--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It was a relief for someone to explain…" description: "\"“It was a relief for someone to explain what was wrong, what had happened. No one else, none of those doctors in their white jackets or their scrubs - ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/100/catherine-lacey-3511_humor_it-was-a-relief-for-someone-to-explain-w_2883669.jpg" --- # It was a relief for someone to explain what was wrong… ![“It was a relief for someone to explain what was wrong, what had happened. No one else, none of those doctors in their white jackets or their scrubs - or their comically patterned scrubs if they were trying to bring a sense of humor into a place of smashed bones and dead hearts - none of those…” quote by Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/100/catherine-lacey-3511_humor_it-was-a-relief-for-someone-to-explain-w_2883669.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/100/catherine-lacey-3511_humor_it-was-a-relief-for-someone-to-explain-w_2883669.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/100/catherine-lacey-3511_humor_it-was-a-relief-for-someone-to-explain-w_2883669.jpg) > ““It was a relief for someone to explain what was wrong, what had happened. No one else, none of those doctors in their white jackets or their scrubs - or their comically patterned scrubs if they were trying to bring a sense of humor into a place of smashed bones and dead hearts - none of those people had even tried to explain anything to me. All they could say was they couldn't say anything for sure, that bodies were a mystery, that even blood tests, ultrasounds, X-rays, MRIs, were only little guesses. Whole hospitals shrugged.”” [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Patients often feel abandoned when medical staff cannot clearly explain diagnoses, leaving them in uncertainty and anxiety. **In simple terms:** Doctors sometimes can’t explain, causing patient anxiety. Key Takeaway Seek clear communication and ask questions. Themes communication medical uncertainty patient empowerment Mood frustrated hopeful Type advice reflective When to use this quote - hospital visits - diagnostic discussions - patient advocacy Key Concepts health literacy doctor‑patient relationship Questions to Reflect On - How can patients advocate for clearer explanations? - What role does empathy play in medical communication? A Different Perspective Medical explanations may be limited by unknowns and privacy constraints. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bodies Mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bodies-mystery-4011477/) [Happened Doctors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happened-doctors-4011476/) [Hospitals Shrugged](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hospitals-shrugged-4011475/) [Humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor/) [Medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medicine/) [Scrubs Comically](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scrubs-comically-4011478/) [Sense of humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sense-of-humor/) [Tried Explain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tried-explain-653917/) ## Related quotes > [“Think of mental energy as broadcasting on a certain wavelength,” he tried to explain. “People with powers of the mind can tap into that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-a-george/think-of-mental-energy-as-broadcasting-on-a-certain-wavelength-he/) [M.A. George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-a-george/) > [“She tried to explain to them it wasn't the place that made people uncultured but their attitudes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivian-arend/she-tried-to-explain-to-them-it-wasn-t-the-place-that-made-people/) [Vivian Arend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivian-arend/) > [I've always been interested in a lot of things, and a lot of things at the same time, and I always tried to explain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jared-diamond/i-ve-always-been-interested-in-a-lot-of-things-and-a-lot-of-things-at/) [Jared Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jared-diamond/) > [“Afterward I tried to find something to explain what had happened—was it cloudy, were the stars out? But the night was ordinary. It usually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carole-radziwill/afterward-i-tried-to-find-something-to-explain-what-had-happened-was/) [Carole Radziwill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carole-radziwill/) > [I tried to explain as much as I could," Poppet says. "I think I made an analogy about cake." "Well, that must have worked,"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-morgenstern/i-tried-to-explain-as-much-as-i-could-poppet-says-i-think-i-made-an/) [Erin Morgenstern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-morgenstern/) > [“I tried to explain again. 'Perhaps it would have been easier if I said that not being able to find something is like suddenly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecelia-aherna-ahern/i-tried-to-explain-again-perhaps-it-would-have-been-easier-if-i-said/) [Cecelia Aherna Ahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecelia-aherna-ahern/) > [“She can't understand that books don't get used up. I've tried to explain that they aren't like clothes or furniture-that we keep them because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-marantz-cohen/she-can-t-understand-that-books-don-t-get-used-up-i-ve-tried-to/) [Paula Marantz Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-marantz-cohen/) > [“Because he loved true things he tried to explain.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/because-he-loved-true-things-he-tried-to-explain/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“I'm speechless.I think at the rooftops of Paris. he touches my cheek,pulling my gaze back to him.I suck in my breath. "Anna.I'm sorry for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-perkins/i-m-speechless-i-think-at-the-rooftops-of-paris-he-touches-my-cheek/) [Stephanie Perkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-perkins/) > [My brother tried to explain sex to me when I was 7 - and he did it with a cup.