Do you think atheism is bad for mental health?

[invisiblesuffering]

I know I make so many angry. But my mental health was much better when I believed in god. Sometimes I think god is punishing me for not believing in him and it's all my fault

 

[limeoctave]

idk i guess it depends more on the quality of life and on the circumstances of life, but I realize that with faith it might be easier to get through things, but I don't know, I'm not a religious

 

[Ww42]

Lack of religion does get you points in the SADPERSON scale for addressing suicidality. So maybe? But for me, my atheism has brought me peace because I hated the thought of something being after this

 

[willitpass]

I don't think there is a correct answer to this, everyone's personal beliefs serve them in their own ways. For me believing in a god makes things even more difficult as I just spend so much time angry. If a god exists why do they allow such awful suffering, for me and for everyone. It's easier for me to rationalize suffering if I believe there is no one in control of it all.

 

[3/4Dead]

Every preson's beliefs benefits them differently. No, athesim is not bad for mental health. Nor is any religion.

If Christianity makes you feel overwhelmed at the thought of an omnipresent god, yeah thats probably bad for your mental health

If atheism makes you feel overwhelemed at the thought of nothingness, yeah thats probably bad for your mental health

I think the way people are brought up into Christianity wrecks peoples mental health, its not necessarily religion itself, its the fact that you have people going "obey god or youre going to the bad place for eternity, or fuck up once and youre going there too" is pretty bad for your mental health. Praciticing your faith in a way that makes you feel good isn't bad for you, toxic practice of any religion can be though.

 

[Camper]

It can be. A lot of people fail to realize that you can be both spiritual (seeking a higher meaning/existence) and atheist.

A lot of people become atheists simply because they either don't care about religion or take scientism as their main belief system. I think the only "proper" replacement for God is philosophy and spirituality. Many atheists don't care about spirituality, though, and just become directionless hedonists. Or worse, antinatalists. (Which is the philosophical equivalent of getting rid of a invasive species by burning down the whole forest.)

 

[Final_Choice]

I don't think it's bad, but you won't have faith that you can fall onto if you have nothing else. I've seen many religious people who are absolutely miserable and have given up on life, instead they devote themselves to god believing that they'll be rewarded by enduring their current life until they naturally die and devoting it to god through the entirety of their life.

It's kind of sad, because they hate life and don't want to be here anymore, but they believe that they'll get into heaven if they endure it in the name of god and that once they're in heaven everything will be perfect. I understand how that might be so enticing to the point that one would be willing to endure life, no matter how painful it might be, just so they could receive the ultimate reward. If you don't have a system of faith, you don't really have something like that you can believe in, so it's not that it's bad for your mental health, but that it doesn't have the benefits of faith.

 

[PlanePaper]

IMO Religion was invented to help people cope with insane concepts they cannot understand, both scientifically and spiritually. It's nice to know that my house wouldn't be destroyed in an earthquake if I prayed daily and went to church, but it would also certainly be nice to know that someone is in control of everything that is happening, that has happened, and that ever will happen, and that person loves me personally, and as such I have nothing to ever worry about. The question, therefore, boils down to (in my, probably wrong, opinion): would you prefer the sense of security provided by religion or the reality presented by atheism?

But the short answer (opinion): atheism is not actively bad for mental health, but religion is good for mental health.

It can be. A lot of people fail to realize that you can be both spiritual (seeking a higher meaning/existence) and atheist.

A lot of people become atheists simply because they either don't care about religion or take scientism as their main belief system. I think the only "proper" replacement for God is philosophy and spirituality. Many atheists don't care about spirituality, though, and just become directionless hedonists. Or worse, antinatalists. (Which is the philosophical equivalent of getting rid of a invasive species by burning down the whole forest.)

Not sure if I agree with you on antinatalism. It's an interesting philosophy that has been bashed to be equal to "genocidal crimes against humanity". Although I'm in no way a supporter or expert in such a philosophy, I believe that the name - anti-"natalism", insinuates that the philosophy claims being birthed is bad as life is inherently painful, but does not claim that dying is necessarily preferable for someone who is already living. I think to refute the argument presented by the antinatalists truly is to argue that being birthed is better than never having been, and that could be a very easy point to argue in single cases, or even in the majority of cases, but it's difficult to convince anyone that in *all* cases, it is better to be born than to never have been.

 

[willitpass]

IMO Religion was invented to help people cope with insane concepts they cannot understand, both scientifically and spiritually. It's nice to know that my house wouldn't be destroyed in an earthquake if I prayed daily and went to church, but it would also certainly be nice to know that someone is in control of everything that is happening, that has happened, and that ever will happen, and that person loves me personally, and as such I have nothing to ever worry about. The question, therefore, boils down to (in my, probably wrong, opinion): would you prefer the sense of security provided by religion or the reality presented by atheism?

But the short answer (opinion): atheism is not actively bad for mental health, but religion is good for mental health.

