Becca grew up in a loving and stable home, yet often felt out of place. As an adopted child, she did not physically resemble her family, and those differences quietly shaped her sense of belonging. Over time, feelings of alienation deepened, compounded by exposure to sex-negative cultural messaging and a traumatic experience of childhood sexual assault. Becca began to dissociate from her body, feeling trapped in something she believed was wrong and unable to protect her.

Sexual assault can profoundly alter how survivors relate to their bodies. Some disconnect entirely, others become hyper-aware, and many experience shame that shapes how they dress, move, and exist in the world. For Becca, purity culture reinforced this disconnect by framing bodies as dangerous, fragile, or valuable only under strict conditions.

Becca poured her energy into her work as an astrophysicist, eventually entering a graduate program in Iceland. There, she encountered a culture that related to bodies with less shame and more neutrality. The contrast was immediate. For the first time, she felt space to reconnect with her body without judgment or expectation.

That experience reshaped how Becca understood herself. Exposure to a different worldview allowed her to question the messages she had absorbed about worth, sexuality, and usefulness. Today, she continues to rebuild her relationship with her body through lived experience, curiosity, and a growing sense of agency.

Becca’s story examines how purity culture fractures embodiment, and how stepping outside of it can make reconnection possible.