Never once, during any of my bouts of depression, had I been inclined or able to pick up a telephone and ask a friend for help. It wasn't in me.
Kay Redfield JamisonRead
Mother, who has an absolute belief that it is not the cards that one is dealt in life, it is how one plays them, is, by far, the highest card I was dealt.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the importance of how one responds to life's challenges rather than the challenges themselves.
In this quote, Kay Redfield Jamison illustrates the perspective that life is not defined by the difficulties we face but rather by our choices and attitudes in response to those challenges. The reference to 'cards' symbolizes the circumstances and events that happen in life, and the 'highest card' signifies the profound influence a mother’s belief and support can have in shaping one’s ability to navigate through life's ups and downs.
Themes
LifeBeliefChoiceMotherAttitude
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be shared during a motivational speech about resilience.
More from Kay Redfield Jamison
All quotes →No pill can help me deal with the problem of not wanting to take pills; likewise, no amount of psychotherapy alone can prevent my manias and depressions. I need both. It is an odd thing, owing life to pills, one's own quirks and tenacities, and this unique, strange, and ultimately profound relationship called psychotherapy
Kay Redfield JamisonRead
Mood disorders are terribly painful illnesses, and they are isolating illnesses. And they make people feel terrible about themselves when, in fact, they can be treated.
Kay Redfield JamisonRead
When people are suicidal, their thinking is paralyzed, their options appear spare or nonexistent, their mood is despairing, and hopelessness permeates their entire mental domain. The future cannot be separated from the present, and the present is painful beyond solace. ‘This is my last experiment,’ wrote a young chemist in his suicide note. ‘If there is any eternal torment worse than mine I’ll have to be shown.
Kay Redfield JamisonRead
When public figures remain silent about depression, there is a cost to the rest of society. Silence contributes to the misperception that successful people do not get depressed, and it keeps the public from seeing that treatment allows many individuals to return to competitive professional lives.
Kay Redfield JamisonRead
Because I teach and write about depression and bipolar illness, I am often asked what is the most important factor in treating bipolar disorder. My answer is competence. Empathy is important, but competence is essential.
Kay Redfield JamisonRead
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