Women who once promoted traditional marriage and strict gender roles have described leaving relationships marked, in their accounts, by financial dependence, restrictions on independence and alleged abuse. Their experiences were featured in a report by The Guardian published on Wednesday, 4 November 2026.
Jennie Gage, Bernadine Bluntly, and Tia Levings have different backgrounds, but each has challenged aspects of the lifestyle they once promoted. Their allegations discuss their individual marriages, and the abuses that they faced while adhering to traditional marriage.
Jennie Gage Describes Years Without A Bank Account
Jennie Gage, 52, grew up in a Mormon family in Arizona. She became engaged at 18 but recalled that a church bishop directed her to marry a different man. She married that man six weeks later, and the marriage lasted 24 years. They raised five children.
Gage described being prevented from taking paid work or opening her own bank account. She recalled receiving cash for groceries in an envelope and having to put items back when she did not have enough money. She has also alleged abuse during the marriage.
In 2018, Gage said she discovered her husband meeting a sex worker. She subsequently left the marriage and described struggling to rebuild her financial position after the divorce, relying on help from people close to her.
Her advice to women considering similar arrangements is specific: consider prenuptial agreements, spousal trusts and retirement savings held in their own names. She has warned against entering a marriage without financial resources or a way to support oneself independently.
Bernadine Bluntly Rejects Extreme Gender Roles
Bernadine Bluntly, 36, whose real surname is Barber, previously sold 'RIP Feminism' T-shirts, supported Brett Kavanaugh's nomination to the US Supreme Court, and developed a course called Simply Smitten about attracting traditionally masculine husbands.
She left her husband in 2025 and finalised their divorce in 2026. Bluntly obtained a restraining order against her former husband and has alleged abuse; he denies her allegations.
In an April 2026 video titled What I Got Wrong About the Trad Movement, Bluntly apologised for messaging she believed could have contributed to harm. She described the movement as increasingly difficult to distinguish from the 'red-pill' manosphere, an online culture associated with ideas about male dominance.
Bluntly has not renounced Christianity or every form of traditional relationship. Her criticism centres on extreme gender roles and the use of religious language to justify control, silence, or mistreatment within a marriage.
Tia Levings Recounts Religious Pressure
Tia Levings, 52, married at 19 and became involved with several non-denominational fundamentalist Christian groups, including the Institute in Basic Life Principles, or IBLP. She described teachings that placed husbands in positions of authority and discouraged wives from pursuing work outside the home.
Levings was an early tradwife blogger in the 2000s, writing about cooking, childcare, and homemaking before the lifestyle became a prominent social media trend. She later described alleged abuse behind the domestic image presented in those posts.
When she sought help, Levings recalled a church leader advising her to obey her husband more closely. She eventually fled with her children and now has custody of the couple's four children.
Prominent Creators Address Tradwife Assumptions
Not every creator associated with traditional domestic content has left the lifestyle. Nara Smith has said there is no hidden tradwife agenda behind her videos, while Hannah Neeleman has expressed willingness to hear feedback if people consider something she shares harmful.
Neither Smith nor Neeleman should be grouped with the women alleging abuse or financial restrictions. Their remarks concern public interpretations of their content, rather than claims about having escaped comparable marriages.
For Gage, Bluntly, and Levings, the central concerns are the circumstances they describe within their own relationships, including control over money, pressure to remain obedient, and the practical difficulty of leaving. Their accounts remain personal testimony, showcasing the hidden dark side behind the traditional domestic lifestyle for women.
