--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It’s a prison. It’s…" description: "\"“It’s a prison. It’s twenty-four-hour-a-day life in a jail cell. We never get out, not even for one second. All we can do, all day long, is look for wa..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b04/clare-b-dunkle-34829_anorexics_it-s-a-prison-it-s-twenty-four-hour-a-da_123288.jpg" --- # It’s a prison. It’s twenty-four-hour-a-day life in a jail… ![“It’s a prison. It’s twenty-four-hour-a-day life in a jail cell. We never get out, not even for one second. All we can do, all day long, is look for ways to survive. Nobody needs to teach us tricks. We brainstorm our own tricks all day long. When real anorexics compare notes, we’ve already figured…” quote by Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b04/clare-b-dunkle-34829_anorexics_it-s-a-prison-it-s-twenty-four-hour-a-da_123288.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b04/clare-b-dunkle-34829_anorexics_it-s-a-prison-it-s-twenty-four-hour-a-da_123288.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b04/clare-b-dunkle-34829_anorexics_it-s-a-prison-it-s-twenty-four-hour-a-da_123288.jpg) > ““It’s a prison. It’s twenty-four-hour-a-day life in a jail cell. We never get out, not even for one second. All we can do, all day long, is look for ways to survive. Nobody needs to teach us tricks. We brainstorm our own tricks all day long. When real anorexics compare notes, we’ve already figured out all the same tricks—and each one of us did it on our own.”” [Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Living with an eating disorder feels like an endless confinement where individuals constantly devise survival tactics, often sharing them informally. **In simple terms:** Anorexia is a self‑imposed prison of survival tricks. Key Takeaway Chronic self‑control creates isolated coping loops. Themes mental health eating disorder survival isolation Mood somber urgent Type personal clinical When to use this quote - Therapeutic group sessions - Online support forums - Personal reflection on coping mechanisms Key Concepts self‑regulation social learning Practical Applications - Seek professional help to break the survival cycle - Share experiences in a safe, guided setting Questions to Reflect On - What underlying needs drive these survival tactics? - How can external support alter the 'prison' perception? A Different Perspective Emphasizing self‑generated tricks may overlook the need for external guidance and medical treatment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anorexics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anorexics/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison/) ## Related quotes > [When we put someone in our jail cell of hatred, we are stuck guarding the door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/when-we-put-someone-in-our-jail-cell-of-hatred-we-are-stuck-guarding/) [Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/) > [“The fate of the young man in his headphones, who faced a jail cell that very night, did not seem such a world away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/the-fate-of-the-young-man-in-his-headphones-who-faced-a-jail-cell/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [“Man Died Gruesome Death After Week Alone In Jail Cell”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/man-died-gruesome-death-after-week-alone-in-jail-cell/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Write down your fucking statement here or in a jail cell. Doesn’t matter to me either way,” he snarled as he reared back and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sloane-kennedy/write-down-your-fucking-statement-here-or-in-a-jail-cell-doesn-t/) [Sloane Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sloane-kennedy/) > [“As soon as Tara looked at the skull-and-barbed-wire tattoo showing beneath the sleeve of Flynn O’Mara’s tight t-shirt, she flashed on a jail cell.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-sala/as-soon-as-tara-looked-at-the-skull-and-barbed-wire-tattoo-showing/) [Sharon Sala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-sala/) > [“A good friend will bail you out when you land in jail, but a very good friend will be sitting beside you in that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-banks/a-good-friend-will-bail-you-out-when-you-land-in-jail-but-a-very-good/) [Maya Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-banks/) > [I didn't know how to deal with real life issues the right way as a humble human being until I was humbled to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-leaf/i-didn-t-know-how-to-deal-with-real-life-issues-the-right-way-as-a/) [Ryan Leaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-leaf/) > [“I'm down for something I haven't done before, but that doesn't include visiting the inside of a jail cell, Fenn Aiden - Aurora”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/candace-knoebel/i-m-down-for-something-i-haven-t-done-before-but-that-doesn-t-include/) [Candace Knoebel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/candace-knoebel/) > [“Compared to Hell, this jail cell is like a five-star hotel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-hopkins/compared-to-hell-this-jail-cell-is-like-a-five-star-hotel/) [M.F. Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-hopkins/) > [I believe in God. Whatever supposed to happen supposed to happen. But I can not live in a jail cell. That's why I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tupac-shakur/i-believe-in-god-whatever-supposed-to-happen-supposed-to-happen-but-i/) [Tupac Shakur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tupac-shakur/) > [“After they stopped torturing him they locked him in the jail cell again and pretended they would forget him... Then, eventually, and unexpectedly, release.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/after-they-stopped-torturing-him-they-locked-him-in-the-jail-cell/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Well, good luck escaping. I mean, you just gotta somehow bust through your restrains, then knock out the guards in this cell. After that,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-the-noob/well-good-luck-escaping-i-mean-you-just-gotta-somehow-bust-through/) Steve the Noob > [I'm the rainbow in your jail cell, all the memories of everything you've ever smelled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/red-hot-chili-peppers/i-m-the-rainbow-in-your-jail-cell-all-the-memories-of-everything-you/) [Red Hot Chili Peppers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/red-hot-chili-peppers/) > [Under what rubric of common sense would you release violent criminals who are illegal back onto the streets in America? Why would you not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/under-what-rubric-of-common-sense-would-you-release-violent-criminals/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [Creativity can release you from the limitations that the world has constructed around you; the everyday, mundane, 9-5 jail cell where everybody is waiting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lasardo/creativity-can-release-you-from-the-limitations-that-the-world-has/) Robert LaSardo ## More by Clare B. Dunkle > [Don't fret. We'll just have to find something else you're good at besides killing people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-b-dunkle/don-t-fret-we-ll-just-have-to-find-something-else-you-re-good-at/) [Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) > [“Then-then I'm not going to die? Well, then-crap!-what am I doing here, Anyway?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-b-dunkle/then-then-i-m-not-going-to-die-well-then-crap-what-am-i-doing-here/) [Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) > [Em, I am trying to have an important conversation!" shouted Seylin. "I will not change into a cat!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-b-dunkle/em-i-am-trying-to-have-an-important-conversation-shouted-seylin-i/) [Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) > [Mom actually said that?" Cassie's face shown with happiness. "She always hated my math!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-b-dunkle/mom-actually-said-that-cassie-s-face-shown-with-happiness-she-always/) [Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) > [That's exactly how I want you to feel. When you finish this book, I want you to be filled with curiosity. I want you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-b-dunkle/that-s-exactly-how-i-want-you-to-feel-when-you-finish-this-book-i/) [Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) > [For how many generations now had his people been turning their backs on things? How long had they sat in their living rooms and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-b-dunkle/for-how-many-generations-now-had-his-people-been-turning-their-backs/) [Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) > [Forks are absurd, he scoffed. They insult your food. They make it think you're killing it twice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-b-dunkle/forks-are-absurd-he-scoffed-they-insult-your-food-they-make-it-think/) [Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) > [Being a writer means crying over the sad parts, even though you already know it’s going to be okay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-b-dunkle/being-a-writer-means-crying-over-the-sad-parts-even-though-you/) [Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) > [ Lively, intelligent, and quite immature, \[Emily\] usually burst out with exactly the comment that summed up the situation beautifully and therefore could never in… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-b-dunkle/lively-intelligent-and-quite-immature-emily-usually-burst-out-with/) [Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) > [Kate had never in her life seen such frightful deformities, and the goblins had never seen such a hideous dress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-b-dunkle/kate-had-never-in-her-life-seen-such-frightful-deformities-and-the/) [Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) > [I had no fear of the stream's perils, and I listened with the greatest contentment to the quiet slap of water on rocks, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-b-dunkle/i-had-no-fear-of-the-stream-s-perils-and-i-listened-with-the-greatest/) [Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) > [Mom actually said that?" Cassie's face shown with happiness. "She always hated my math!" "Nah," Martin said. "She was just being that way for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-b-dunkle/mom-actually-said-that-cassie-s-face-shown-with-happiness-she-always-2/) [Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) > [Kate felt very offended. 'I am not an elf,' she insisted. 'I'm an Englishwoman!