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-hart/my-brother-tried-to-explain-sex-to-me-when-i-was-7-and-he-did-it-with/) [Kevin Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-hart/) > [Jack didn’t fully get Jesus. Audrey tried to explain it, and he could repeat it back to her, word for word, but he still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilona-andrews/jack-didn-t-fully-get-jesus-audrey-tried-to-explain-it-and-he-could/) [Ilona Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilona-andrews/) > [“Willie went out and buttonholed folks on the street and tried to explain things to them. You could see Willie standing on a street…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-penn-warren/willie-went-out-and-buttonholed-folks-on-the-street-and-tried-to/) [Robert Penn Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-penn-warren/) > [“The Ondřej feeling swept over him. The very thing he tried to explain to Sheila over the phone from France. The feeling that drove…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-brennessel/the-ond-ej-feeling-swept-over-him-the-very-thing-he-tried-to-explain/) [Barry Brennessel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-brennessel/) > [ “I remember a television program I once saw \[...\] I must have been seven or eight, too young to understand it. It was the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-remember-a-television-program-i-once-saw-i-must-have-been-seven-or/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [Through my art I have tried to explain my life and its meaning. I have also intended to help others to clarify their lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edvard-munch/through-my-art-i-have-tried-to-explain-my-life-and-its-meaning-i-have/) [Edvard Munch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edvard-munch/) ## More by Catherine Lacey > [“Isn’t everyone on the planet or at least everyone on the planet called me stuck between the two impulses of wanting to walk away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/isn-t-everyone-on-the-planet-or-at-least-everyone-on-the-planet/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [“...no moment cares, and the ones you wish could stretch out like a hammock for you to lie in, well, those moments leave the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/no-moment-cares-and-the-ones-you-wish-could-stretch-out-like-a/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [“The late-afternoon light was thick and orange and she passed four different couples taking photos of themselves on the same cobblestoned block, all their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/the-late-afternoon-light-was-thick-and-orange-and-she-passed-four/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [“Every few minutes or so I would remember the look from the man who had wanted fifty cents, and I'd look at that framed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/every-few-minutes-or-so-i-would-remember-the-look-from-the-man-who/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [“How someone wants to explain catastrophe isn't important--that's what I know now. When shit happens, it doesn't really matter what asshole is responsible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/how-someone-wants-to-explain-catastrophe-isn-t-important-that-s-what/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [“Eventually she got out of bed, took a long shower, gargling and spitting mouthfuls of water, then screaming, just a little and quietly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/eventually-she-got-out-of-bed-took-a-long-shower-gargling-and/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [“I couldn't decide how to feel about what he was saying, whether it was all nonsense or just more evidence that I would never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/i-couldn-t-decide-how-to-feel-about-what-he-was-saying-whether-it-was/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [“She missed his nothing. It had felt like something.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/she-missed-his-nothing-it-had-felt-like-something/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [“I wasn't sure if it was safe for me to be sharing time and space with other people, who all seemed so much gentler…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/i-wasn-t-sure-if-it-was-safe-for-me-to-be-sharing-time-and-space-with/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [“Why were we never together anymore, just alone in each other's vicinity?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/why-were-we-never-together-anymore-just-alone-in-each-other-s-vicinity/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [“And I began to believe that you could exchange your life, send it back for a different model, and I knew that wasn’t really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/and-i-began-to-believe-that-you-could-exchange-your-life-send-it-back/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [“I thought that if I could ever do a background check on myself, I knew exactly what I'd do with it. I wouldn't even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/i-thought-that-if-i-could-ever-do-a-background-check-on-myself-i-knew/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [“ We have reached a point as a culture, where the predominant view of romantic partnership is no longer about survival or wealth or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/we-have-reached-a-point-as-a-culture-where-the-predominant-view-of/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [“There was at least one morning I was certain, though only for a few hours, that everything that could ever really happen to me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/there-was-at-least-one-morning-i-was-certain-though-only-for-a-few/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) > [“I closed my eyes, tried to get as far away from myself as I could.