Mormon Stories Podcast The Mormon Church Made Me Give Up My Baby w/ Myndee Tollefson | Ep. 2047
Aug 4, 2025
Myndee Tollefson shares her harrowing journey from a strict Mormon upbringing in Bountiful, Utah, to grappling with the emotional aftermath of giving up her baby for adoption. She candidly discusses the pressures from the church and family, revealing the toxicity of purity culture and the harsh realities faced by birth mothers. Myndee reflects on the profound emotional costs of such institutional coercion and highlights her path to healing and self-acceptance. Her story illuminates the complexities of faith, motherhood, and the struggle for personal autonomy.
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Impact of Childhood Sexual Abuse
- Myndee experienced sexual abuse as a child, which significantly impacted her feelings of worth and led to complicated emotions around sexuality and shame.
- This trauma shaped her adolescence and contributed to her difficult experiences within the LDS purity culture.
Church Pressures Adoption
- The LDS Church pressured unwed mothers to place children for adoption, framing single parenting as selfish and morally inferior.
- Church literature promoted adoption to worthy LDS families as the only acceptable option, which influenced Myndee's decision heavily.
Conflict of Interest in Church Adoptions
- The Mormon Church’s involvement in adoption creates a conflict of interest benefiting the church's growth and privileged members.
- This institutional influence compromises informed consent and the autonomy of vulnerable birth mothers like Myndee.
