A question for all you converted athiests!

[coolfunkDJ]

I have a question for all you converted athiests...

How did you feel before you converted vs. after you converted?

I'm just very curious as I am a new converted athiest and honestly, I feel a lot more comfortable and at peace with myself more than I ever felt being Christian, since I was constantly questioning if it was real even when i was a devoted Christian, there was always that nagging sensation in my head saying "Are you wasting your time at church?"

So please, let me know Thanks!

[Mister Agenda]

I usually think of it as 'de-conversion' because I wasn't converted into another religion, just out of the one I was in.

[coolfunkDJ]

I usually think of it as 'de-conversion' because I wasn't converted into another religion, just out of the one I was in.

I guess that's true, but its still a conversion

[Mister Agenda]

It was a weight off my shoulders. The cognitive dissonance of trying to not be like those close-minded atheists and stay at least an agnostic theist (though I didn't know that was the right term for me at the time) had been growing due to my finally and late in life getting a college-level grounding in logic philosophy, and basic science.

[FatAndFaithless]

There really wasn't a moment of de-conversion for me, it was more like a slow process of coming to realize that I didn't believe. The biggest effect I've noticed is that I really don't see religion anymore through the lens of reverence or avoidance of criticism, and feel comfortable discussing it for what it is, instead of giving it a pass on certain things just because they fall under the unassailable umbrella of "faith".

[coolfunkDJ]

It was a weight off my shoulders. The cognitive dissonance of trying to not be like those close-minded atheists

Yeah, a weight off my shoulders, that's how id describe it

[Silver]

As a theist, I felt as though I was betraying who I was for the comfort of the sheep mentality, though I did not fully understand the delusion to which I had fallen victim until I began the de-conversion process. Once I fully accepted the reality that theism was doing me more harm than good, I was better able to be comfortable with myself and better enjoy life as it is meant to be lived.

[Norman Humann]

Hmm...

Concerning my personal experience, it depends on which de-conversion we're talking about, because my religious views have been a sine wave.

For the first time when I came to question religion naturally and reached the conclusion it was a bunch of bullshit. It didn't feel like much. I really wanted to believe, but just couldn't.

Then there was a lot of mess with believing, not believing and the question what to believe in.

I wasn't fully an atheist until very recently, because god was still very real in my head. It's a relief not to have to be around the church and deal with all the things it makes me think of. I still turn my eyes away when I see one, though.

[Aoi Magi]

I haven't exactly converted to anything. I am more like the guy sitting on the sidelines eating popcorn.

My parents never cared about religion, and I was raised that way too. So I have never actually experienced the confusion and fear pre-de-conversion and the relief one gets post-conversion, but when I see the religious folk around me, I do feel suffocated by the fear and ignorance they keep holding on to in the name of religion. But they still are my friends and family, so I just try to help them break free....haven't had much success with that though!

[Pyrrho]

I have a question for all you converted athiests...

How did you feel before you converted vs. after you converted?

I'm just very curious as I am a new converted athiest and honestly, I feel a lot more comfortable and at peace with myself more than I ever felt being Christian, since I was constantly questioning if it was real even when i was a devoted Christian, there was always that nagging sensation in my head saying "Are you wasting your time at church?"

So please, let me know Thanks!

After I settled into rejecting Christianity, I felt exactly as you describe yourself feeling. I felt much more comfortable and at peace, and continue to feel that way, after many years of remaining an atheist. (Incidentally, I am a strong atheist, not one of those sissy weak atheists!)

The process, however, was unpleasant in the extreme. I was raised a Southern Baptist (the worst kind of Baptist), to believe in hellfire and damnation, and was concerned about making sure I did exactly the right thing. During the deconversion process, I was not so concerned about wasting time in church, but was concerned with having a correct understanding of the matter.

But now, I am quite happy being an atheist, and am happily married to my good atheist wife.