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/i-closed-my-eyes-tried-to-get-as-far-away-from-myself-as-i-could/) [Catherine Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) [Explore all 129 Catherine Lacey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/) ## More Humor quotes > ['Mad TV' is one of my most favorite shows of all time and is a huge part of my obsession with sketch comedy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-dawson/mad-tv-is-one-of-my-most-favorite-shows-of-all-time-and-is-a-huge/) [Shane Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-dawson/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [In my opinion, sexiness comes down to three things: chemistry, sense of humor, and treatment of waitstaff at restaurants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhoda-janzen/in-my-opinion-sexiness-comes-down-to-three-things-chemistry-sense-of/) [Rhoda Janzen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhoda-janzen/) > [“...I haven't guessed where your shirt is from yet Bane, but I don't think it'll matter once it's underwater!' Tristan looked at Bane questioningly.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-k-munt/i-haven-t-guessed-where-your-shirt-is-from-yet-bane-but-i-don-t-think/) [S.K. Munt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-k-munt/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) [Markus Herz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-herz/) > [“Not wise, perhaps, to be rude to the Pope's favorite son, but my viper tongue still required a fool now and then on which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-quinn/not-wise-perhaps-to-be-rude-to-the-pope-s-favorite-son-but-my-viper/) [Kate Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-quinn/) > [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. Perhaps comedy, which is something I have done in theater but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/in-the-future-i-would-like-to-do-more-films-with-contemporary-themes/) [Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/) > [ “\[S\]ometimes, when you are a food person, the possible irrelevance of what you are doing doesn’t cross your mind until it’s too late. (Once,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/s-ometimes-when-you-are-a-food-person-the-possible-irrelevance-of/) [Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/) > [If you were to send a werewolf to the moon, would he be a werewolf permanently?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-schaal/if-you-were-to-send-a-werewolf-to-the-moon-would-he-be-a-werewolf/) [Kristen Schaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-schaal/) > [“I only have two words to say More or Less”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timbur/i-only-have-two-words-to-say-more-or-less/) [TimBur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timbur/) > [“ “Do Southerners laugh at different things than Northerners do? Yes, I say--Northerners.” Roy Blount, Jr., Roy Blount’s Book of Southern Humor”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-ford/do-southerners-laugh-at-different-things-than-northerners-do-yes-i/) [Deborah Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-ford/) > [There's a difference between delivering real funny and just silly funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-rel-howery/there-s-a-difference-between-delivering-real-funny-and-just-silly/) [Lil Rel Howery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-rel-howery/) > [I love being my silly ole self! Lifes a lot better when you have a good sense of humor and you smile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-love-being-my-silly-ole-self-lifes-a-lot-better-when-you-have-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Men circle like bees around honey, buzzing to communicate their sexual despair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-h-krueger/men-circle-like-bees-around-honey-buzzing-to-communicate-their-sexual/) [Carla H Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-h-krueger/) [Browse all 33,155 Humor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It was a relief for someone to explain what was wrong, what had happened. No one else, none of those doctors in their white jackets or their scrubs - or their comically patterned scrubs if they were trying to bring a sense of humor into a place of smashed bones and dead hearts - none of those people had even tried to explain anything to me. All they could say was they couldn't say anything for sure, that bodies were a mystery, that even blood tests, ultrasounds, X-rays, MRIs, were only little guesses. Whole hospitals shrugged.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Catherine Lacey" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/it-was-a-relief-for-someone-to-explain-what-was-wrong-what-had/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Humor" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/it-was-a-relief-for-someone-to-explain-what-was-wrong-what-had/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/100/catherine-lacey-3511_humor_it-was-a-relief-for-someone-to-explain-w_2883669.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/100/catherine-lacey-3511_humor_it-was-a-relief-for-someone-to-explain-w_2883669.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/100/catherine-lacey-3511_humor_it-was-a-relief-for-someone-to-explain-w_2883669.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It was a relief for someone to explain what was wrong, what had happened. No one else, none of those doctors…” — Catherine Lacey", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Catherine Lacey", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-lacey/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“It was a relief for someone...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/it-was-a-relief-for-someone-to-explain-what-was-wrong-what-had/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-lacey/it-was-a-relief-for-someone-to-explain-what-was-wrong-what-had/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```