Atheism and depression?

[k5thbeatle]

I have often heard that there is a correlation to atheism and increased depression and/or unhappiness? Does anyone know of the source of this? Has this actually been studied or can someone point me to any research on this? I have a friend who has turned to atheism and he is battling severe depression so I am curious as to any factual links?

 

[inthecloud]

Maybe becasue some religious practices release neurotransmiters in the brain that give you a wellness sensation. Atheist lack that. Well most of them. And often sound bitter.

 

[paarsurrey]

I have often heard that there is a correlation to atheism and increased depression and/or unhappiness? Does anyone know of the source of this? Has this actually been studied or can someone point me to any research on this? I have a friend who has turned to atheism and he is battling severe depression so I am curious as to any factual links?

Hi

Kindly read:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Silence/Atheism
and also google.

Maybe it helps

Thanks

 

[Hastrman]

I have often heard that there is a correlation to atheism and increased depression and/or unhappiness? Does anyone know of the source of this? Has this actually been studied or can someone point me to any research on this? I have a friend who has turned to atheism and he is battling severe depression so I am curious as to any factual links?

Um…because atheism is synonymous with “existential crisis” because it means “denying my own Being”. Being, see…is God.

I also imagine there’s a lot of frustration in being unable to grapple with even the most basic of concepts, but I may be generalizing from Richard Dawkins (among others) on that.

And I know four of the major founders of existentialism considered themselves atheists, but they were wrong.

 

[Singinbeauty]

I have often heard that there is a correlation to atheism and increased depression and/or unhappiness? Does anyone know of the source of this? Has this actually been studied or can someone point me to any research on this? I have a friend who has turned to atheism and he is battling severe depression so I am curious as to any factual links?

I find it hard to believe that being athiest is a reason for depression. I have battled depression for years and I have never been close to being an atheist.

 

[Jerusha]

I think there are many spiritual contributing factors for depression. See data for depression in the state for Utah. Healthy faith can help heal depression. Sick religion makes it worse. Atheism is often evidence of anger against sick religion-- many who claim to be atheists and agnostics are only angry at who they think God is.

 

[Minnie31]

I have often heard that there is a correlation to atheism and increased depression and/or unhappiness? Does anyone know of the source of this? Has this actually been studied or can someone point me to any research on this? I have a friend who has turned to atheism and he is battling severe depression so I am curious as to any factual links?

I’m not aware of any link between the two. I haven’t researched this thoroughly, but so far have not found any correlation. I will say this though, of all the people I’ve encountered with depression or bouts of unhappiness, there seem to be more who are religious. However, it could be that that’s because I know more religious people than atheists. In any case, I think depression needs to be examined on an individual basis. Is your friend going through some tough times in his life right now that could be causing this depression? Or perhaps there’s a chemical imbalance in his brain?

 

[Exalt]

Atheism is often evidence of anger against sick religion-- many who claim to be atheists and agnostics are only angry at who they think God is.

They’re not angry at any god.

They’re *atheists. *They lack a belief in god. Hence: a (not, negative, negation) theist (a believer in a diety).

They might be angry at *religion. *They might be angry at religious people. But saying they’re angry at God is like saying that you’re angry at Mohammed, the last and greatest Prophet, because you’re Christian. It is completely ridiculous, and rather offensive.

 

[Elric]

I find it hard to believe that being athiest is a reason for depression. I have battled depression for years and I have never been close to being an atheist.

Me too.

I guess people will say anything to get attention (not directed at the OP).

 

[1234]

I find it hard to believe that being athiest is a reason for depression. I have battled depression for years and I have never been close to being an atheist.

I am sorry that you’re depressed.

With a loved one deployed, you have good reason to be depressed.

Depression can be situational, or aggravated by external circumstances, but it is often unrelated to actual life events. It’s a biochemical disorder that can respond to psychotherapy, group therapy and support, etc, and also medication for depression. I think that we have all known someone who is depressed and who has no objective reason to be depressed. It’s a disease, like heart disease or diabetes, and should be viewed and treated as one.

Re atheism and depression, atheism is uncommon and depression is very common, so I suspect there is no correlation. But I don’t know a lot of atheists besides myself. But I will say that there are a lot of unhappy people posting on the CAF who are ridden with guilt related to their Catholicism, and who sound depressed. Mainly kids who are masturbating, have lost their way, etc. Kids need structure, so I am not sure that atheism would help them. But it sure sounds as if Catholicism isn’t helping them, either.

 

[puzzleannie]

maybe it is a reverse correlation, and those with a depressive or melancholic personality, or a chemical imbalance leading to clinical depression, have a harder time perceiving good and feeling happy in general and exaggerate the appearance of evil and suffering in their own lives and in the world, and hence have great reluctance to admit the existence of a good God.

 

[Hastrman]

They’re not angry at any god.

They’re *atheists. *They lack a belief in god. Hence: a (not, negative, negation) theist (a believer in a diety).

