How Can I Ever Overcome This Fear Of Hell? And How Can I Stop Having These Panic Attacks?

[sharkindeepwater]

Uh, dude. When you're in a meditative state, you're very relaxed. Apparently, monks can raise their skin temperature several degrees while they're meditating, because the tiny blood vessels in their skin open.

 

Those blood vessels are what make your fingers and face get cold when you're stressed. You know that prickling feeling you get in your face when you're shocked? They're a lot of capillaries (those vessels) closing all at once.

 

What I'm getting at is that if you suddenly get cool when you stop meditating, it's likely that your skin is going back to normal as you wake up from that deep state, making you momentarily feel colder. The feeling fades because your body immediately realizes it did not actually get cold, you're still at normal temperature. No holy ghosts required.

 

As for hell... why would the Christian belief with the Christian idea of hell be the right one? Why would it be the extreme Christian belief, and not the milder one that good unsaved people are not punished?

[sharkindeepwater]

--sorry to double post, but I just realized something that further supports my idea: you didn't experience it for a few days. I would guess that your body stayed a little tense because you were worried about that experience, so your skin didn't warm the same way. As soon as you felt safe enough to fully relax, though, back it came.

 

I took a class in physiological psychology. My prof was able to change his blood pressure by thirty points through thinking alone. Thirty points. That's an enormous difference in emotional state and physical reaction and feeling, and he did it entirely by visualizing first a very calm situation, then an extremely tense, horrific one. What goes on in your brain powerfully affects your body and what you feel.

[florduh]

There's no spirit, holy or otherwise. What does exist is altered mental states, brainwashing, psychology, mind-body connection, and imagination.

 

Sounds like you need professional secular counseling to rid yourself of the cult programming. Please seek it before you sink any deeper.

 

All the best to you, and peace.

[Cowabunga Jones]

I think, and I believe you do as well, that your condition is highly irrational. That being the case, if it is causing you to have anxiety attacks and loss of appetite, perhaps you should see a psychiatrist. You have a wealth of rational perspectives on Hell here on this forum. Yet, the fear still grips you. Either you still (want to?) believe in it, or it really is time to seek some professional help with this.

 

It also may be comforting to know that just over 2 months ago I was a pastor in the church. I am now an atheist and I have no fear of hell whatsoever. Sure a hypothetical "what if" pops up from time to time, but its nothing more than me continuing to analyze the massive worldview shift I have recently experienced.

[par4dcourse]

Let's bottom line it: there's enough real shit happening right now to keep your worry center plenty busy without adding imaginary, fairy tale woes.

[Deva]

....it was still there, so I decided to look up on the Internet to see what it was. Well, it turns out that this sometimes happens after people meditate. Most people seem to believe this cool breeze feeling is the Holy Spirit,

 

My bolding. I recommend you stop looking things up on the internet. You will get all kinds of information, some maybe accurate, some not accurate. Why believe something you read on the internet without further investigation? If some activity is disturbing you, then stop it.

 

I have been meditating for 9 months and never experienced this "cool breeze". Other unusual things, but not this. It certainly is not the Holy Spirit. That idea was put into your brain by reading nonsense on the internet.

 

There are all kinds of sensations that happen when you meditate. You ought to find a person in real life who can advise you.

[noob]

It also may be comforting to know that just over 2 months ago I was a pastor in the church. I am now an atheist and I have no fear of hell whatsoever. Sure a hypothetical "what if" pops up from time to time, but its nothing more than me continuing to analyze the massive worldview shift I have recently experienced.

 

CJ, I too have that hypothetical "what if" every once in a while. Even though I've thought it out for myself, and even though the smartest man I know is an atheist; I still find it comforting to know that just over 2 months ago you were a pastor who attended a Christian college, and now you are an atheist. For some reason, I find the thought comforting. I am glad that you and Prysm joined us!

[cslewissucks]

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[Arcane Lullabye]

Thank you guys, all of you. I don't know what I would have done without you these past few days...probably end up being taken away by the men in white coats.

 

The thing is, there have been these strange and disturbing synchronicities that seem to hint about the possibility of going to Hell...things that keep playing in my mind over and over again. I keep wondering is the universe really sending me that message? I just don't know how to stop thinking about the terrifying synchronicities.

[Arcane Lullabye]

By the way, I plan on responding to your posts later (there are some things I need to do around the house), but I just wanted to let you guys know that I read what you wrote and I appreciate every word.

[sharkindeepwater]

The key there is "seem to."

 

This already sounds like hell. Why would the universe want to; and if it were that powerful, why would it need to hint?

 

Totally supporting taking care of the house and things. It sounds like this may be a pretty good time to ground yourself; don't look for patterns, just vacuum. XD

[babysealclubber]

I second seeking secular counseling if possible. You sound like you are in a fragile state.

 

Consider: If the universe were trying to communicate with you, to tell you you were going to hell, why would the universe/God allow the posters here to say otherwise? And why would it choose to do so by making your head feel cool? It just doesn't make sense. You didn't know what that meant. You saw something on the internet that said that was what it was.

