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The “Cheaper Than a Dozen” dancer and actress said she was trying to “change something I now understand is very natural.”Actress and dancer Alison Stoner say the homophobia she encountered after falling in love with a woman sent her “into a spiral,” which eventually led to her entering conversion therapy.
The actress, who publicly identified herself as a member of the LGBTQ community in 2018, told Insider in an interview published on Wednesday that she has acknowledged an in-office “outpatient variation” program that aims to determine the sexual orientation or gender identity of an individual’s change.
“I feel trapped. I feel miserable. “I felt completely wrong, but deep down, I just wanted to be a faithful follower of God,” said Stoner. Conversion therapy, which has been discredited by many health organizations, including this American Medical Association also the World Health Organization, is now banned in 20 US states. Especially the harmful and homophobic messages from the people around him, including the priests.
Hearing from people you trust, from people you respect, from people you might even aspire to, that you are inherently “lazy,” “disturbed. That the devil has a purpose behind you because of your position in Hollywood… puts you in a spiral – at least for me because I want to do every right thing,” said the lesser of a dozen stars.
Recalling her experience on the program, Stoner said it changed their perception of themselves and directly affected their ability to stay in touch.
“It separates the connection between mind and body because I see the body as something that can’t be trusted. Ultimately, it interferes with my ability to maintain real relationships with other people and with myself because I’m suppressing my voice now,” she says, “I’m trying to change something that I now understand is very natural.”
The Step Up actress said she finally realized that the negative opinions and views of people in her religious community about LGBTQ people are a by-product of their “environment and times.”
Yet despite its release, the experience is still “scarred” and remains “legally difficult” to talk about. “My mind doesn’t square want to go there. My legs are starting to shake at the thought of going through some of these things,” she said.