They might be angry at *religion. *They might be angry at religious people. But saying they’re angry at God is like saying that you’re angry at Mohammed, the last and greatest Prophet, because you’re Christian. It is completely ridiculous, and rather offensive.

I may go insane if I have to tell one more person this, but: atheist is not a person who is not a theist; an atheist is a person who believes there is no god, just as an anarchist is not a person who lacks a belief about government; they believe in no government. If you lack any belief about God and you call yourself an atheist, well, sorry, but you’re misusing the word.

See, the -ism is formed off “atheos,” no God–it is not “theism” plus “a-” meaning not. Similarly “anarchism” is formed from “anarchos,” no rulers, not “archism” plus “an-” meaning not (a{n} takes the n before a word that starts with a vowel).

Or would you like to correct me on Greek onomastics?

 

[Reuben_J]

I have often heard that there is a correlation to atheism and increased depression and/or unhappiness? Does anyone know of the source of this? Has this actually been studied or can someone point me to any research on this? I have a friend who has turned to atheism and he is battling severe depression so I am curious as to any factual links?

Depression is a sickness just like any other sicknesses. Thus is has no boundary. Anyone can have depression.

 

[puzzleannie]

I still think we need some definite factual basis for this discussion before going further, no one has linked any reliable research on this

 

[Exalt]

I may go insane if I have to tell one more person this, but: atheist is not a person who is not a theist; an atheist is a person who believes there is no god, just as an anarchist is not a person who lacks a belief about government; they believe in no government. If you lack any belief about God and you call yourself an atheist, well, sorry, but you’re misusing the word.

See, the -ism is formed off “atheos,” no God–it is not “theism” plus “a-” meaning not. Similarly “anarchism” is formed from “anarchos,” no rulers, not “archism” plus “an-” meaning not (a{n} takes the n before a word that starts with a vowel).

Or would you like to correct me on Greek onomastics?

You’re right, *atheos *was a greek word for those that disbelieved in the existence of the gods. The word became something of an insult - used against Christians, as I’m sure you well know. Then the Christians used it, too, as something of an insult. Centuries later, Huxley invented the word agnostic, partly because of the negative connotation towards atheists at the time. But modern atheists, such as Richard Dawkins, for example, conceed that it is impossible to completely disprove the existance of some type of God. Indeed, modern atheists are quite open to evidence of the type of God Christians believe in. It is with that knowledge that some self-described atheists deny the existance of God - even though they conceed that it is impossible to disprove the existance of some kind of God.

Atheist, agnostic, freethinker, secular humanist - they’re all words used by people to describe themselves. I describe myself as an atheist, of the same type as Richard Dawkins. I conceed the possibility that there *might *be some type of divine being - and there *might *be an invisible, silent cat in my room. But I won’t believe in either until there is sufficient evidence. I’d say the odds of a personal, loving God are probably 1 to 1,000,000,000,000,00. Something like that. It’s a distant possibility. Right up there with this world being a gaint computer program and we’re all really plugged into the Matrix. Or that the crazy lady across the street really was abducted and experimented on by aliens.

I’m an atheist to all those things.

And if you want me to open the dictionary on you, I can do that too.

• “One who disbelieves or denies the existence of God or gods.” -Random House Unabridged Dictionary
• “One who disbelieves or denies the existence of God or gods” -American Heritage Dictionary
• “A person who does not believe in God” - Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary
• “1571 … atheos 'to deny the gods, godless,” from a- ‘without’ + theos ‘a god’." -Online Etymology Dictionary
• *There is one entry on Dictionary.com that does fit your position, and I shall include it: *“someone who denies the existence of god” -WordNet

So, let’s say for a moment that you have an actual point. What word would you use to describe someone like me or Dawkins? Agnostic? Well, let’s look at that word too:

• “A person who holds that the existence of the ultimate cause, as God, and the essential nature of things are unknown and unknowable, or that human knowledge is limited to experience.” -Random House Unabridged Dictionary
• “(a) One who believes that it is impossible to know whether there is a God. (b) One who is skeptical about the existence of God but does not profess true atheism.” -American Heritage Dictionary
• “One who professes that the existence of a First Cause and the essential nature of things are not and cannot be known.” -Online Etymology Dictionary
• “A person who claims that they cannot have true knowledge about the existence of God (but does not deny that God might exist)” -WordNet

So, comparing the sum of the two definations according to a small sample of the dictionaries out there, which better describes the kind of person I was talking about? That is, which word, *atheist *or *agnostic *describes someone who “lacks a belief in God, but conceeds that it is possible that God does exist - but strong, convincing evidence would be needed to believe”?

Well, by all accounts an agnostic is someone who says that they just can’t know one way or the other. Knowledge of God is impossible. An atheist, on the other hand, seems to be *either *a person who denies the existence of God *or *a person who does not believe in God.

So which is the better word for the kind of person I was talking about? Atheist. Hands down.

