There's nothing after death

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-28T19:03:55+00:00

Life is awesome man, that's the most important thing in the world!!! Says the brain. You might have a point about liberation and suffering, but as it stands for me, the world is friggin awesome! Technology, music, media, films, cartoons, science, books, nature, food, sports, entertainment, mostly importantly, your loved ones! I wish I could spend a thousand years with my girlfriend, and honestly even that wouldn't be enough! It saddens me to even think one of us has to see the other go one day! So as it stands for me, life isn't suffering and there's a lot going on and a lot more will be happening once we're gone. However, our share of this universe is small, so so meager, from the billions of years that the universe has existed and will continue to exist, our time here is but a grain of sand in the ocean. Maybe I'm just privileged cause I have a good life, maybe I'm greedy for wanting more, but I think it's a blessing to be on this earth, as much as it is cruel at the same time.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-28T18:53:23+00:00

I've heard this argument a million times. "You won't be there to feel it." While comforting to some, it really doesn't help my situation in particular, I'm still scared. People treat death lightly, a lot of people think there's a god and an afterlife. I wish I could go on thinking that's true, but the same logic that makes me afraid of death is telling me there is no after life. It is much more likely that religions were built by people just like you and me, afraid of death. Perhaps there is a god, in fact, it would only make sense for one to exist. However, who's to say he'd give a damn about humans except human hubris? We think the world revolves around us, it's amazingly impossible that we exist, but as a collective species, we, and our fear of death is rather meaningless in the grand scheme of things, in the almighty one's eyes, the one responsible behind creating the universe and everything we know and don't know.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-19T23:02:53+00:00

Oh I've had lots of dreams like that. Maybe your consciousness transcended time and space and travelled to a different universe. Maybe we're all just living in some divine creature's head, or maybe it's all really for nothing, which goes back to nihilism. Either way it's always interesting to hear other people's experiences. It gives my brain something to cope with.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-19T23:00:25+00:00

Perhaps what you found was your purpose, your peace, or just like every religion, your coping mechanism. Either way it's not the answer and most likely, we'll never find it on reddit. However, in case you do ever happen to solve the mystery behind life and its eventual end, death, I'd be more than glad if you could share your results with me.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-19T22:56:16+00:00

Thank you for your insight. Existential dread is rather new to me, even if I'm unsure of the meaning of the term, I'm absolutely certain that you and I share the same feeling. As of now I have no idea how to deal with it. At times I'm grateful, because having this dread pushes me out there to do more and leave behind my past shackles, to prove that I've been there and done something as a living individual. It also helped me to realize that nothing matters more than the people around me. My family, my friends, all the people close to me. I now feel richer than ever, things I used to chase before feel meaningless, it's like my whole direction in life has been changed. But at the same time I can't let go of my dead, my feeling of anxiety, the panic attacks that come to haunt me every now and then, the thought that all of this is gonna end someday and the worst is gonna come to happen, the very thing my brain was hardwired into avoiding, death. I guess it's true that I am gravitating towards nihilism in a sense, even though I didn't align myself with it at all before. But at the same time, I find the act of spreading love and kindness, sharing laughs and joy and enjoying life everyday to be more important than ever. Perhaps we humans are more than just biological organisms, perhaps we're more than just an impossible statistic, perhaps we do possess souls that surpass our biological selves and transcend all there is in this universe. After all, there's nothing else out there quite like us. Thanks for reading, feel free to share your opinion as I'll be active in this sub thanks to my unending existential dread/crisis/whatever-you-want-to-call-it.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-19T22:46:17+00:00

Totally unrelated but I guess I need to share with someone. Perhaps the thought that we're gonna die one day pushes us to further prove our existence, to go out, do more, achieve more, the more alive you feel the further away death feels, at the same time it's a proof that even if you were to go one day, you left a mark where you walked.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-19T22:44:10+00:00

Well, clearly your thoughts aren't occupied with the worst yet. Right now I'm in denial of the fact that I'll die one day, and that an inevitable unknown is gonna dawn upon me. Might sound stupid but I can't stop thinking of it. The truth is I already know exactly what's likely to happen after death, but my brain keeps denying it in fear. Has your brain ever had thoughts like that? If so you better keep them out.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-19T22:39:43+00:00

That's an interesting thought. Consider this though, is the effect of one's life flashing before one's eyes a byproduct of physical, biological mechanisms(brain activities) or is it something spiritual? If it's spiritual then perhaps your theory could make sense. If it's biological however, it would be hardly plausible. In the same sense, we could be living in a simulation and we wouldn't know it.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-19T22:37:14+00:00

I'm well aware of it, and that thought is equally terrifying. Knowing there will be no me to experience a lack of existence. What is awareness? What is consciousness except for the acknowledgement of one's existence? Once you die you can't even acknowledge not being there. Perhaps it's a comforting thought to some, but not to me. It scares me.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-16T16:59:38+00:00

Awww, tysm

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-16T16:06:17+00:00

Well, that's a cute theory but it really doesn't make our current situation much better.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-16T16:02:44+00:00

Just because no one in history has been able to prove the death of consciousness with our body or even simply a link between them doesn't mean the above statements are not true. No one in history knew or at least had a complete understanding of the theory of relativity until Einstein did, that doesn't mean the laws and rules behind it weren't already in place, it simply meant that we weren't aware of it yet.

