Religious Trauma Syndrom / RTS

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Samson's picture
Religious Trauma Syndrom / RTS

It's clear that years of brain washing /abuse can seriously damage mental health, but I have trouble understanding non-believers having nightmares about hell. When believers make nonsensical claims about atheists, like ''just wanna sin'' or ''you hate god'' to a non-believer is clear how it doesn't make sense. Same with ''I use to be an atheists'' BS. Ofcourse there are christians who were realy atheists, but many were just not realy ''into'' religion, not thinking about it, practising...etc. They were never realy atheist,when they say: ''I use to be an atheist, but then I prayed to Jesus-I find god'' It's Juts before ''born again'' period. Atheists don't pray. So I don't understand how can atheist be afraid of hell or have nightmares ?

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Alex431's picture
The word is indoctrination.
Samson's picture
I wasn't clear regarding
SammyShazaam's picture
Children have nightmares
aMan's picture
In general, and IMHO,
Tom S's picture
The RTS title immediately
Tom S's picture
Adding to my above post: I
hwi2's picture
Hell is so "advertised" in
Serjaydee's picture
Well, I think hwi2's opinion
catandmouse's picture
For any person "hell" is an
atheister's picture
RTS - LOL, religion and other
samking009's picture
Maybe this should prove to
Tman127182's picture
I take it you don't know how
mysticrose's picture
Humans can be affected
Gardner4224's picture
Here, I am going to explain
CharlesBarton's picture
Yes, unfortunately there are
rosydam's picture
If you thought managing a
michaelkendall's picture
Go to bed after seeing a lone
Bolden's picture
RTS is complex. Even non

RTS is complex. Even non-believers can experience residual fear from past religious indoctrination. Exploring "religious trauma triggers" via Google search can offer insights. Nightmares may stem from ingrained fear, not current belief. Dismissing past experiences as "not really atheist" undermines the trauma. Validating these experiences is key to healing.

felicianodino's picture
This is such an important

This is such an important point. Religious Trauma Syndrome is very real, and fear of hell can linger even after someone stops believing. It’s not about logic—it’s emotional conditioning from years of fear-based teaching. Nightmares aren’t always rational, they reflect deeper anxieties. If you’re curious to understand more or want to explore resources, a quick Google Search can open up a world of insight and support.
https://www.google.com

Google Search
[url=https://www.google.com]Google Search[/url]
[Google Search](https://www.google.com)

felicianodino's picture
You bring up a powerful and

You bring up a powerful and nuanced topic. Even for those who no longer believe, deeply ingrained teachings—especially from childhood—can leave emotional scars. Fear of hell isn’t always rational; it’s often a trauma response, not a belief. Our brains remember fear even when our minds reject the source. For more insight on Religious Trauma Syndrome, try a Google Search—there’s a growing body of work on this.

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