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Anonymous wrote:I am asking this question after reading a previous post about people being depressed because they don't have religion in their lives. I am an atheist in my 40s, although I considered myself Christian until my early 20's. However with life and experience I find it impossible to believe in a 'God' and especially anything written in the Bible. It all seems totally unbelievable to me and I hate the way it has given people reasons to discriminate against LGBTQ communities.

I struggle on and off with depression and sometimes I wished I did have a faith to comfort me. It is very easy for people to say you should turn to Jesus etc, but to me it is like believing in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny.

OP, have you ever found anything in your life?

I went to a Catholic boarding school and was one of the few non catholic students (although baptized Christian). I was judged by some very uptight religious teachers and overheard them gossip about my 'unorthodox'family. I tried to make them like me more by attending all the optional evening prayer services and tried to talk to God but never felt heard. In my late teens and early 20's I struggled really badly with OCD and depression and pleaded to God to help me but I felt no comfort only suicidal. The only thing that helped me in the end was antidepressants and therapy. I stopped believing in God after this bout of depression and it all seems a lot of hateful made up nonsense to me now. But I do often think it would be nice to believe, some of my good friends do, I just can't seem to make that stretch. Whatever happens I know Catholic Church is not for me or any religion who thinks that being in a same sex relationship is a sin.

Sorry I have not been

Your family wasn’t Catholic, but your parents sent you away to Catholic boarding school? Why did they do that? Did you tell your parents you were unhappy at a boarding school that wasn’t the religion your family embraced?

What were your parents doing, making you miserable and isolated? Were they wanting to make you Catholic, even if they themselves weren’t?

I wanted to be a boarder as most of my friends were. I could have attended as a day student. My parents sent me there as I had learning differences and was counseled out of another secular private school. In those days if you had learning differences in public school you were put with all the troublemakers and not expected to achieve anything. The catholic school was the only private school in the area at the time that has learning specialists. I enjoyed some aspects of school as I loved my friends there. Not all the teachers were judgmental. I never told my parents I was unhappy about the religious aspect I kept it to myself.I even thought about converting to Catholicism. It is only as an adult I can see the impact it had on me.

So you chose this school.

Is “counseling out” mean you were kicked out, for a lack of better terminology? The secular private school made you leave?

So the Catholics took you in, provided you with actual learning opportunities, you loved your friends at the Catholic school, and you admit all the teachers weren’t judgemental…but you are still depressed because of it?

Op, we all have a right to feel our feelings, but you seem to be looking for reasons to focus on the negative, ignore the positive, and stay mired in the past?

How many years have you been graduated from high school? Did you attend college? Do you have a career/job?

Sorry I have not been clear. School was not the reason for my depression. It came about after struggling with OCD from my late teens onwards. Another pp asked if I had experience with God so I explained my background on Catholic school. I just wanted to give some context to my religious journey and struggle to believe.

Counseled out meant my previous school told my parents they couldn't help students with learning differences (they were a top academic school) and suggested they find a school for me that could.

Ok, what learning differences do you have? Have you attended or graduated college? Do you have a job that pays your bills and supports your life?

Yes I went to college and have a job and a family. I am pretty functioning human being on the surface but one that often feels depression and sadness.

Do you tell your family you are sad? Do they help you with your sadness?

If you have a college degree, a job, and a family, and can pay your bills, do you know millions of people worldwide would take your life without question?

What specifically are you sad about?

Different things, yes my family know but I try not to burden them with it, they have a lot going on themselves. Depression and anxiety runs in my family unfortunately. My mom really struggles as well and attempted suicide a few years ago. Sometimes I don't think there is a reason, some people are just born that way and struggle their whole lives.

Btw I know how lucky I am in terms of family, job etc. The reason I started this post is that I feel I could benefit from some kind of faith to enrich my life and maybe make me feel a bit better. I didn't mean to turn this into a 'poor me' post. I just want to know how other people have found their path to God or spirituality if they struggled with belief.

It’s not a poor you post. You have a right to feel your feelings.

Thank you - feeling pretty attacked by the previous poster. I am a privileged person that struggles with mental illness - they do exist!

I am pp too. I wasn’t attacking you. I don’t think just because you had a normal life, you should be “happy.”

I work with children from low income homes with various types of trauma and mental health issues. Almost 60% of our kids are minority children. We serve an underprivileged and vulnerable community.

Out of respect and to maintain the dignity of the child, we ask about their lives in a general way. We don’t say: who is hurting you, who has hurt you, do you eat regularly, has your mom/dad taken care of you. (I wish we could ask those questions, but that’s not how it works.)

I didn’t mean to “attack op; but if someone has experienced certain traumas as a child, it’s embarrassing and hard to talk about. Just asking about family life and educational background usually doesn’t threaten people.

I am not OP and I am not depressed and your post sounded insensitive to me. Assuming you meant well, perhaps it would have been better to not say anything at all.

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am asking this question after reading a previous post about people being depressed because they don't have religion in their lives. I am an atheist in my 40s, although I considered myself Christian until my early 20's. However with life and experience I find it impossible to believe in a 'God' and especially anything written in the Bible. It all seems totally unbelievable to me and I hate the way it has given people reasons to discriminate against LGBTQ communities.

I struggle on and off with depression and sometimes I wished I did have a faith to comfort me. It is very easy for people to say you should turn to Jesus etc, but to me it is like believing in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny.

OP, have you ever found anything in your life?

I went to a Catholic boarding school and was one of the few non catholic students (although baptized Christian). I was judged by some very uptight religious teachers and overheard them gossip about my 'unorthodox'family. I tried to make them like me more by attending all the optional evening prayer services and tried to talk to God but never felt heard. In my late teens and early 20's I struggled really badly with OCD and depression and pleaded to God to help me but I felt no comfort only suicidal. The only thing that helped me in the end was antidepressants and therapy. I stopped believing in God after this bout of depression and it all seems a lot of hateful made up nonsense to me now. But I do often think it would be nice to believe, some of my good friends do, I just can't seem to make that stretch. Whatever happens I know Catholic Church is not for me or any religion who thinks that being in a same sex relationship is a sin.