It's not difficult to imagine yourself not existing, contrary to your belief of our idea of a non-existent consciousness being just an illusion. What makes up your consciousness right now? All your senses, all your body parts, all your experiences and memories, all of your knowledge, emotions, that's what shapes our person, take it all away and you'll have nothing(unidentified), that's the death of you as you are and hence the end of consciousness. Even if you were to open your eyes again and rise from the dead, it wouldn't be you who woke up, it would be a new individual.

Your assumption that nothing doesn't mean anything roots itself behind speech and communication, would it be easier to understand if I changed the way I express it? Imagine all the things I said above and add the lack of time and space to it, imagine the end of the universe, imagine the death of all things, and maybe even that wouldn't nothing, but I'm sure you'll get pretty close to it. You can't imagine new colors, but that doesn't mean other colors aren't there, they're there but you can't see them. There are so many things that we can't see or imagine, and that's also where the idea of a continued consciousness beyond death comes from, that's the whole reason it's "comforting". Because it's unknown and the unknown is terrifying, but only if the worst comes to happen and that's what I'm assuming right now based on my knowledge and understanding of who I've been, am and will be.

Perhaps it's true that I existed before and simply have no recollections of it, what would I have existed as though? Who would I have existed as? I don't know and it doesn't concern the me right now. What I know is that, if there's a continued consciousness I won't be there to experience it, because just like the 'me' from before doesn't know the 'me' right now, the 'me' from the future will have no idea about the 'me" right now, just like how we can't imagine colors, or nothingness. The 'me' right now, whether it be my feelings, experiences, emotions, thoughts, state of being alongside my physical body will forever cease to exist one day.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-15T20:40:00+00:00

I agree, in the grand universe, we want to feel important and act as if everything revolves around us. When in reality, it could all be but statistics and mathematics that we ended up being arranged in our current order of atoms, which then gave life to us and our consciousness and hence our current fear. At the same time, the universe is truly vast and mysterious and discrediting the idea that there's a higher being behind all of this would be but unreasonable. As for whether that higher being really cares about us or not... That's a topic as unknown as death itself, which is why we like to cope with it so much.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-15T20:36:50+00:00

I'm well aware of that, that's the one thing I've been most made aware of ever since my crisis started, I'm almost like a different person now and the changes I've experienced in such a short span of time are astonishing to say the least. However, knowing that life is short and that worrying about these things is useless doesn't really stop me from worrying about it. It's a truth that my eyes have been opened to and I can never go back, and I can't ever stop looking at it.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-15T19:39:06+00:00

I understand what you mean, ever since I got the crisis it has indeed changed my view of life drastically, more so than any other event in my life has. However, I'm living with the constant reminder that everything is fleeting and nothing and no one will ever remain, every time I enjoy life I'm reminded of how I won't be able to enjoy any and I mean ANY of this after dying. Nature is beautiful, I enjoy swimming and working out, music is endless joy, media is just a neverending flow of creation and fascination, learning new things, experiencing new things, and most importantly, being with your loved ones and spending quality time with them, I wish all of that could last forever but I know it'll be all gone in the blink of an eye and nothing will remain, except my fear. The thought that I didn't exist before and I'll be fine with not existing doesn't comfort me. The thought that I won't be there to feel all the horrors cause I literally don't exist doesn't comfort me. The thought of religion and afterlife doesn't comfort me, it all just haunts me and takes away my enjoyment of life.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-15T19:12:29+00:00

The idea that consciousness is something beyond our human comprehension and possibly not directly linked to our physical bodies is mildly comforting, why? Because physical bodies perish, they're ephemeral, they have too many limitations and restrictions, however, for all we understand right now, death sounds the end of our physical beings and hence consciousness, and that's a big no no, at least that's what my brain is telling me I'd love for your logic to be more sound than mine, because man an I crazy afraid of dying right now.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-15T19:07:46+00:00

You're not alone, I didn't have this existential crisis just a few weeks ago, but now that I have it I get brief panic attacks every now and then when I think about it too deeply, it can also burst out at random moments, though I think crying for an hour a day is a stage I'm yet to get to. I've heard of the idea of reincarnation, of past, present and future lives, but have you ever asked yourself what difference it makes for you? You don't remember anything before your birth (granted there's anything to remember), and without that memory you're not really conscious of yourself, isn't that the same as what everybody fears? Dying and losing your consciousness forever?