Looks like you’ll have to go insane. I was not misusing the word, and the popular atheists of today, as well as a good number of dictionaries, agree with me - and not you.

 

[k5thbeatle]

I still think we need some definite factual basis for this discussion before going further, no one has linked any reliable research on this

Thank you! That is what I am asking, not what is atheism or what is depression. Has there been any real research into a possible correlation between depression and atheism?

 

[porkscratchings]

Maybe becasue some religious practices release neurotransmiters in the brain that give you a wellness sensation. Atheist lack that. Well most of them. And often sound bitter.

ROTFLMAO!!

There are lots of stuff that release the happy drugs in the brain - try yoga, Tai Chi, Acupuncture, Reiki, crystal healing, which is practised by millions without joining the religions that these come from. Also good old fashioned healthy relationships with other people also gets the brain happy.

Maybe atheists seem more depressed because they are able to admit it without being condemned. I can’t imagine how a Christian or Muslim can admit to being unhappy or having doubts about their faith to the point of wanting to try out another faith - and do this without being told they’re going to hell, and have their lives made a misery by their friends and family in the faith. I can’t imagine religious people being allowed to admit unhappiness/ depression especially when this would suggest that the religion is not perfect and cannot create a perfect happy society.

Those atheists who sound bitter (and they are not the majority) - such as Richard Dawkins and Ayaan Hirsi Ali are ex-Christians and they are not angry because they are atheists but because they feel a large part of their lives have been ruined by religion before they discovered atheism.

I am atheist, and although I have been depressed for many reasons - bullying at school, death of loved uncle, having an illness that involved changing my life - my beliefs have not caused me any unhappiness. In fact the opposite is true - I feel liberated and able to treat all mankind with respect without being told by a holy book to hate people because they are unbelievers. Ur attitude towards atheists just proves my point.

 

[Cabin4]

Depression can be situational, or aggravated by external circumstances, but it is often unrelated to actual life events. It’s a biochemical disorder that can respond to psychotherapy, group therapy and support, etc, and also medication for depression.

Depression can happen for many reasons and is a clinical response to many factors. To suggest that depression is unrealated to actual life events is not factual. Clinical depression is an actual biochemical response. It is physical. It is not “unrelated” to the physical world.

If someone who has depression who is reading this, please remember that it is not “just in your head”. It is a real and well documented mental illness that requires medical assistance and care.

I have dealt with many religious people who suffer from depression. Their faith is usually challenge when people say," you just need to pray more", or, “you don’t have enough faith/belief/spriritual strength” to “get over it”.

Many people who suffer depression have untreated trauma that results in a biochemical response in the brain, causing clinical depression.

I have also been in groups where depression is wide-spread in pastoral staff. Some of the “strongest” people I know in their faith suffer from depression.

 

[porkscratchings]

ROTFLMAO!!

There are lots of stuff that release the happy drugs in the brain - try yoga, Tai Chi, Acupuncture, Reiki, crystal healing, which is practised by millions without joining the religions that these come from. Also good old fashioned healthy relationships with other people also gets the brain happy.

Maybe atheists seem more depressed because they are able to admit it without being condemned. I can’t imagine how a Christian or Muslim can admit to being unhappy or having doubts about their faith to the point of wanting to try out another faith - and do this without being told they’re going to hell, and have their lives made a misery by their friends and family in the faith. I can’t imagine religious people being allowed to admit unhappiness/ depression especially when this would suggest that the religion is not perfect and cannot create a perfect happy society.

Those atheists who sound bitter (and they are not the majority) - such as Richard Dawkins and Ayaan Hirsi Ali are ex-Christians and they are not angry because they are atheists but because they feel a large part of their lives have been ruined by religion before they discovered atheism.

I am atheist, and although I have been depressed for many reasons - bullying at school, death of loved uncle, having an illness that involved changing my life - my beliefs have not caused me any unhappiness. In fact the opposite is true - I feel liberated and able to treat all mankind with respect without being told by a holy book to hate people because they are unbelievers. Ur attitude towards atheists just proves my point.

Erratum - Ayaan Ali is an ex-muslim who became an atheist. The sentence should read:

“Those atheists who sound bitter (and they are not the majority) - such as Richard Dawkins and Ayaan Hirsi Ali are ***ex-Christians/ex-muslims ***and they are not angry because they are atheists but because they feel a large part of their lives have been ruined by religion before they discovered atheism”.

Thanks Cabin4 for pointing out that in fact quite a few religious people suffer from depression.

In fact, in the UK, about 1 in 4 people suffer from depression.

 

[Cabin4]

My friend runs a retreat for pastors, and many, many good faithful men suffer from major depression. Priests have high depression numbers when these group retreats get together. I don;t think it is officially reported just what the numbers are.

I am sorry that I can not site any documents, but I don’t see how being an atheist presents a higher probability for depression. It is probably stress related…and pastors and religious (various) staff are under some intense pressure right now…

I would think that an atheist has it easier…that person doesn’t have to worry about getting in to heaven!!!