03:59:04 Fireside from an out gay member on the 2015 Policy 04:08:15 Documents that shaped her leaving 04:14:40 Did polygamy hit differently because her dad practiced polygamy? 04:20:00 Her brother in law advanced the theory that Joseph Smith was assassinated by his own followers 04:40:27 First sexual relationship while dating 04:43:06 She felt curious about polyamory 04:50:25 The Mormon woman she fell in love with 04:58:00 John’s experience asking a client if she might be gay 05:05:30 She later came out as a lesbian 05:11:27 Rapid fire questions 05:19:05 Is she worried about her dad learning that she told his story? 05:24:55 Why did she choose the name Hell as her last name? ___________________ At Mormon Stories we explore, celebrate, and challenge Mormon culture through in-depth stories told by members and former members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as scholars, authors, LDS apologists, and other professionals. Our overall mission is to: 1. Facilitate informed consent amongst LDS Church members, investigators, and non-members regarding Mormon history, doctrine, and theology 2. Support Mormons (and members of other high-demand religions) who are experiencing a religious faith crisis 3. Promote healing, growth and community for those who choose to leave the LDS Church or other high demand religions 🤝Help us continue to deliver quality content by becoming a donor today One-time or recurring donations: https://donorbox.org/mormon-stories?default_interval=m Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/mormonstories Paypal: https://paypal.me/mormonstories Join this channel to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx6OgmoqJbOVRq-Lv1P7SzA/join Our Platforms: 🌐Mormon Stories Blog: https://www.mormonstories.org/episodes 🎙️Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories ✳️Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4sDzk7dRjODTSEqzZKZJzk?si=148b0efc1ccc4404&nd=1 🍎Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mormon-stories-lds/id312094772 🖼️Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mormstories 📱TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mormonstoriespodcast 🎮Discord: https://discord.com/invite/kuX5p6yyjF Contact us: 📧 MormonStories@gmail.com 📬PO Box 171085, Salt Lake City, UT 84117