Not sure if I agree with you on antinatalism. It's an interesting philosophy that has been bashed to be equal to "genocidal crimes against humanity". Although I'm in no way a supporter or expert in such a philosophy, I believe that the name - anti-"natalism", insinuates that the philosophy claims being birthed is bad as life is inherently painful, but does not claim that dying is necessarily preferable for someone who is already living. I think to refute the argument presented by the antinatalists truly is to argue that being birthed is better to never have been, and that could be a very easy point to argue in single cases, or even in the majority of cases, but it's difficult to convince anyone that in *all* cases, it is better to be born than to never have been.

Antinatalism would ultimately turn into the extinction of the human race if everyone were to follow it. That is quite the extreme view point to have that even the majority of people on this site have difficult subscribing to. It goes against human nature to want to extinct your entire species. I believe that people should have a lot more self awareness when it comes to choosing to have children, and I believe that we should not force everyone to continue living if they are in a constant state of suffering, but antinatalism is a very controversial stance to hold by its very nature.

 

[EvisceratedJester]

Atheism isn't bad for mental health. There are also a lot of cases of religous people having issues with their mental health as a result of things directly or indirectly related to them being religous, such as stress over the idea of ending up in hell or believing that the bad things happening to you are a result of you being punished by some divine entity. Atheism isn't inherently bad for your mental health the same way religion isn't necessarily good for your mental health.

 

[DreamEnd]

Jung said the spiritual needs of man are as real as hunger and fear of death. You can find solace in something that satisfies that need that doesn't have to be involvement or alignment with any of the religions

 

[Malaria]

I know plenty of religious people that suffer from severe depression, and I know atheists that are happy and content, so I would answer this question with "not necessarily".

That being said, I was happier when I believed in God, but I don't think the solution for me is to go back to being religious, but rather learning healthy coping skills. You don't need to be religious in order to be happy, have meaning/purpose, or community. But it's definitely going to be harder because Christians have things like chruches for community, and what atheists have can vary.

 

[1MiserableGuy]

I know I make so many angry. But my mental health was much better when I believed in god. Sometimes I think god is punishing me for not believing in him and it's all my fault

I actually conducted research on this issue in college and what I found suggested that yes, religion is good for mental health, regardess of what the belief system is

 

[sserafim]

Antinatalism would ultimately turn into the extinction of the human race if everyone were to follow it. That is quite the extreme view point to have that even the majority of people on this site have difficult subscribing to. It goes against human nature to want to extinct your entire species. I believe that people should have a lot more self awareness when it comes to choosing to have children, and I believe that we should not force everyone to continue living if they are in a constant state of suffering, but antinatalism is a very controversial stance to hold by its very nature.

People are too selfish to follow antinatalism. They will still keep procreating to satisfy their own desires (because they *want* children). Also, would extinction necessarily be a bad thing?

Jung said the spiritual needs of man are as real as hunger and fear of death. You can find solace in something that satisfies that need that doesn't have to be involvement or alignment with any of the religions

Why does man have spiritual needs?

 

[willitpass]

People are too selfish to follow antinatalism. They will still keep procreating to satisfy their own desires (because they *want* children). Also, would extinction necessarily be a bad thing?

And your believe that people should stop procreating because of your personal experiences with life, just as people who chose to have children do it because of their personal experiences (as well as biological urge). It isn't black and white and while you may feel this way I think you can also acknowledge that to stand so firmly against procreation is equally as extremist as to believe no one should be allowed to die. At the end of the day ethical issues like this have no true answer, but the majority of people will always fall somewhere in the grey area with their beliefs.

 

[sserafim]

And your believe that people should stop procreating because of your personal experiences with life, just as people who chose to have children do it because of their personal experiences (as well as biological urge). It isn't black and white and while you may feel this way I think you can also acknowledge that to stand so firmly against procreation is equally as extremist as to believe no one should be allowed to die. At the end of the day ethical issues like this have no true answer, but the majority of people will always fall somewhere in the grey area with their beliefs.

Well, theoretically they should but I can't control what other people do so antinatalism will never be implemented in reality. I will only choose not to procreate myself

 

[MatrixPrisoner]

Is this a creature of your God?

https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/20/us/ohio-mom-toddler-death-sentencing-cec/index.html#:~:text=Kristel%20Candelario%20vacationed%20in%20Puerto,Monday%20to%20life%20in%20prison.

 

[UKscotty]

I think the opposite is true.

Religious people can often be full of hatred, closed minded beliefs and backwards thinking. Look around the world at how many will blow themselves up to kill others just for belief of a slightly different version of their made up god or prophets.

Being atheist will free the mind of 7th century beliefs.

 

[davidtorez]

People are too selfish to follow antinatalism. They will still keep procreating to satisfy their own desires (because they *want* children). Also, would extinction necessarily be a bad thing?

Why does man have spiritual needs?

Extinction can't be bad. Humans didn't exist before about 300000 years ago or less , was anything bad about that? The best cure is prevention. If life is suffering then the only way to prevent suffering is by preventing life to come into existence.

 

[KuriGohan&Kamehameha]

Perhaps it isn't necessarily the belief itself, but the loss of community and ostracisation that accompany losing faith if you are raised in a deeply religious culture.

