Violent.

Walking away from my childhood beliefs was emotionally exhausting. I felt lost, the Christian god had been the center of every thought I had and decision I made- I didn’t know how to process the world. But after several years, I’ve learned how to think for myself and I’m getting to a point where I’m not as bitter towards Christians.

Religion has permeated EVERYTHING in my life, as I hail from an EXTREMELY Roman Catholic-centered family. I

Walking away was painful; but, because I didn't "fit in" in the first place, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Whenever I asked a question or pointed out a clear inconsistency as a child, I was told not to ask or that the lord worked in mysterious ways or some other bullshit that I would immediately call out as bullshit and then get reprimanded for it. As an adult, these queries lingered and I became frustrated and angry when people would lose all vestiges of common sense or critical thinking the minute "god" came into question.

I HATED losing my family. I am now entirely outcast from my immediate family of origin. However, by validating and following my own children's inquiries and use of critical thinking skills, I'm THRILLED that by shirking religion I was allowed for me to find out about who I really am, what my morality is, and how I can live my best life.

I was forced into church life. It made me very uncomfortable and I tried really hard to get into the beliefs and fit in, but it never worked. Eventually I just decided enough is enough and did my own research about the world. Christianity never really sat right with me. I'm really glad I left it in the past.

I found it fairly easy to walk away from. It was a great relief that I wasn't wasting my time and money on dogma. I'm still in the closeted atheist,but being liberated from the bs of religion is great. Religion ruined my life and trying to fix it isn't easy. I hope I can repair all the damage some day. I wondered how my life would be if I was raised as an atheist.

I left as an adult, but my skepticism started from about 12 or 13. No real A-ha moments or anything, but the idea of heaven and hell never really solidified as possible to me. As an adult in Bible school things just kept getting hazier and harder to grasp. Ideas like the book of Job and the tower of Bable kept sitting in my back thoughts.
I finally left after my mom passed, but unlike some folks I don't hold any ill will towards the Christians I met along the way.

Was more of a run than a walk!

I was raised Catholic. Even from a very young age I remember many things about the religion that just didn't add up. I always had a hard time truly believing, even though I remember being terrified of Hell. When I found out a mortal sin sends you there, I was frantic for a little while wondering whether or not I had ever committed one. As a result, I believe this kind of thing is definitely a form of child abuse. When I got older and began to learn bits and pieces of the history of Christianity, I slowly began to realize it was all based on smoke and mirrors. I've been an atheist since I was in my 20s, even though I didn't really admit that to myself.