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-b-dunkle/kate-felt-very-offended-i-am-not-an-elf-she-insisted-i-m-an/) [Clare B. Dunkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) [Explore all 14 Clare B. Dunkle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-b-dunkle/) ## More Anorexics quotes > [The only people who are obsessed with food are anorexics and the morbidly obese. That, in erotic terms, is the Catholic church, in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/the-only-people-who-are-obsessed-with-food-are-anorexics-and-the/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [“Between 10 and 20 percent of people with anorexia die from heart attacks, other complications and suicide; the disease has the highest mortality rate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-brown/between-10-and-20-percent-of-people-with-anorexia-die-from-heart/) Harriet Brown > [You don't get the attention of gluttons by starving anorexics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-mcculley/you-don-t-get-the-attention-of-gluttons-by-starving-anorexics/) [Paul McCulley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-mcculley/) > [You do not need to look or be anorexic to be successful in Hollywood. The range of what's acceptable is a lot larger than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zooey-deschanel/you-do-not-need-to-look-or-be-anorexic-to-be-successful-in-hollywood/) [Zooey Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zooey-deschanel/) > [When I was a nurse my favourite assignment was the anorexic ward. I sometimes ate as many as seventeen dinners](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-brand/when-i-was-a-nurse-my-favourite-assignment-was-the-anorexic-ward-i/) [Jo Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-brand/) > [I'm not anorexic. I'm from Texas. Are there people from Texas that are anorexic? I've never heard of one. And that includes me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-simpson/i-m-not-anorexic-i-m-from-texas-are-there-people-from-texas-that-are/) [Jessica Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-simpson/) > [People keep asking me about it but I don't want to be famous for being a former anorexic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-beckinsale/people-keep-asking-me-about-it-but-i-don-t-want-to-be-famous-for/) [Kate Beckinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-beckinsale/) > [Anorexics never have boyfriends. ... That's one way to know you don't have anorexia, if you have a boyfriend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-coulter/anorexics-never-have-boyfriends-that-s-one-way-to-know-you-don-t-have/) [Ann Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-coulter/) > [Do they think I'm on drugs? That I have a life-threatening illness? That I'm anorexic? Emotionally, it doesn't get easier to hear those criticisms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-apple/do-they-think-i-m-on-drugs-that-i-have-a-life-threatening-illness/) [Fiona Apple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-apple/) > [The body is like an elaborate metaphor. One may be able to taste and not swallow, like the anorexic, or to swallow and not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-woodman/the-body-is-like-an-elaborate-metaphor-one-may-be-able-to-taste-and/) [Marion Woodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-woodman/) > [It was genuinely horrible. I stopped using Twitter for a while because I got so much s\*\*t about being anorexic. And Im not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexa-chung/it-was-genuinely-horrible-i-stopped-using-twitter-for-a-while-because/) [Alexa Chung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexa-chung/) > [Melancholia for Freud is the relationship that the subject takes up with respect to itself from the position of what he calls conscience or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-critchley/melancholia-for-freud-is-the-relationship-that-the-subject-takes-up/) [Simon Critchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-critchley/) > [The Domino Effect could stand for anything. It could be just the simple game of the domino rocks falling off one after another, all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-lionni/the-domino-effect-could-stand-for-anything-it-could-be-just-the/) [Leo Lionni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-lionni/) > [This is hilarious. First, people say how so many actresses in Hollywood look anorexic, and now they are criticizing me for looking normal. Body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-lawrence/this-is-hilarious-first-people-say-how-so-many-actresses-in-hollywood/) [Jennifer Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-lawrence/) > [“However, sexual anorexics do have a definite profile that separates them from the larger population of those having difficulty being sexual: They are often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-j-carnes/however-sexual-anorexics-do-have-a-definite-profile-that-separates/) [Patrick J. Carnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-j-carnes/) [Browse all 39 Anorexics quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anorexics/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It’s a prison. It’s twenty-four-hour-a-day life in a jail cell. We never get out, not even for one second. All we can do, all day long, is look for ways to survive. Nobody needs to teach us tricks. We brainstorm our own tricks all day long. 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