Sorry I have not been

Your family wasn’t Catholic, but your parents sent you away to Catholic boarding school? Why did they do that? Did you tell your parents you were unhappy at a boarding school that wasn’t the religion your family embraced?

What were your parents doing, making you miserable and isolated? Were they wanting to make you Catholic, even if they themselves weren’t?

I wanted to be a boarder as most of my friends were. I could have attended as a day student. My parents sent me there as I had learning differences and was counseled out of another secular private school. In those days if you had learning differences in public school you were put with all the troublemakers and not expected to achieve anything. The catholic school was the only private school in the area at the time that has learning specialists. I enjoyed some aspects of school as I loved my friends there. Not all the teachers were judgmental. I never told my parents I was unhappy about the religious aspect I kept it to myself.I even thought about converting to Catholicism. It is only as an adult I can see the impact it had on me.

So you chose this school.

Is “counseling out” mean you were kicked out, for a lack of better terminology? The secular private school made you leave?

So the Catholics took you in, provided you with actual learning opportunities, you loved your friends at the Catholic school, and you admit all the teachers weren’t judgemental…but you are still depressed because of it?

Op, we all have a right to feel our feelings, but you seem to be looking for reasons to focus on the negative, ignore the positive, and stay mired in the past?

How many years have you been graduated from high school? Did you attend college? Do you have a career/job?

Sorry I have not been clear. School was not the reason for my depression. It came about after struggling with OCD from my late teens onwards. Another pp asked if I had experience with God so I explained my background on Catholic school. ence with depression. I just wanted to give some context to my religious journey and struggle to believe.

ok, I am OCD also, and adhd. I had a terrible educational experience.

Do you think God made you OCD? Are you mad He won’t take your OCD away?

As I don't believe in God I don't think he made me OCD. I just realized in my worst suicidal days where I looked to him for comfort (when I did still believe) - there was none, it all felt very hollow and lonely. My OCD has improved as I've got older and had a lot of therapy, but it is still there in the background.

Or you can look at it different way: he was there for you when you had your worst suicidal days and that is why you are still here and typing this. He knew you are worthy and he gave you another chance to live and to find him.

Right, people who believe in God can always find excuses for "his" actions, or lack thereof.

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:Postscript: I am a big fan of humility. I cannot prove my side, and you cannot prove your side.

If G-d wanted His existence to be provable, He could easily make it so, as in the Bible. Why doesn't He?

I have a number of theories on the topic, but mainly it boils down to me being a mortal humans who will never have all the answers in life.

As for how being religious makes you happy, if you read my piece about travel with family being an atonement for sin, it's a meaningful reframe of life that often comes along with a sense of community.

God proved his existence to us in so many ways. Some people just chose to ignore the evidence.

Where is this evidence?

I see evidence God exists in the world He created.

Do you have evidence I don’t see God in the world He created? If you do, well, that’s news to me. You could not be more wrong.

Oh, I don’t doubt you believe you see it

I also don’t doubt that you don’t see the presupposition of what you typed. That’s not how evidence works. What couldn’t be given credit for the origin of the universe with that logic? I see the evidence of the Loch Ness monster in the world, the Loch Ness monster created. See?

We’ve had this conversation how many times?

Evidence is not needed nor could any evidence prove or disprove God.

We don’t have tests, measurements, tools, or scientific knowledge to measure God.

You are asking repeatedly for evidence, and I give the same answer consistently correct answer, over and over again.

Sorry you can’t come to terms with reality.

You didn’t answer the question. And you never do. Wonder why that is?

Science doesn't have the processes to prove or disprove the existence of God. Science studies and attempts to explain only the natural world.

Scientists don't try to prove or disprove God's existence because they know there isn't an experiment that can ever detect God. And if you believe in God, it doesn't matter what scientists discover about the Universe.

Why would belief in God require that science give a specific answer to this question, that we don’t know the answer to, and probably will never know?

Science is an amazing, wonderful undertaking: it teaches us about life, the world and the universe. But it has not revealed to us why the universe came into existence nor what preceded its birth in the Big Bang. Biological evolution has not brought us the slightest understanding of how the first living organisms emerged from inanimate matter on this planet and how the advanced eukaryotic cells—the highly structured building blocks of advanced life forms—ever emerged from simpler organisms. Neither does it explain one of the greatest mysteries of science: how did consciousness arise in living things? Where do symbolic thinking and self-awareness come from? What is it that allows humans to understand the mysteries of biology, physics, mathematics, engineering and medicine? And what enables us to create great works of art, music, architecture and literature? Science is nowhere near to explaining these deep mysteries.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Postscript: I am a big fan of humility. I cannot prove my side, and you cannot prove your side.

If G-d wanted His existence to be provable, He could easily make it so, as in the Bible. Why doesn't He?

I have a number of theories on the topic, but mainly it boils down to me being a mortal humans who will never have all the answers in life.

As for how being religious makes you happy, if you read my piece about travel with family being an atonement for sin, it's a meaningful reframe of life that often comes along with a sense of community.

God proved his existence to us in so many ways. Some people just chose to ignore the evidence.

Where is this evidence?

I see evidence God exists in the world He created.

Do you have evidence I don’t see God in the world He created? If you do, well, that’s news to me. You could not be more wrong.

Oh, I don’t doubt you believe you see it

I also don’t doubt that you don’t see the presupposition of what you typed. That’s not how evidence works. What couldn’t be given credit for the origin of the universe with that logic? I see the evidence of the Loch Ness monster in the world, the Loch Ness monster created. See?

We’ve had this conversation how many times?

Evidence is not needed nor could any evidence prove or disprove God.

We don’t have tests, measurements, tools, or scientific knowledge to measure God.

