--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: By the tie I arrived at the clinic I was…" description: "\"“By the tie I arrived at the clinic I was typically so demoralized I could barely stand. I was twenty-three years old and I looked like Nixon resigning..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df0/daniel-b-smith-29619_demoralized_by-the-tie-i-arrived-at-the-clinic-i-was_809650.jpg" --- # By the tie I arrived at the clinic I was typically so… ![“By the tie I arrived at the clinic I was typically so demoralized I could barely stand. I was twenty-three years old and I looked like Nixon resigning the presidency.” quote by Daniel B. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df0/daniel-b-smith-29619_demoralized_by-the-tie-i-arrived-at-the-clinic-i-was_809650.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df0/daniel-b-smith-29619_demoralized_by-the-tie-i-arrived-at-the-clinic-i-was_809650.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df0/daniel-b-smith-29619_demoralized_by-the-tie-i-arrived-at-the-clinic-i-was_809650.jpg) > ““By the tie I arrived at the clinic I was typically so demoralized I could barely stand. I was twenty-three years old and I looked like Nixon resigning the presidency.”” [Daniel B. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-b-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Arriving at the clinic feeling extremely demoralized, likened to a political resignation, illustrating deep personal despair. **In simple terms:** Feeling hopeless upon seeking help. Key Takeaway Seek support and self‑compassion. Themes mental health despair vulnerability Mood somber empathetic Type personal motivational When to use this quote - medical appointments - therapy sessions - support groups Key Concepts psychological crisis self‑esteem Questions to Reflect On - What resources can restore hope? - How to recognize early signs of demoralization? A Different Perspective Despair can hinder effective treatment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Arrived Clinic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arrived-clinic-239631/) [Demoralized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demoralized/) [Demoralized Barely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demoralized-barely-239630/) [Old Looked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-looked-239629/) [Typically Demoralized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/typically-demoralized-239632/) ## Related quotes > [“I love him so much, Will!" she managed to whisper shakily. "And he looked old! He looked hungry and old and sad... 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The live green earth is transformed into dead gold bricks,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-parenti/the-essence-of-capitalism-is-to-turn-nature-into-commodities-and/) [Michael Parenti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-parenti/) > [A person who has been seduced by the consumer value system, whose identity is dissolved in an amalgam of the accouterments trappings of mass…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-havel/a-person-who-has-been-seduced-by-the-consumer-value-system-whose/) [Vaclav Havel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-havel/) > [While they trace their history back to wars that helped to ethnically cleanse Native Americans and to their exploits in the Civil War fighting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-sexton-iii/while-they-trace-their-history-back-to-wars-that-helped-to-ethnically/) [Brendan Sexton III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-sexton-iii/) > [Who could not be moved by the sight of that poor, demoralized rabble, outwitted, outflanked, outmanoeuvered by the U.S. military? Yet, given time, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-baker/who-could-not-be-moved-by-the-sight-of-that-poor-demoralized-rabble/) [James Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-baker/) > [Currently intellectuals in Western Europe and North America are extremely demoralized and shaken by the rise of a virulent conservative tendency (which some have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/currently-intellectuals-in-western-europe-and-north-america-are/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) ## More by Daniel B. Smith > [“This is why therapists go to such lengths to urge their anxious patients away from intellectualization: The first step toward peace is disarmament.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-b-smith/this-is-why-therapists-go-to-such-lengths-to-urge-their-anxious/) [Daniel B. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-b-smith/) > [“Freedom is anxiety's petri dish. If routine blunts anxiety, freedom incubates it. 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Things hit me so hard!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-b-smith/i-felt-so-skinless-at-times-things-hit-me-so-hard/) [Daniel B. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-b-smith/) > [“One of the things anxiety educates you in is how deeply physical thought can be, how concrete. In anxiety, there is no time to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-b-smith/one-of-the-things-anxiety-educates-you-in-is-how-deeply-physical/) [Daniel B. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-b-smith/) > [“...Anxiety and panic happen to be mundane phenomena, i.e., even when they are caused by extraordinary things like war and rape, they tend to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-b-smith/anxiety-and-panic-happen-to-be-mundane-phenomena-i-e-even-when-they/) [Daniel B. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-b-smith/) > [“If this all sounds melodramatic, well that, too, isn’t a bad metaphor for anxiety—as a kind of drama queen of the mind. If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-b-smith/if-this-all-sounds-melodramatic-well-that-too-isn-t-a-bad-metaphor/) [Daniel B. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-b-smith/) > [“He isn’t trying to transform himself into something different; he’s trying to transform someone different back into himself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-b-smith/he-isn-t-trying-to-transform-himself-into-something-different-he-s/) [Daniel B. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-b-smith/) > [“Freud was of the opinion that in fear a person is responding to a specific and immediate threat to physical safety while in anxiety…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-b-smith/freud-was-of-the-opinion-that-in-fear-a-person-is-responding-to-a/) [Daniel B. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-b-smith/) > [“To be anxious wasn’t shameful, it was a high calling. It was to be alive to life’s contradictions, more receptive to the true nature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-b-smith/to-be-anxious-wasn-t-shameful-it-was-a-high-calling-it-was-to-be/) [Daniel B. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-b-smith/) > [“Yet I also felt, for the first time, truly and sincerely pissed. It was enough already. Enough! I’d reached that point that comes in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-b-smith/yet-i-also-felt-for-the-first-time-truly-and-sincerely-pissed-it-was/) [Daniel B. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-b-smith/) > [“Anxiety compels a person to think, but it is the type of thinking that gives thinking a bad name: solipsistic, self-eviscerating, unremitting, vicious.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-b-smith/anxiety-compels-a-person-to-think-but-it-is-the-type-of-thinking-that/) [Daniel B. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-b-smith/) > [“First, contrary to popular belief, Buddhists can actually be very anxious people. That’s often why they become Buddhists in the first place. Buddhism was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-b-smith/first-contrary-to-popular-belief-buddhists-can-actually-be-very/) [Daniel B. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-b-smith/) > [“And what nags me about this is that the source of my anxiety was exactly what Kierkegaard says the source of anxiety is, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-b-smith/and-what-nags-me-about-this-is-that-the-source-of-my-anxiety-was/) [Daniel B. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-b-smith/) [Explore all 18 Daniel B. Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-b-smith/) ## More Demoralized quotes > [Currently intellectuals in Western Europe and North America are extremely demoralized and shaken by the rise of a virulent conservative tendency (which some have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/currently-intellectuals-in-western-europe-and-north-america-are/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [Who could not be moved by the sight of that poor, demoralized rabble, outwitted, outflanked, outmanoeuvered by the U.S. military? Yet, given time, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-baker/who-could-not-be-moved-by-the-sight-of-that-poor-demoralized-rabble/) [James Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-baker/) > [While they trace their history back to wars that helped to ethnically cleanse Native Americans and to their exploits in the Civil War fighting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-sexton-iii/while-they-trace-their-history-back-to-wars-that-helped-to-ethnically/) [Brendan Sexton III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-sexton-iii/) > [A person who has been seduced by the consumer value system, whose identity is dissolved in an amalgam of the accouterments trappings of mass…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-havel/a-person-who-has-been-seduced-by-the-consumer-value-system-whose/) [Vaclav Havel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-havel/) > [The essence of capitalism is to turn nature into commodities and commodities into capital. The live green earth is transformed into dead gold bricks,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-parenti/the-essence-of-capitalism-is-to-turn-nature-into-commodities-and/) [Michael Parenti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-parenti/) > [ I'm disappointed, depressed, and demoralized. \[...\] It is very hard to avoid the conclusion that President Bush flinched from a fight on constitutional philosophy.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kristol/i-m-disappointed-depressed-and-demoralized-it-is-very-hard-to-avoid/) [William Kristol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kristol/) > [The experience of the race shows that we get our most important education not through books but through our work. We are developed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-garlin-spencer/the-experience-of-the-race-shows-that-we-get-our-most-important/) [Anna Garlin Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-garlin-spencer/) > [The challenges should be familiar. They should have some relationship to the feelings - like, if a movie's about being demoralized at work, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-conrad/the-challenges-should-be-familiar-they-should-have-some-relationship/) [Steven Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-conrad/) > [Research, in nature’s laboratory, never stops. It explores every possibility. It never lacks funding. It is never demoralized by failed experiments. It cannot be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/verlyn-klinkenborg/research-in-nature-s-laboratory-never-stops-it-explores-every/) [Verlyn Klinkenborg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/verlyn-klinkenborg/) > [Republicans win when people are demoralized and you have a small voter turnout, which by the way is why they love voter suppression. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/republicans-win-when-people-are-demoralized-and-you-have-a-small/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [The only agency of the federal government with a more demoralized workforce than Homeland Security is the Small Business Administration, a notorious turkey farm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-noah/the-only-agency-of-the-federal-government-with-a-more-demoralized/) [Timothy Noah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-noah/) > [Israel was not created in order to disappear. Israel will endure and flourish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/israel-was-not-created-in-order-to-disappear-israel-will-endure-and/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [Anarchists should get together who agree, and develop their gifts at a critical point, in a critical place, and form genuine affinity groups in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/anarchists-should-get-together-who-agree-and-develop-their-gifts-at-a/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) > [Dear Sir, poor sir, brave sir." he read, "You are an experiment by the Creator of the Universe. You are the only creature in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/dear-sir-poor-sir-brave-sir-he-read-you-are-an-experiment-by-the/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [Israel was not created in order to disappear - Israel will endure and flourish. It is the child of hope and the home of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/israel-was-not-created-in-order-to-disappear-israel-will-endure-and-2/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) [Browse all 51 Demoralized quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demoralized/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“By the tie I arrived at the clinic I was typically so demoralized I could barely stand. I was twenty-three years old and I looked like Nixon resigning the presidency.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Daniel B. 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