I'm nearly an atheist. I don't want to be and I try to pray and read about different things to help me but nothing helps. Only 2 people (my best friend and future hubby) know about it to its full extent while a few other friends just got the the other version of the story about how i'm "struggling with religion". I've thought like this since I was 17-ish and I remember thinking all my life that atheists were the dumbest people on the planet because how can one think there's nothing out there or that we are here because of a random nuclear reaction?
As for religion and Islam, I think religion was a matter of politics/societies/culture/way of life and a few exaggerated stories put together about things like miracles happening and such. And how religion was created by man to deal with day-to-day problems because we humans need something to turn to.
I can't tell my parents because they'd be heart broken. My parents are kinda' religious people but still very open minded and my younger brother is even a haafiz. They gave up on asking me to pray a long time ago and sometimes ask whether I still am a Muslim or not.
This secret literally depresses me every single day. The 2 people that know say since I'm nearly 19, there's still time to help me but deep down I know i've went too far.
i used to be a self abuser (not a lot of people knew about it and my addiction towards it) around 6 yrs back (bad phase) but now Mashallah im sane n abuse other people :D
I run my own business, and have a social life which my extended family (in-laws) in Pakistan ain't got a clue about! They also do not realise I have a degree and just think I'm thick like their extended family who live in the UK.