6 Lessons Learned from a Secular Recovery

In my early twenties, I sought help for an eating disorder. I spent five weeks at a treatment center where I went through a refeeding process and can to terms with my illness. Later I was also diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder. I still take medication to lessen my mood and psychotic symptoms, but it’s actually been a long time since I’ve had any symptoms. 

Today, after years of recovery, I have a very nice life. I’ve been working in the mental health field since 2006 and I tend to be a cheerleader for those in recovery. If I can do it, they sure as hell can.

One thing I don’t get to talk about very often is how being an atheist has been beneficial to my recovery. I run into a lot of vocal religious people in this field and I’d really like the chance to share my story.

So I’m writing a book! Here’s a little taste.

 

6 Lessons Learned from a Secular Recovery

  1. Mental illnesses are medical disorders that require medical treatment. Taking my medication is a very simple thing I can do to give myself a better life. 
  2. Give yourself credit. God didn’t do it — you did. While you’re at it, give your doctor, science, and your support team credit, too. There’s so much that goes into each individual recovery and god has absolutely nothing to do with it.
  3. Humans are strong and resilient. I don’t find strength in god, I find it in myself. I’m independent, capable, and responsible for my actions. When it comes to recovery you can praise god or curse the devil, but it doesn’t really matter. Ultimately we have to rely on ourselves.
  4. A belief in a higher power is not necessary for recovery (even though many say it is). I’m doing really well despite (or maybe because of) the absence of spirituality.
  5. There is no guilt, shame, or punishment in having a mental illness. Recognize the illness for what it is — a medical disorder. Receiving a diagnosis is absolutely no fault of your own. I am responsible for my wellness — not my illness.
  6. Be open to change. In recovery, we explore, evolve, and find what makes us happy.

 

Before coming to Freethought Blogs, I was writing for a popular mental health site, healthyplace.com. There were strict rules there and I wasn’t able to share my story as an atheist in recovery. I’m so glad I’m now at a place where I can open up about my recovery and not leave any of the important parts out.

How important is it for your partner to have the same political/ religious/ social views as you?

I dated so many different men — I mean, from all walks of life — when I was younger, so it’s pretty amazing that I ended up marrying someone who is so incredibly similar to me. 

My husband and I are from the same area, from German-American families, secular, and fiercely progressive and passionate when it comes to politics and social issues. We’re both pretty short — I’m 5’0” and he’s 5’5”. We’re both overweight and love road trips. We the exception of a few of our different hobbies and interests, we typically do everything together.

There’s only one thing I can think of that we truly disagree on, and that’s gun control. My husband thinks assault rifles should be banned in the US, but I think gun laws should be even stricter. My husband owns a gun but it’s at his cousin’s house because I won’t let him keep it at ours. 

How common is it to find someone so similar to yourself? Does it even matter? 

How close do your views align with your partner’s? How do you make it work if you’re different?

Are there some issues that are deal-breakers? I’ve dated men from a few different religions, and depending on how devout they were, that always seemed to be a deal-breaker for me. I just couldn’t look beyond that.

I’ve noticed that a few people that comment on my blog have partners of a different faith. How do you make it work?

New Projects!

As I was finishing up the final manuscript for my poetry book, I started two more books. I am feeling ambitious and very excited about writing so I decided to dig right in.

I’m taking a little break from poetry.

The first book is about secular parenting and it is a collection of letters I am writing to my daughter. The letters are for my daughter to read when she is a little older and I’ve already addressed a number of different topics. They are lessons I want my daughter to learn from her childhood without god.

The second is a book about being an atheist and recovering from a mental illness. I have schizoaffective disorder and I’m a certified peer supporter. I’ve given a lot of presentations about my story but I’ve never been given the chance to tell how being an atheist has been a very important part of my recovery.

I am happy to be moving on to new projects and I hope I can keep my momentum going.

Conservative Christian Roommates

I don’t know why, but today I was thinking about some roommates my husband and I had early in our marriage. Spoiler alert: It didn’t work out well.

I really don’t know why my husband and I thought this was a good idea, but several years ago we rented a house with another married couple. My husband and the other man were coworkers. They were only in their early twenties — about ten years younger than us.

All of us were hurting financially and living in the suburbs. The plan was to rent a house in Toledo where the cost of living was considerably lower and split all the bills. The idea looked good on paper.

Problems started not long after moving in together. Besides being arrogant Christians, they were disgusting. I can handle a cluttered house, but they were leaving trash and dirty dishes everywhere. What was even more disturbing was their poor personal hygiene. I wasn’t expecting any of that.

Back to the Christian part. They were that kind of people that talk about the “sanctity of marriage” and how it’s a holy institution. They weren’t shy in sharing that they were virgins when they got married.

My husband and I lived together before getting married in Las Vegas. We’re not Christian (obviously) and our marriage was just a fun celebration of our love. It is a great memory that we share, but it wasn’t a necessity for our relationship.

Our roommates were just so staunch and arrogant in their beliefs that we were surprised to find out that they got married so that they could get more financial aid money. They were both in college at the time. They had planned a big wedding but got married at the courthouse just in time to be considered independent students on their FAFSA for the school year.