You are asking repeatedly for evidence, and I give the same answer consistently correct answer, over and over again.

Sorry you can’t come to terms with reality.

You didn’t answer the question. And you never do. Wonder why that is?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Postscript: I am a big fan of humility. I cannot prove my side, and you cannot prove your side.

If G-d wanted His existence to be provable, He could easily make it so, as in the Bible. Why doesn't He?

I have a number of theories on the topic, but mainly it boils down to me being a mortal humans who will never have all the answers in life.

As for how being religious makes you happy, if you read my piece about travel with family being an atonement for sin, it's a meaningful reframe of life that often comes along with a sense of community.

God proved his existence to us in so many ways. Some people just chose to ignore the evidence.

Where is this evidence?

I see evidence God exists in the world He created.

Do you have evidence I don’t see God in the world He created? If you do, well, that’s news to me. You could not be more wrong.

Oh, I don’t doubt you believe you see it

I also don’t doubt that you don’t see the presupposition of what you typed. That’s not how evidence works. What couldn’t be given credit for the origin of the universe with that logic? I see the evidence of the Loch Ness monster in the world, the Loch Ness monster created. See?

We’ve had this conversation how many times?

Evidence is not needed nor could any evidence prove or disprove God.

We don’t have tests, measurements, tools, or scientific knowledge to measure God.

You are asking repeatedly for evidence, and I give the same answer consistently correct answer, over and over again.

Sorry you can’t come to terms with reality.

Anonymous wrote:Ok I'll try again. If you are of the opinion that people feel less depressed if they have a faith. How do you suggest a depressed person finds a faith, if they struggle to believe in the concept of a God?

OP, I think you're asking a very important question. Everyone, and I mean everyone, including the most devoutly religious, struggles with their faith at times. It's part of human nature.

What you have to remember is that, although you don't believe in God, God absolutely believes in you. I don't mean that to sound flip. You, like everyone else, were created with a void in your life that can only be filled through relationship with Him, your creator. Christians like me (formerly you?) find that through relationship with Jesus. One could even argue that the root of your depression is a longing for fulfillment and peace that can only be found through God's forgiveness of your sins.

This Easter/ Lent season is the perfect time to revisit some of this. My advice is that you seek with an open mind and an open heart. You claim status as an atheist which sounds like it has been your identity for a long time. Try to set aside and truly seek.

Read the Book of John in the Bible. Really read it, maybe with a commentary or a good source of notes and comments.

Try praying. You don't have to "know how," as the holy spirit prays for us. Just tell God what you're telling us.

Talk to others about their religious beliefs. Try going to church sometime between now and Easter. Listen to hymns or music written in praise. Read the story of how the Messiah and Hallelujah Chorus came to be!

I concur with a PP that the fact that you're reaching out shows that you are ready to explore. I pray for you that you find a Christian friend or mentor along the way who can help you.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Postscript: I am a big fan of humility. I cannot prove my side, and you cannot prove your side.

If G-d wanted His existence to be provable, He could easily make it so, as in the Bible. Why doesn't He?

I have a number of theories on the topic, but mainly it boils down to me being a mortal humans who will never have all the answers in life.

As for how being religious makes you happy, if you read my piece about travel with family being an atonement for sin, it's a meaningful reframe of life that often comes along with a sense of community.

God proved his existence to us in so many ways. Some people just chose to ignore the evidence.

Where is this evidence?

I see evidence God exists in the world He created.

Do you have evidence I don’t see God in the world He created? If you do, well, that’s news to me. You could not be more wrong.

Oh, I don’t doubt you believe you see it

I also don’t doubt that you don’t see the presupposition of what you typed. That’s not how evidence works. What couldn’t be given credit for the origin of the universe with that logic? I see the evidence of the Loch Ness monster in the world, the Loch Ness monster created. See?

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am asking this question after reading a previous post about people being depressed because they don't have religion in their lives. I am an atheist in my 40s, although I considered myself Christian until my early 20's. However with life and experience I find it impossible to believe in a 'God' and especially anything written in the Bible. It all seems totally unbelievable to me and I hate the way it has given people reasons to discriminate against LGBTQ communities.

I struggle on and off with depression and sometimes I wished I did have a faith to comfort me. It is very easy for people to say you should turn to Jesus etc, but to me it is like believing in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny.

OP, have you ever found anything in your life?

I went to a Catholic boarding school and was one of the few non catholic students (although baptized Christian). I was judged by some very uptight religious teachers and overheard them gossip about my 'unorthodox'family. I tried to make them like me more by attending all the optional evening prayer services and tried to talk to God but never felt heard. In my late teens and early 20's I struggled really badly with OCD and depression and pleaded to God to help me but I felt no comfort only suicidal. The only thing that helped me in the end was antidepressants and therapy. I stopped believing in God after this bout of depression and it all seems a lot of hateful made up nonsense to me now. But I do often think it would be nice to believe, some of my good friends do, I just can't seem to make that stretch. Whatever happens I know Catholic Church is not for me or any religion who thinks that being in a same sex relationship is a sin.

Sorry I have not been

Your family wasn’t Catholic, but your parents sent you away to Catholic boarding school? Why did they do that? Did you tell your parents you were unhappy at a boarding school that wasn’t the religion your family embraced?

What were your parents doing, making you miserable and isolated? Were they wanting to make you Catholic, even if they themselves weren’t?

I wanted to be a boarder as most of my friends were. I could have attended as a day student. My parents sent me there as I had learning differences and was counseled out of another secular private school. In those days if you had learning differences in public school you were put with all the troublemakers and not expected to achieve anything. The catholic school was the only private school in the area at the time that has learning specialists. I enjoyed some aspects of school as I loved my friends there. Not all the teachers were judgmental. I never told my parents I was unhappy about the religious aspect I kept it to myself.I even thought about converting to Catholicism. It is only as an adult I can see the impact it had on me.

So you chose this school.

