I have a chronic illness. I am also an atheist. Remarkably, this combination doesn’t seem to appear all that often on the interwebs. When I was diagnosed with MS, I went looking for online support. And it exists all over the place; there are message boards sponsored by the big national organizations, and other blogs and websites. But they’re all full of God. And that’s not what I’m interested in talking about. If you find God and faith to be helpful tools with which you manage your chronic illness, that’s great. There are a million places on the internet where you can talk about that. This place isn’t that place.
And before you attempt to convert me or convince me how your faith is super-awesome and I should give it a try: no thanks. I’m not ignorant about Christianity, I just don’t believe in it and don’t find it comforting or helpful. “But with the power of God” — yeah, not interested. Godly stuff will get deleted very quickly.
What I am interested in is talking about chronic illness, whether it’s MS, or fibromyalgia, or lupus, or Crohn’s disease, or any number of other chronic conditions. I’d like to hear from other atheists or agnostics about how you’re coping. I also welcome religious people who respect my opinions and don’t try to convert me or anyone else. I respect your faith and won’t try to change it. I expect the same from you.
I am a feminist and a progressive. I don’t tolerate racism, misogyny, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, or sizeism. If you’ve got a problem with feminism or fat acceptance, this isn’t the place for you. I’ve got a chronic disease that causes pain; I can’t be having with a bunch of nonsense. Cheers!