What happened to that holy institution and getting married in your family’s church? Apparently that all goes down the drain when you wave money in front of them. This wouldn’t have bothered me if they hadn’t spent so much time talking about how special and holy marriage is.

The arrogance and hypocrisy were relentless. There were lots of comments made that bothered us, but the marriage thing was definitely the most annoying.

Kinda weird — when they prayed before meals it really bothered me. They spoke so highly and were so proud of their beliefs, but when they prayed before meals, they held hands and quickly and quietly recited a short prayer in a monotone voice. I honestly couldn’t make out everything they were saying, but it seemed like the same thing every time. It was obviously just a meaningless routine for them. I guess I was expecting more from them since their Christian beliefs were so important to them.

Needless to say, they moved out and we all moved on. I learned later that they got a divorce soon after. No surprise there.

I sometimes think about them and wonder what they’re doing now. Are they different? They’ve been through a lot and they were so young back then. I’m just curious if their beliefs have changed.

Have you ever met people that are so ridiculous that you can’t believe it’s real? That’s how I felt.

I still wish them well. I remember what I was like in my early twenties and I wouldn’t have wanted to live with me. Chances are they’ve grown up.

So, I told my boss that I’m an atheist.

For those of you who don’t know, I am working on a poetry book that is going to be published by Freethought House. It’s about 80 poems and it covers just about everything about my life as an atheist mom in the Midwest USA. It’s called, The Heathen Mommy from Holy Toledo. 

I was so excited about getting the book published that I shared the news with a couple of coworkers who also shared the news. I didn’t tell them what the book was about I didn’t quite consider the consequences either. The organization I work for, while it’s not faith-based, it is still pretty conservative. I don’t even want to know what their reactions are going to be if the actually get a hold of the book and read it. 

So I felt I had to tell someone. My boss is pretty amazing. She’s outgoing and accepting. She’s definitely a shining star at work. I approached her yesterday when we were alone and told her a little more about the book and my fears. She was extremely supportive. I told her I’m not always open about being an atheist because I fear discrimination and she reassured me that my poetry book will not affect my job. She said she will make sure that no one says or does anything to me.

When I think about it, it’s probably unlikely that anyone at work will read my book even though they show interest when they learn the news. A few people have said they want a copy and I’m kind of hoping they forget. They are not my target audience! However, I still felt the need to tell my boss. 

Having my boss in my corner was completely unexpected but I huge relief. I can’t let my guard down a little bit and I’m even more excited about getting the book published. 

Poetry Book Update — The End is in Sight!

I absolutely love working on my poetry book, but I feel I am going to reach a point soon where I just don’t know what else to do with it. I’m making some final revisions and tweaking the order of the poems, and I think I’m nearing the end. I’m getting really excited about it. I emailed my publisher this past week and asked to move up the deadline for my final manuscript from December 1st to August 1st. He seemed happy that I was making progress. I hope I made the right move.

One last push to move this book forward…

Kids Being Brought Up in Abortion Debates

I am very much pro-choice but I hate it when I get into debates and anti-abortion people bring up my daughter. It’s really not a fair comparison. Also, my daughter is now a real live person and not a clump of cells.

My daughter was planned and really wanted. I was in a good, stable place with lots of support, and I was prepared to take care of her. I was extremely fortunate. Had I been in a different situation, I might have felt grateful to have abortion as an available option.

Babies bring joy but also hardship so I can understand not wanting or being prepared for that. I know people have abortions for a variety of different reasons, but ultimately if a person wants an abortion, the reason shouldn’t matter.

Have any other pro-choice parents had their kids brought up in debates? How do you respond?

Advantages of Being an Atheist

Let’s keep the list going!

 

  • Having the grocery store to yourself on Sunday mornings
    or
    Sleeping in on Sunday mornings
  • I get to keep that 10 percent of my income that would normally go to the church – or give it away. It’s my choice.

  • I’m not obligated to do weird rituals or celebrate meaningless holidays.

  • Sex before marriage. I never understood why you would marry someone that you haven’t had sex with – too many unknowns.

  • Sex just for fun and not procreation.

  • No church-enforced rules that I don’t agree with. It seems I have Christian friends that are okay with marriage equality but still go to churches that preach against it. I don’t get it.

 

What would you add to the list?

How “out” are you?

I have to admit, as an atheist, I spend a lot of time in the closet. I feel like I’m surrounded by conservative Christians, especially at work. I mean, they don’t call it “Holy Toledo” for nothing. I don’t know any Christians who are afraid to announce their beliefs publicly, especially since almost everybody in the room feels the same way they do. I sometimes envy that freedom. If someone were to point-blank ask me if I’m a Christian I would say “no”, but oftentimes people assume that I am and I painfully go along with it. Revealing that I’m an atheist — or anything other than Christian for that matter — could start a confrontation or at the very least some uncomfortable awkwardness. Most days it doesn’t seem worth it. Also, I like my job and don’t want to lose it. 

It’s difficult. I know there are a lot of places that don’t have to deal with this issue. It’s not that I want to “preach” atheism, I just don’t want to feel like I have to hide something that’s important to me. Maybe with time things will improve. I’ve recently kicked it up a notch with an American Atheists car decal. No one has said anything so far and honestly, I hope no one ever does.

 

Is anyone else sick of hiding?