Is “counseling out” mean you were kicked out, for a lack of better terminology? The secular private school made you leave?

So the Catholics took you in, provided you with actual learning opportunities, you loved your friends at the Catholic school, and you admit all the teachers weren’t judgemental…but you are still depressed because of it?

Op, we all have a right to feel our feelings, but you seem to be looking for reasons to focus on the negative, ignore the positive, and stay mired in the past?

How many years have you been graduated from high school? Did you attend college? Do you have a career/job?

Sorry I have not been clear. School was not the reason for my depression. It came about after struggling with OCD from my late teens onwards. Another pp asked if I had experience with God so I explained my background on Catholic school. ence with depression. I just wanted to give some context to my religious journey and struggle to believe.

ok, I am OCD also, and adhd. I had a terrible educational experience.

Do you think God made you OCD? Are you mad He won’t take your OCD away?

As I don't believe in God I don't think he made me OCD. I just realized in my worst suicidal days where I looked to him for comfort (when I did still believe) - there was none, it all felt very hollow and lonely. My OCD has improved as I've got older and had a lot of therapy, but it is still there in the background.

Or you can look at it different way: he was there for you when you had your worst suicidal days and that is why you are still here and typing this. He knew you are worthy and he gave you another chance to live and to find him.

+1

You mom attempted suicide, and so did you. You both lived, and are both able to live beautiful lives. Lots and lots of people who have had two suicide attempts in their immediate family are not here to talk about it, because unfortunately, they were able to commit suicide.

Statistically, a parent and child both attempting suicide and both surviving is pretty amazing, That sounds weird, it’s not amazing op and his mom attempted suicide. It’s very sad and certainly very scary. But both of you lived and I assume have not suffered any long term physical health challenges from the physical aspects of attempting to end your own lives? Some people survive and are bedridden, have to use a wheelchair, lose their ability to communicate, etc.

You both survived with no physical problems- that’s actually very heartening.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am asking this question after reading a previous post about people being depressed because they don't have religion in their lives. I am an atheist in my 40s, although I considered myself Christian until my early 20's. However with life and experience I find it impossible to believe in a 'God' and especially anything written in the Bible. It all seems totally unbelievable to me and I hate the way it has given people reasons to discriminate against LGBTQ communities.

I struggle on and off with depression and sometimes I wished I did have a faith to comfort me. It is very easy for people to say you should turn to Jesus etc, but to me it is like believing in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny.

OP, have you ever found anything in your life?

I went to a Catholic boarding school and was one of the few non catholic students (although baptized Christian). I was judged by some very uptight religious teachers and overheard them gossip about my 'unorthodox'family. I tried to make them like me more by attending all the optional evening prayer services and tried to talk to God but never felt heard. In my late teens and early 20's I struggled really badly with OCD and depression and pleaded to God to help me but I felt no comfort only suicidal. The only thing that helped me in the end was antidepressants and therapy. I stopped believing in God after this bout of depression and it all seems a lot of hateful made up nonsense to me now. But I do often think it would be nice to believe, some of my good friends do, I just can't seem to make that stretch. Whatever happens I know Catholic Church is not for me or any religion who thinks that being in a same sex relationship is a sin.

Sorry I have not been

Your family wasn’t Catholic, but your parents sent you away to Catholic boarding school? Why did they do that? Did you tell your parents you were unhappy at a boarding school that wasn’t the religion your family embraced?

What were your parents doing, making you miserable and isolated? Were they wanting to make you Catholic, even if they themselves weren’t?

I wanted to be a boarder as most of my friends were. I could have attended as a day student. My parents sent me there as I had learning differences and was counseled out of another secular private school. In those days if you had learning differences in public school you were put with all the troublemakers and not expected to achieve anything. The catholic school was the only private school in the area at the time that has learning specialists. I enjoyed some aspects of school as I loved my friends there. Not all the teachers were judgmental. I never told my parents I was unhappy about the religious aspect I kept it to myself.I even thought about converting to Catholicism. It is only as an adult I can see the impact it had on me.

So you chose this school.

Is “counseling out” mean you were kicked out, for a lack of better terminology? The secular private school made you leave?

So the Catholics took you in, provided you with actual learning opportunities, you loved your friends at the Catholic school, and you admit all the teachers weren’t judgemental…but you are still depressed because of it?

Op, we all have a right to feel our feelings, but you seem to be looking for reasons to focus on the negative, ignore the positive, and stay mired in the past?

How many years have you been graduated from high school? Did you attend college? Do you have a career/job?

Sorry I have not been clear. School was not the reason for my depression. It came about after struggling with OCD from my late teens onwards. Another pp asked if I had experience with God so I explained my background on Catholic school. ence with depression. I just wanted to give some context to my religious journey and struggle to believe.

ok, I am OCD also, and adhd. I had a terrible educational experience.

Do you think God made you OCD? Are you mad He won’t take your OCD away?

As I don't believe in God I don't think he made me OCD. I just realized in my worst suicidal days where I looked to him for comfort (when I did still believe) - there was none, it all felt very hollow and lonely. My OCD has improved as I've got older and had a lot of therapy, but it is still there in the background.

Or you can look at it different way: he was there for you when you had your worst suicidal days and that is why you are still here and typing this. He knew you are worthy and he gave you another chance to live and to find him.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am asking this question after reading a previous post about people being depressed because they don't have religion in their lives. I am an atheist in my 40s, although I considered myself Christian until my early 20's. However with life and experience I find it impossible to believe in a 'God' and especially anything written in the Bible. It all seems totally unbelievable to me and I hate the way it has given people reasons to discriminate against LGBTQ communities.

I struggle on and off with depression and sometimes I wished I did have a faith to comfort me. It is very easy for people to say you should turn to Jesus etc, but to me it is like believing in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny.

OP, have you ever found anything in your life?

