You recently went through a “divorce” with your religious beliefs. You probably don’t have the same support system that you did when you were religious. That is why you feel a void in your life. Just write down the reasons why you lost your faith. Build a new support system by discussing those reasons with your fellow atheists. Are those reasons justified? If so, then you did the right thing. In time, you will feel better.

You should try going back to a church service on your 6 month mark as an Atheist. Sometimes absence makes the heart grow fonder until you go back and see things with a fresh set of eyes. Be warned, some things that you saw as being perfectly normal will now appear very twisted without the religious blinders on. Maybe you will decide to go back to the delusion for the sake of comfort, maybe not but there is only one way to know, you gotta go and find out for yourself.

This is very normal. Recovering from Religion is a support group that has a 24 hour hotline you can call if your needing to talk to someone. [recoveringfromreligion.org]

I grew up in a situation similar to yours. But, when when I left religion behind, I never missed it at all. If you were to go vack into a religious congregation, you would know in your own mind that your behavior is basically false. I do not see how you could find that sitisgying.

Each to their own...be patient with yourself. Evolution is a process sometimes like a dance....relax.

You have to follow your heart. Don't let anyone tell you what to do.

Hi, Pranays,

You earn website points, and help other members get to know you better, when you write an informational profile that includes your hobbies and interests, and answer all the profile questions, since that's the first place many people look when they see a new member.

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Then you make comments and write your own posts to earn more points and privileges; for instance, at level two you can private email people. You get different perks with each level, and when you reach level eight you get an agnostic T-shirt.

To find members near you, click on the "Meet" button at the top of the page, then on "Members," and enter your preferred search parameters.
Or click on the "About" button at the top of the page to find links to FAQ or the website tutorial.
Click on the 'Meet" button to find member matches

Links to FAQ: [agnostic.com],
and a website tutorial: [agnostic.com]

And by the way, do what you like but I'll never go to a Christian church again unless it's for some ceremonial occasion, like a funeral. Or they have free nonreligious ballroom dancing classes.

Congratulations on reaching a space of free thought! It's not so easy when you have been religious for a long time to start seeing the holes in the logic that you have been presented with in the past. It might be useful for you to watch some youtube videos of Dawkins or Hitchens, to get a hang of the big gaps that you may not have noticed before. It's an achievement to be proud of.

I also had the same feeling when I first started having doubts with my faith, I was born in the church and I come from a family of baptist ministers living a rigid, fundamental christian lifestyle. I also felt the void and loneliness after getting alienated from our church and family, the only life I've ever known but I was able to recover by meeting a new circle of friends, open minded and progressive such as I. Now I can proudly say that I absolutely have no regrets being an atheist. I hope the feeling pass soon and you finally enjoy a life free from religious brainwashing.

I was a Christian for about 25 years. I can empathize with you regarding the "void." One of the things that helped me "fill" it was realizing there was nothing after death. That empty place of not being able to call on god is instead filled with realizing how much strength I have. The church is an amazing way to make friends with total strangers. It was an instant connection and one that I wasn't as skeptical about since "hey, they are a Christian, that makes them a good person, I wonder what we have in common?" I used to think that only Christians were good people. (Yes, I was THAT person.) Now I'm almost skeptical when I meet them. I was extremely judgemental as a Christian. It comes with the territory.
I guess I'm just trying to say I hear you.
Live in the moment. Meet more agnostics, atheists, humanists, etc. (This is a great place to start! ) You aren't alone in life.

Well, religion brings a sense of community and relationships, it is a way to get closer to each others by sharing some mystical beliefs. Finding out that there is no such thing as a meaning of life, no one to reward you for being a good person and that there is no reason to believe anything exists after death can lead to experiencing both distress and a feeling of inner void. The only advice I can give you is to be honest with yourself - if your faith is really just about having a support group and not about convictions, you might want to look toward the community volunteering sector. There are plenty of non-religious volunteer organizations that can give you a place to feel needed and appreciated, and it helps making the world a better place, a little bit at a time.

You just don't wake up in the morning and decide to be an atheist