 

Now you see us telling you something else on the same exact internet. Think about it.

 

Don't worry. Be at peace. Trust me; many, many people here have been through this very process. It's mostly a matter of time before you feel less anxious. But if you are experiencing panic attacks, don't hesitate to get therapy.

[babysealclubber]

If you have time, this website talks about hell being a myth from a christian perspective.

 

http://www.tentmaker.org/articles/jesusteachingonhell.html

 

And if you would like, I wrote something a while back (to sort out my own thoughts on the subject) that may be helpful to you... From your badge, it looks like you hold on to some belief in God. I hope you won't mind my atheistic perspective.

 

On_The_Afterlife.doc

 

Sometimes writing can be therapeutic. Maybe you could write down some of the reasons why you don't believe Hell exists, or at least some reasons why you don't believe you will be going there?

[Guest darkcons]

Hey buddy, if your going to hell, then 75% of the worlds population will be with you, including everyone on this forum (myself included), all the Islamic, Hindus, Buddhists and Catholics, and every other protestant group that does not match up with the protestant group that 'won' the heaven lotto.

 

Also as for any sensation you may feel that could possibly be attributed to 'religions' over tones, just realize that when people are under stress your mind does not function as efficiently as it should, and if you want to see something badly enough your mind will MAKE it true. Reality has truth, but your brain can misinterpret things, or in your case over interpreted. Part of deconverting is moving from an Absolutist point of view on life to a Relative view on life.

 

If Hell exists, than the Devil Exists and if the Devil exists than God exists. Does it really seem likely that there would be any humans left if god wanted to torment you this way (I think that there is a god he has a lot of self restraint, just look at Sim City, how long does it take YOU to destroy your city with UFOs?) ? even if god and the devil DO exist there is no Garnette there wasn't some kind of massive translation error and hell is really just a massive tourist spot in the ethereal plane. (because they would need some good enclosing to get the fire to burn. its also the only place to get burgers in the ethereal plane.)

 

Just try to realize that the odds of hell being exactly what you think it is, is incredibly remote, and that the rest of your life cannot wait on that small insignificant possibility. But if we do go to hell, we can be bunk mates.

[Arcane Lullabye]

I know it seems irrational, and most of me knows that...but these scary things keep happening to me. Today, I saw 16:16 twice, on two digital devices. And then I saw this passage:

 

Mark 16:16 (King James Version). 16He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

 

So now I'm absolutely terrified and I don't think I can sleep.

[Neon Genesis]

One thing that might help is to remember that Mark 16:9-20 does not appear in any of the earliest copies of Greek manuscripts of the NT. These verses were only added in later copies. If these verses had any authority to them, why is it that they weren't in any of the early copies of the gospel of Mark? Perhaps reading about the history of this chapter might help? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_16 After all, what reason would you have to be afraid of a heretical verse that Mark's author didn't even intend to be included in the first place?

[Arcane Lullabye]

Thank you again, guys. Your posts really comfort me. Whenever I become too enslaved by these fears, I think about your posts or come back and re-read them. Very few things will succeed in penetrating an irrational belief, but your posts really do help me, at least until the next wave of all-consuming panic strikes again. Everyone here has been really great and supportive. Thanks again, everyone...for every single post. Each one of them is truly helpful in some way. I'm glad I joined this amazing community.

 

Oh, and babysealclubber, thanks so much for the link. That website is a life-saver...I can't put my gratitude into words. Also, thanks for letting me see your perspective on this subject - I enjoyed reading it. Your atheistic position does not bother me. In fact, a lot of atheistic material has been very helpful because the atheist community tends to be very straightforward and to-the-point about debunking illogical arguments. They don't tip-toe around difficult subjects out of fear of being wrong. I often enjoy reading about the atheist's perspective and I'm planning on reading some of Dawkins' material, such as The God Delusion. It might help to calm down the illogical, panicky part of my mind.

 

Neon Genesis, you have no idea of the weight your post has lifted off my shoulders. Maybe if God/the universe is trying to tell me something, it's trying to tell me that that particular part of the Bible is untrue. Let's hope that's it. Thank you so much for posting this information.

 

Would you guys believe that I'm normally a fairly rational person? However, when it comes to this subject, all logic flies out the window because of the extreme fear that I feel. Fear and logic have a difficult time coexisting.

[Neon Genesis]

Neon Genesis, you have no idea of the weight your post has lifted off my shoulders. Maybe if God/the universe is trying to tell me something, it's trying to tell me that that particular part of the Bible is untrue. Let's hope that's it. Thank you so much for posting this information.

If you want to read more information about the changes the biblical manuscripts have gone through over the centuries, I highly recommend reading Bart D Ehrman's book, Misquoting Jesus, which deals with the subject of textual criticism and these changes, including about those last few verses about Mark 16. Plus, it's really just a fascinating read in general.

[Arcane Lullabye]

Thanks, Neon Genesis. I went out and bought the book and I'm glad I did.