I went to a Catholic boarding school and was one of the few non catholic students (although baptized Christian). I was judged by some very uptight religious teachers and overheard them gossip about my 'unorthodox'family. I tried to make them like me more by attending all the optional evening prayer services and tried to talk to God but never felt heard. In my late teens and early 20's I struggled really badly with OCD and depression and pleaded to God to help me but I felt no comfort only suicidal. The only thing that helped me in the end was antidepressants and therapy. I stopped believing in God after this bout of depression and it all seems a lot of hateful made up nonsense to me now. But I do often think it would be nice to believe, some of my good friends do, I just can't seem to make that stretch. Whatever happens I know Catholic Church is not for me or any religion who thinks that being in a same sex relationship is a sin.

Sorry I have not been

Your family wasn’t Catholic, but your parents sent you away to Catholic boarding school? Why did they do that? Did you tell your parents you were unhappy at a boarding school that wasn’t the religion your family embraced?

What were your parents doing, making you miserable and isolated? Were they wanting to make you Catholic, even if they themselves weren’t?

I wanted to be a boarder as most of my friends were. I could have attended as a day student. My parents sent me there as I had learning differences and was counseled out of another secular private school. In those days if you had learning differences in public school you were put with all the troublemakers and not expected to achieve anything. The catholic school was the only private school in the area at the time that has learning specialists. I enjoyed some aspects of school as I loved my friends there. Not all the teachers were judgmental. I never told my parents I was unhappy about the religious aspect I kept it to myself.I even thought about converting to Catholicism. It is only as an adult I can see the impact it had on me.

So you chose this school.

Is “counseling out” mean you were kicked out, for a lack of better terminology? The secular private school made you leave?

So the Catholics took you in, provided you with actual learning opportunities, you loved your friends at the Catholic school, and you admit all the teachers weren’t judgemental…but you are still depressed because of it?

Op, we all have a right to feel our feelings, but you seem to be looking for reasons to focus on the negative, ignore the positive, and stay mired in the past?

How many years have you been graduated from high school? Did you attend college? Do you have a career/job?

Sorry I have not been clear. School was not the reason for my depression. It came about after struggling with OCD from my late teens onwards. Another pp asked if I had experience with God so I explained my background on Catholic school. I just wanted to give some context to my religious journey and struggle to believe.

Counseled out meant my previous school told my parents they couldn't help students with learning differences (they were a top academic school) and suggested they find a school for me that could.

Ok, what learning differences do you have? Have you attended or graduated college? Do you have a job that pays your bills and supports your life?

Yes I went to college and have a job and a family. I am pretty functioning human being on the surface but one that often feels depression and sadness.

Do you tell your family you are sad? Do they help you with your sadness?

If you have a college degree, a job, and a family, and can pay your bills, do you know millions of people worldwide would take your life without question?

What specifically are you sad about?

Different things, yes my family know but I try not to burden them with it, they have a lot going on themselves. Depression and anxiety runs in my family unfortunately. My mom really struggles as well and attempted suicide a few years ago. Sometimes I don't think there is a reason, some people are just born that way and struggle their whole lives.

Btw I know how lucky I am in terms of family, job etc. The reason I started this post is that I feel I could benefit from some kind of faith to enrich my life and maybe make me feel a bit better. I didn't mean to turn this into a 'poor me' post. I just want to know how other people have found their path to God or spirituality if they struggled with belief.

It’s not a poor you post. You have a right to feel your feelings.

Thank you - feeling pretty attacked by the previous poster. I am a privileged person that struggles with mental illness - they do exist!

I am pp too. I wasn’t attacking you. I don’t think just because you had a normal life, you should be “happy.”

I work with children from low income homes with various types of trauma and mental health issues. Almost 60% of our kids are minority children. We serve an underprivileged and vulnerable community.

Out of respect and to maintain the dignity of the child, we ask about their lives in a general way. We don’t say: who is hurting you, who has hurt you, do you eat regularly, has your mom/dad taken care of you. (I wish we could ask those questions, but that’s not how it works.)

I didn’t mean to “attack op; but if someone has experienced certain traumas as a child, it’s embarrassing and hard to talk about. Just asking about family life and educational background usually doesn’t threaten people.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am asking this question after reading a previous post about people being depressed because they don't have religion in their lives. I am an atheist in my 40s, although I considered myself Christian until my early 20's. However with life and experience I find it impossible to believe in a 'God' and especially anything written in the Bible. It all seems totally unbelievable to me and I hate the way it has given people reasons to discriminate against LGBTQ communities.

I struggle on and off with depression and sometimes I wished I did have a faith to comfort me. It is very easy for people to say you should turn to Jesus etc, but to me it is like believing in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny.

OP, have you ever found anything in your life?

I went to a Catholic boarding school and was one of the few non catholic students (although baptized Christian). I was judged by some very uptight religious teachers and overheard them gossip about my 'unorthodox'family. I tried to make them like me more by attending all the optional evening prayer services and tried to talk to God but never felt heard. In my late teens and early 20's I struggled really badly with OCD and depression and pleaded to God to help me but I felt no comfort only suicidal. The only thing that helped me in the end was antidepressants and therapy. I stopped believing in God after this bout of depression and it all seems a lot of hateful made up nonsense to me now. But I do often think it would be nice to believe, some of my good friends do, I just can't seem to make that stretch. Whatever happens I know Catholic Church is not for me or any religion who thinks that being in a same sex relationship is a sin.

Sorry I have not been

Your family wasn’t Catholic, but your parents sent you away to Catholic boarding school? Why did they do that? Did you tell your parents you were unhappy at a boarding school that wasn’t the religion your family embraced?

What were your parents doing, making you miserable and isolated? Were they wanting to make you Catholic, even if they themselves weren’t?

I wanted to be a boarder as most of my friends were. I could have attended as a day student. My parents sent me there as I had learning differences and was counseled out of another secular private school. In those days if you had learning differences in public school you were put with all the troublemakers and not expected to achieve anything. The catholic school was the only private school in the area at the time that has learning specialists. I enjoyed some aspects of school as I loved my friends there. Not all the teachers were judgmental. I never told my parents I was unhappy about the religious aspect I kept it to myself.I even thought about converting to Catholicism. It is only as an adult I can see the impact it had on me.

