But not consciously.....

What I "am" is a sentient being. I have a consciousness and experience "free will." I am a physical body. If after I die the particles that I'm made up of form into something other than a sentient being with a consciousness and the ability to experience "free will," then if isn't "me" that remains. After wood is burned to ash we no longer refer to it as wood, in fact it is no longer wood. Once I am dust and ash I am no longer me.

For the record, I grew up in a Christian household, but have been an Atheist for the past 10 years or so, and I recognize in myself that my fear of death has been greatly reduced. I'd say it's almost non-existent actually. For me, not knowing whether I was going to go to heaven or hell created more stress, because I had something "real" to fear. Believing that there is a 50/50 chance that you're going to spend eternity in pain and torment created more stress and dread for me than not believing in an afterlife at all does. I can deal/cope with the "unknown" because there's nothing empirical that suggests anything bad will happen after you die. So aside from religious convictions, what basis is there for a belief that something good/bad will happen after death? What I truly fear most isn't what happens after death, it's the moments right before death when/if the realization sets in and you know you are going to die, you know the next breath could be your last and you'll never see the faces of your loved ones again. The fear of that fear is crippling for me, if that's how it were to play out. Ultimately you never really know how you will die....