For me, the hardest part of leaving Christianity wasn't just the absurd existential crisises that are par for the course when you're a kid realising everything you've ever been told (including the threats of hellfire and brimstone) is a lie, but the fact that I was the only atheist I ever knew until I became an adult and left my shithole hometown.

Everyone and everything I grew up around was deeply intertwined with the church, everyone in my family were devout and radical believers. Religion dictated so much of my life. I didn't even get a normal education for certain periods of my life because I was enrolled in religious brainwashing pre-school programs for young children. As a teenager, I was sent to one of the infamous camps where they try to convince you that you're one misstep away from being as bad as Lucifer if you're gay.

Being the only person who doesn't believe in this nonsense in your entire community is incredibly isolating. And anyone who grows up in a deeply religious community knows just how welcoming they are of atheists or people from other faiths.

One of the hardest things about being an atheist though is that, save for some sort of psychotic break that induces spiritual delusions, once you see through the veil and lose your faith you can't "unlearn" the lines of thinking that have caused you to denounce religion. I couldn't ever believe in god again even if I wanted to because I can't erase the knowledge from my mind that leads me to believe that the bible is a sham.

 

[LaVieEnRose]

The mental gymnastics required to make sense of the divine are what is bad for mental health. Seems better for mental health if you are able to face and accept the chaotic, random nature of life (if).

 

[ijustwishtodie]

No, I don't. Atheism is just the lack of belief in a god and isn't really harmful. However, I'd say that religion is more bad for your mental health than atheism is. I was far more miserable when I was religious than now when I'm not. I'm still miserable at how I'm forced to practice my parent's religion because there isn't anything I can do about it but at least I'm not worrying about a stupid religion that isn't even true. People kill in the name of religion and yet you want to say that atheism is bad? Religion existing in the 21st century is completely baffling to me

I think the way people are brought up into Christianity wrecks peoples mental health, its not necessarily religion itself, its the fact that you have people going "obey god or youre going to the bad place for eternity"

Isn't this literally what the religion itself preaches though? The people are just abiding by their own religion

 

[returntothevoid]

I think lack of belief in anything is unhealthy, else you become just a cold, calculated machine. You need to believe in SOMETHING. Whether that be in humanity, love, or hope. I am a complete hypocrite as I write this because I am an atheist that can't seem to get themself to believe in anything but I am fully aware that atheism, while I think is the truth, has many psychological drawbacks. Ignorance is bliss as they say.

 

[iloverachel]

Extinction can't be bad. Humans didn't exist before about 300000 years ago or less , was anything bad about that? The best cure is prevention. If life is suffering then the only way to prevent suffering is by preventing life to come into existence.

Yeah non-existence is definitely best.
We didn't consent to being born and now we are forced to endure decades of pointless suffering.

And to answer TS's question, it depends on the person. Some people follow religion and it has helped them a lot, others don't believe in a God and it works for them and that is fine too

 

[doneforlife]

And your believe that people should stop procreating because of your personal experiences with life, just as people who chose to have children do it because of their personal experiences (as well as biological urge). It isn't black and white and while you may feel this way I think you can also acknowledge that to stand so firmly against procreation is equally as extremist as to believe no one should be allowed to die. At the end of the day ethical issues like this have no true answer, but the majority of people will always fall somewhere in the grey area with their beliefs.

I don't think antinatalism is practically implemented anywhere in any part of the world. "No one should be allowed to die" is implemented almost everywhere barring a few liberal countries .Having said that, few concepts of antinatalism are hard to refute . For example, by not creating a life , you are not actually depriving the life of any pleasure. Also you are not creating life for the child's sake. It was never the "need" of the child to be born. So it isn't extremism, it is fact.

 

[prone2fury]

It's not a hot take that religion is existential copium, but it's true. I'm an atheist and I would be a hundred times happier if I fooled myself into thinking there was a god who liked me, or that my suffering in this life would be worth it for a paradise in the afterlife. Unfortunately life is misery and death is nothingness, and this idea is not good for my mental health. So yes, I would be a lot happier if I thought any of it all had a greater existential meaning.

 

[TiredOfAllThis]

religion is good for mental health, regardess of what the belief system is

So, cult of Cthulhu should do.

 

[rozeske]

Some people who have been very religious most of their lifes that have now chose the atheism path describe it as a magnificent freedom like breaking free of all the chains they had been tied to. Although I don't deny that religion can in a way be constraining, i know I would've been lost without it, even more so than i already am. Although my faith have been shaking a bit in the past few years of my life, I stubbornly refuse to believe all this is just a meaningless coincidence.

 

[Praestat_Mori]

I know I make so many angry. But my mental health was much better when I believed in god. Sometimes I think god is punishing me for not believing in him and it's all my fault

If you believe that, you can regret, apologize and believe in god again.

For some people it can be comforting to believe that there is an afterlife and they gonna live in paradise especially when suffering here becomes unbearable. As long as it helps you in your life it's good.

 

[1MiserableGuy]

So, cult of Cthulhu should do.

You intended this to be edgy, but from purely the practical purposes of mental health, if it was genuine, then yeah it would do. However, reality is objective, and morality is objective. Our society's constantly changing standards and levels of confusion don't change that.