So you chose this school.

Is “counseling out” mean you were kicked out, for a lack of better terminology? The secular private school made you leave?

So the Catholics took you in, provided you with actual learning opportunities, you loved your friends at the Catholic school, and you admit all the teachers weren’t judgemental…but you are still depressed because of it?

Op, we all have a right to feel our feelings, but you seem to be looking for reasons to focus on the negative, ignore the positive, and stay mired in the past?

How many years have you been graduated from high school? Did you attend college? Do you have a career/job?

Sorry I have not been clear. School was not the reason for my depression. It came about after struggling with OCD from my late teens onwards. Another pp asked if I had experience with God so I explained my background on Catholic school. I just wanted to give some context to my religious journey and struggle to believe.

Counseled out meant my previous school told my parents they couldn't help students with learning differences (they were a top academic school) and suggested they find a school for me that could.

Ok, what learning differences do you have? Have you attended or graduated college? Do you have a job that pays your bills and supports your life?

Yes I went to college and have a job and a family. I am pretty functioning human being on the surface but one that often feels depression and sadness.

Do you tell your family you are sad? Do they help you with your sadness?

If you have a college degree, a job, and a family, and can pay your bills, do you know millions of people worldwide would take your life without question?

What specifically are you sad about?

Immediate pp sounds like someone who has no understanding of clinical depression. A person can be depressed irrespective of having a good life.

No, I understand clinical depression. I just wondered if op was physically or sexually abused, or suffered physical neglect, nutritional deprivation, etc, as a child. Was op in foster care, did their parents harm them physically, etc.

I didn’t want to ask questions that were extremely personal, embarrassing, or traumatic and further trouble op.

Having a “good” life is subjective. Having a bad life is not.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am asking this question after reading a previous post about people being depressed because they don't have religion in their lives. I am an atheist in my 40s, although I considered myself Christian until my early 20's. However with life and experience I find it impossible to believe in a 'God' and especially anything written in the Bible. It all seems totally unbelievable to me and I hate the way it has given people reasons to discriminate against LGBTQ communities.

I struggle on and off with depression and sometimes I wished I did have a faith to comfort me. It is very easy for people to say you should turn to Jesus etc, but to me it is like believing in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny.

OP, have you ever found anything in your life?

I went to a Catholic boarding school and was one of the few non catholic students (although baptized Christian). I was judged by some very uptight religious teachers and overheard them gossip about my 'unorthodox'family. I tried to make them like me more by attending all the optional evening prayer services and tried to talk to God but never felt heard. In my late teens and early 20's I struggled really badly with OCD and depression and pleaded to God to help me but I felt no comfort only suicidal. The only thing that helped me in the end was antidepressants and therapy. I stopped believing in God after this bout of depression and it all seems a lot of hateful made up nonsense to me now. But I do often think it would be nice to believe, some of my good friends do, I just can't seem to make that stretch. Whatever happens I know Catholic Church is not for me or any religion who thinks that being in a same sex relationship is a sin.

Sorry I have not been

Your family wasn’t Catholic, but your parents sent you away to Catholic boarding school? Why did they do that? Did you tell your parents you were unhappy at a boarding school that wasn’t the religion your family embraced?

What were your parents doing, making you miserable and isolated? Were they wanting to make you Catholic, even if they themselves weren’t?

I wanted to be a boarder as most of my friends were. I could have attended as a day student. My parents sent me there as I had learning differences and was counseled out of another secular private school. In those days if you had learning differences in public school you were put with all the troublemakers and not expected to achieve anything. The catholic school was the only private school in the area at the time that has learning specialists. I enjoyed some aspects of school as I loved my friends there. Not all the teachers were judgmental. I never told my parents I was unhappy about the religious aspect I kept it to myself.I even thought about converting to Catholicism. It is only as an adult I can see the impact it had on me.

So you chose this school.

Is “counseling out” mean you were kicked out, for a lack of better terminology? The secular private school made you leave?

So the Catholics took you in, provided you with actual learning opportunities, you loved your friends at the Catholic school, and you admit all the teachers weren’t judgemental…but you are still depressed because of it?

Op, we all have a right to feel our feelings, but you seem to be looking for reasons to focus on the negative, ignore the positive, and stay mired in the past?

How many years have you been graduated from high school? Did you attend college? Do you have a career/job?

Sorry I have not been clear. School was not the reason for my depression. It came about after struggling with OCD from my late teens onwards. Another pp asked if I had experience with God so I explained my background on Catholic school. I just wanted to give some context to my religious journey and struggle to believe.

Counseled out meant my previous school told my parents they couldn't help students with learning differences (they were a top academic school) and suggested they find a school for me that could.

Ok, what learning differences do you have? Have you attended or graduated college? Do you have a job that pays your bills and supports your life?

Yes I went to college and have a job and a family. I am pretty functioning human being on the surface but one that often feels depression and sadness.

Do you tell your family you are sad? Do they help you with your sadness?

If you have a college degree, a job, and a family, and can pay your bills, do you know millions of people worldwide would take your life without question?

What specifically are you sad about?

Different things, yes my family know but I try not to burden them with it, they have a lot going on themselves. Depression and anxiety runs in my family unfortunately. My mom really struggles as well and attempted suicide a few years ago. Sometimes I don't think there is a reason, some people are just born that way and struggle their whole lives.

Btw I know how lucky I am in terms of family, job etc. The reason I started this post is that I feel I could benefit from some kind of faith to enrich my life and maybe make me feel a bit better. I didn't mean to turn this into a 'poor me' post. I just want to know how other people have found their path to God or spirituality if they struggled with belief.

It’s not a poor you post. You have a right to feel your feelings.

