I had basically primed myself to realize there were no gods well before I woke up. After observing the many failures in reasoning that people used to justify belief in god combined with the pervasive hypocrisy in religion and its being used cynically as a means for control and monetary gain, I started thinking to myself "if I weren't a JW, I'd surely be an atheist" starting sometime in college. Of course we all know that it's easier to be an atheist with respect to someone else's religion, and unfortunately it took many years and an understanding of cult mind control to see clearly enough that I was in a cult to be comfortable lighting the match that would burn down my former life entirely. But once I knew JWs were a cult, I knew god was universally a delusion.
In some ways I think this is a great way to go about things - I'd already worked out a lot of the things that can be jarring in the transition, and I'd done it without actually having to commit myself to atheism. I already understood a lot about cosmology, so I didn't get hung up on silly "first cause" arguments. I'd pondered morality without the appeal to a higher authority, so I wasn't shocked by nihilistic despair. I would've liked if the process had gone a bit more quickly, though.
I'm definitely happier now - not having to constantly lie to myself in order to maintain internal consistency of thought is an underrated luxury.