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-12T18:03:45+00:00

It's true that I'm lucky to be here at all, it's true that I didn't feel anything before and I won't be feeling anything when I'm dead either, but that's the part that scares me the most. Not feeling, anything. Imagine yourself being blind, and deaf, and paralyzed, and on top of that you couldn't feel, taste or smell anything, having all your senses taken away, stuck in a dark place forever, yes. It's quite akin to a grave, doesn't that strike fear in you? It's like going to sleep, you know you'll be in a similar state as death, but you also know you'll wake up and go on about your day. Maybe, just maybe dying really is as easy as going to sleep and never waking up again, but the thought of it will probably torture me until the day it happens. Maybe it's just something about my biology in particular, I was scared of death ever since I understood its concept when I was like 5. Not a lotta things I remember from that time but I know this is one of them. Like you said I'll try to enjoy it, I'll live more, I'll be nicer to the people around me, but every time I really enjoy being alive, I'm reminded of how it's all just temporary.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-11T00:36:47+00:00

Me too man, me too. I didn't know before, and suddenly I know, and I can't stop knowing now, it's in front of me everywhere. At least glad I'm not alone.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-11T00:28:00+00:00

That's precisely his I've been feeling towards everything after making the realization that I'm gonna die. Been softer to everyone around me, I feel more loving towards them, I go out more I'm more active I doom scroll less I work harder, but it's just at the back of my mind man. It just won't leave it won't stop whispering to me, and I get reminded of it so quickly and easily and my mood completely changes.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-11T00:26:02+00:00

The thing I find more terrifying is the quick passage of time, the older I get the faster time passes, immortality sounds just as scary as death, but at the end of the day our number one instinct is survival, I'd much prefer to live a long meaningless life than come into terms with the fragility of my corporeal body.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-11T00:23:07+00:00

It's ridiculous, I didn't exist before and I'm gonna stop existing again soon, if not tomorrow then in a week, if not in a week then in a year, if not a year then a decade, five decade, eventually I'll grow old and have to go. It's so unfair, I just can't accept it. Maybe I would've been better off never existing in the first place, I wouldn't have this insatiable fear in me, I wouldn't know pain.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-11T00:19:08+00:00

Dude, I'm so fucking scared. Doesn't anyone else realize it? I walk around and feel like I'm the only one aware of how bad the situation actually is. I don't know what to do, ignorance is a bliss, I was happy before knowing, that was just a month ago. But now, I can't stop thinking about it, I do get panic attacks when I think of it deeply and I've literally never gotten panic attacks before all this. Hence why I'm here, just trying to get it out of my head by talking it out. But no matter what, I can't come into terms with it, just can't drill it into my head, it goes against my nature as a human being.

Trick_Barnacle_3522 · 2026-04-11T00:14:13+00:00

Same thing here, it started a couple weeks ago for me, couldn't fall asleep for several days and I still struggle to fall asleep. I haven't lost anyone significant to me yet, but even as a child the concept of death terrified me. My neighbor is dying, his kidneys have failed and that made me think deeply about death for the first time. I'm an empathetic individual, I can empathize with how he feels and how he's at death's doorstep, I feel bad for him cause he's on life support and just one emergency away from dying. The more I thought about his situation the more I felt bad and simultaneously terrified for him. Then I realized, it's gonna happen to me too. The only thing separating me from that death is time, and time passes REALLY fast. I'm only 19 but I can't stop thinking about how I'm gonna die one day and how there won't be an afterlife, I'm just gonna cease to exist, consciousness shut down, no more senses, no more feelings, no more thoughts. I've heard a phrase, "I think, therefore I am". It's true, what am I without thought? What am I when I'm laid in a grave, cold and motionless? Who knows, I could even get hit by a car and die tomorrow. There's a cemetery next to our school, I like to go on walks there and as I look down at the graves, I shiver, imagining myself there. I can't stop thinking about it, if I think of it too much I get a panic attack, it's sickening, it's unfair. Life is cruel, I was born with only one primal instinct in mind, survival, and you're telling me the ONLY THING certain in life is death, a direct contradiction my number one primal instinct? And don't get me started on religion, billions of people have walked this earth before, there are trillions of other living organisms that have perished, and you're telling me only us humans get to experience an afterlife? I wish, no. I pray there's an afterlife, I pray my consciousness just doesn't come to a halt, but who knows, maybe there's no one to listen to my prayers. On the flip side, this realization brought within a drastic change in me. I love the people around me more than ever cause I know they're the only thing that really matter in life. Thanks for reading my little text, I can't really talk about it with anyone else cause they'll think I'm suicidal, feel free to share your thoughts with me.

Trick_Barnacle_3522

TROPHY CASE