Thank you - feeling pretty attacked by the previous poster. I am a privileged person that struggles with mental illness - they do exist!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am asking this question after reading a previous post about people being depressed because they don't have religion in their lives. I am an atheist in my 40s, although I considered myself Christian until my early 20's. However with life and experience I find it impossible to believe in a 'God' and especially anything written in the Bible. It all seems totally unbelievable to me and I hate the way it has given people reasons to discriminate against LGBTQ communities.

I struggle on and off with depression and sometimes I wished I did have a faith to comfort me. It is very easy for people to say you should turn to Jesus etc, but to me it is like believing in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny.

OP, have you ever found anything in your life?

I went to a Catholic boarding school and was one of the few non catholic students (although baptized Christian). I was judged by some very uptight religious teachers and overheard them gossip about my 'unorthodox'family. I tried to make them like me more by attending all the optional evening prayer services and tried to talk to God but never felt heard. In my late teens and early 20's I struggled really badly with OCD and depression and pleaded to God to help me but I felt no comfort only suicidal. The only thing that helped me in the end was antidepressants and therapy. I stopped believing in God after this bout of depression and it all seems a lot of hateful made up nonsense to me now. But I do often think it would be nice to believe, some of my good friends do, I just can't seem to make that stretch. Whatever happens I know Catholic Church is not for me or any religion who thinks that being in a same sex relationship is a sin.

Sorry I have not been

Your family wasn’t Catholic, but your parents sent you away to Catholic boarding school? Why did they do that? Did you tell your parents you were unhappy at a boarding school that wasn’t the religion your family embraced?

What were your parents doing, making you miserable and isolated? Were they wanting to make you Catholic, even if they themselves weren’t?

I wanted to be a boarder as most of my friends were. I could have attended as a day student. My parents sent me there as I had learning differences and was counseled out of another secular private school. In those days if you had learning differences in public school you were put with all the troublemakers and not expected to achieve anything. The catholic school was the only private school in the area at the time that has learning specialists. I enjoyed some aspects of school as I loved my friends there. Not all the teachers were judgmental. I never told my parents I was unhappy about the religious aspect I kept it to myself.I even thought about converting to Catholicism. It is only as an adult I can see the impact it had on me.

So you chose this school.

Is “counseling out” mean you were kicked out, for a lack of better terminology? The secular private school made you leave?

So the Catholics took you in, provided you with actual learning opportunities, you loved your friends at the Catholic school, and you admit all the teachers weren’t judgemental…but you are still depressed because of it?

Op, we all have a right to feel our feelings, but you seem to be looking for reasons to focus on the negative, ignore the positive, and stay mired in the past?

How many years have you been graduated from high school? Did you attend college? Do you have a career/job?

Sorry I have not been clear. School was not the reason for my depression. It came about after struggling with OCD from my late teens onwards. Another pp asked if I had experience with God so I explained my background on Catholic school. I just wanted to give some context to my religious journey and struggle to believe.

Counseled out meant my previous school told my parents they couldn't help students with learning differences (they were a top academic school) and suggested they find a school for me that could.

Ok, what learning differences do you have? Have you attended or graduated college? Do you have a job that pays your bills and supports your life?

Yes I went to college and have a job and a family. I am pretty functioning human being on the surface but one that often feels depression and sadness.

Do you tell your family you are sad? Do they help you with your sadness?

If you have a college degree, a job, and a family, and can pay your bills, do you know millions of people worldwide would take your life without question?

What specifically are you sad about?

Different things, yes my family know but I try not to burden them with it, they have a lot going on themselves. Depression and anxiety runs in my family unfortunately. My mom really struggles as well and attempted suicide a few years ago. Sometimes I don't think there is a reason, some people are just born that way and struggle their whole lives.

Btw I know how lucky I am in terms of family, job etc. The reason I started this post is that I feel I could benefit from some kind of faith to enrich my life and maybe make me feel a bit better. I didn't mean to turn this into a 'poor me' post. I just want to know how other people have found their path to God or spirituality if they struggled with belief.

It’s not a poor you post. You have a right to feel your feelings.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am asking this question after reading a previous post about people being depressed because they don't have religion in their lives. I am an atheist in my 40s, although I considered myself Christian until my early 20's. However with life and experience I find it impossible to believe in a 'God' and especially anything written in the Bible. It all seems totally unbelievable to me and I hate the way it has given people reasons to discriminate against LGBTQ communities.

I struggle on and off with depression and sometimes I wished I did have a faith to comfort me. It is very easy for people to say you should turn to Jesus etc, but to me it is like believing in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny.

OP, have you ever found anything in your life?

I went to a Catholic boarding school and was one of the few non catholic students (although baptized Christian). I was judged by some very uptight religious teachers and overheard them gossip about my 'unorthodox'family. I tried to make them like me more by attending all the optional evening prayer services and tried to talk to God but never felt heard. In my late teens and early 20's I struggled really badly with OCD and depression and pleaded to God to help me but I felt no comfort only suicidal. The only thing that helped me in the end was antidepressants and therapy. I stopped believing in God after this bout of depression and it all seems a lot of hateful made up nonsense to me now. But I do often think it would be nice to believe, some of my good friends do, I just can't seem to make that stretch. Whatever happens I know Catholic Church is not for me or any religion who thinks that being in a same sex relationship is a sin.

Sorry I have not been

Your family wasn’t Catholic, but your parents sent you away to Catholic boarding school? Why did they do that? Did you tell your parents you were unhappy at a boarding school that wasn’t the religion your family embraced?

What were your parents doing, making you miserable and isolated? Were they wanting to make you Catholic, even if they themselves weren’t?

I wanted to be a boarder as most of my friends were. I could have attended as a day student. My parents sent me there as I had learning differences and was counseled out of another secular private school. In those days if you had learning differences in public school you were put with all the troublemakers and not expected to achieve anything. The catholic school was the only private school in the area at the time that has learning specialists. I enjoyed some aspects of school as I loved my friends there. Not all the teachers were judgmental. I never told my parents I was unhappy about the religious aspect I kept it to myself.I even thought about converting to Catholicism. It is only as an adult I can see the impact it had on me.

