1-84-I-DOUBT-IT

[LiberalAndProud]

Founded by the group Recovering From Religion and cobbled together with a small budget, the helpline launched on Friday. Nearly 100 volunteers are ready to field calls 24/7 on the weekends and from 6-12 Central Time on weeknights.
...
"When I left my own faith, I understood why a lot of people would feel quite abandoned, especially if all their friends and family are tied to the church. It can be quite a lonely time."

In addition to the social costs, many lifelong atheists -- and believers, too, for that matter -- underestimate the existential terror that often accompanies the first stages of atheism.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/02/27/living/atheist-hot-line-help-line/

I remember feeling "existential terror" as I began to release my grip on faith, not so much terror concerning the here-after, but the idea that the welfare of the human race might actually be at our own mercy; that there is no god directing us toward a better tomorrow, or toward the arc of a more perfect justice. So I held on to my comforting belief for a while longer because of that fear. I don't know that I would have called a hotline, but I think it's a good resource to have.

[Curmudgeoness]

1. I don't think that I would have called a hotline either,

but then again, if I were contemplating suicide, I probably would not call a hotline. I am just not one to talk things through with strangers, but that is not the way it is for many people. Good for them for doing this. I think that there are many new atheists who are afraid of how to live with their new philosophy on religion. It is daunting to be so alone, and since so few atheists talk about it, it is a lonely feeling.