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
It is true that I had wanted to die , but that is peculiarly different from regretting having been born. Overwhelmingly, I was enormously glad to have been born, grateful for life, and I couldn’t imagine not wanting to pass on life to someone else.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote expresses a complex view on life, acknowledging desires for escape while affirming a deep appreciation for existence.
In this quote, Kay Redfield Jamison reflects on her struggle with thoughts of dying, yet emphasizes a fundamental gratitude for life itself. She draws a distinction between fleeting feelings of despair and the overarching joy and appreciation she holds for being born, highlighting the value of life and the desire to share it with others. This duality underlines the complexity of human emotions and the capacity to find joy even amidst hardship.
Themes
LifeGratitudeExistenceStruggleJoy
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be shared during a mental health awareness event to highlight the importance of appreciating life despite its challenges.
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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