So you chose this school.

Is “counseling out” mean you were kicked out, for a lack of better terminology? The secular private school made you leave?

So the Catholics took you in, provided you with actual learning opportunities, you loved your friends at the Catholic school, and you admit all the teachers weren’t judgemental…but you are still depressed because of it?

Op, we all have a right to feel our feelings, but you seem to be looking for reasons to focus on the negative, ignore the positive, and stay mired in the past?

How many years have you been graduated from high school? Did you attend college? Do you have a career/job?

Sorry I have not been clear. School was not the reason for my depression. It came about after struggling with OCD from my late teens onwards. Another pp asked if I had experience with God so I explained my background on Catholic school. I just wanted to give some context to my religious journey and struggle to believe.

Counseled out meant my previous school told my parents they couldn't help students with learning differences (they were a top academic school) and suggested they find a school for me that could.

Ok, what learning differences do you have? Have you attended or graduated college? Do you have a job that pays your bills and supports your life?

Yes I went to college and have a job and a family. I am pretty functioning human being on the surface but one that often feels depression and sadness.

Do you tell your family you are sad? Do they help you with your sadness?

If you have a college degree, a job, and a family, and can pay your bills, do you know millions of people worldwide would take your life without question?

What specifically are you sad about?

Immediate pp sounds like someone who has no understanding of clinical depression. A person can be depressed irrespective of having a good life.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am asking this question after reading a previous post about people being depressed because they don't have religion in their lives. I am an atheist in my 40s, although I considered myself Christian until my early 20's. However with life and experience I find it impossible to believe in a 'God' and especially anything written in the Bible. It all seems totally unbelievable to me and I hate the way it has given people reasons to discriminate against LGBTQ communities.

I struggle on and off with depression and sometimes I wished I did have a faith to comfort me. It is very easy for people to say you should turn to Jesus etc, but to me it is like believing in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny.

OP, have you ever found anything in your life?

I went to a Catholic boarding school and was one of the few non catholic students (although baptized Christian). I was judged by some very uptight religious teachers and overheard them gossip about my 'unorthodox'family. I tried to make them like me more by attending all the optional evening prayer services and tried to talk to God but never felt heard. In my late teens and early 20's I struggled really badly with OCD and depression and pleaded to God to help me but I felt no comfort only suicidal. The only thing that helped me in the end was antidepressants and therapy. I stopped believing in God after this bout of depression and it all seems a lot of hateful made up nonsense to me now. But I do often think it would be nice to believe, some of my good friends do, I just can't seem to make that stretch. Whatever happens I know Catholic Church is not for me or any religion who thinks that being in a same sex relationship is a sin.

Sorry I have not been

Your family wasn’t Catholic, but your parents sent you away to Catholic boarding school? Why did they do that? Did you tell your parents you were unhappy at a boarding school that wasn’t the religion your family embraced?

What were your parents doing, making you miserable and isolated? Were they wanting to make you Catholic, even if they themselves weren’t?

I wanted to be a boarder as most of my friends were. I could have attended as a day student. My parents sent me there as I had learning differences and was counseled out of another secular private school. In those days if you had learning differences in public school you were put with all the troublemakers and not expected to achieve anything. The catholic school was the only private school in the area at the time that has learning specialists. I enjoyed some aspects of school as I loved my friends there. Not all the teachers were judgmental. I never told my parents I was unhappy about the religious aspect I kept it to myself.I even thought about converting to Catholicism. It is only as an adult I can see the impact it had on me.

So you chose this school.

Is “counseling out” mean you were kicked out, for a lack of better terminology? The secular private school made you leave?

So the Catholics took you in, provided you with actual learning opportunities, you loved your friends at the Catholic school, and you admit all the teachers weren’t judgemental…but you are still depressed because of it?

Op, we all have a right to feel our feelings, but you seem to be looking for reasons to focus on the negative, ignore the positive, and stay mired in the past?

How many years have you been graduated from high school? Did you attend college? Do you have a career/job?

Sorry I have not been clear. School was not the reason for my depression. It came about after struggling with OCD from my late teens onwards. Another pp asked if I had experience with God so I explained my background on Catholic school. I just wanted to give some context to my religious journey and struggle to believe.

Counseled out meant my previous school told my parents they couldn't help students with learning differences (they were a top academic school) and suggested they find a school for me that could.

Ok, what learning differences do you have? Have you attended or graduated college? Do you have a job that pays your bills and supports your life?

Yes I went to college and have a job and a family. I am pretty functioning human being on the surface but one that often feels depression and sadness.

Do you tell your family you are sad? Do they help you with your sadness?

If you have a college degree, a job, and a family, and can pay your bills, do you know millions of people worldwide would take your life without question?

What specifically are you sad about?

Different things, yes my family know but I try not to burden them with it, they have a lot going on themselves. Depression and anxiety runs in my family unfortunately. My mom really struggles as well and attempted suicide a few years ago. Sometimes I don't think there is a reason, some people are just born that way and struggle their whole lives.

What were you suicidal about?

When you are depressed, you know your emotions and thought processes are disordered. Is it possible you could not feel God because your thoughts and emotions were very disordered and not functioning correctly?

I don’t know why you are depressed, I don’t know what drove you to suicidal ideation. I don’t know why you have asked God for comfort and He has not answered.

I can’t guess as to why you are depressed throughout your life. You had a private school education. You chose a private Catholic school education and boarded with friends you liked. You have a college degree and career and family. None of those things guarantee happiness, but by many measures, you have had privileges many people in the world have not had, and never will. It’s great you have parents and family to share things with, both good and bad.

If you don’t believe in God, you don’t believe in God. If I were you I’d find other things to focus on and move on. Best wishes.