---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is a level of grief so deep that it…"
description: "\"There is a level of grief so deep that it stops resembling grief at all. The pain becomes so severe that the body can no longer feel it. The grief caut..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f99/elizabeth-gilbert-131_body_there-is-a-level-of-grief-so-deep-that-i_1907310.jpg"
---

#  There is a level of grief so deep that it stops resembling…

![“There is a level of grief so deep that it stops resembling grief at all. The pain becomes so severe that the body can no longer feel it. The grief cauterizes itself, scars over, prevents inflated feeling. Such numbness is a kind of mercy.” quote by Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f99/elizabeth-gilbert-131_body_there-is-a-level-of-grief-so-deep-that-i_1907310.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f99/elizabeth-gilbert-131_body_there-is-a-level-of-grief-so-deep-that-i_1907310.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f99/elizabeth-gilbert-131_body_there-is-a-level-of-grief-so-deep-that-i_1907310.jpg)

> “There is a level of grief so deep that it stops resembling grief at all. The pain becomes so severe that the body can no longer feel it. The grief cauterizes itself, scars over, prevents inflated feeling. Such numbness is a kind of mercy.”

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Explains deep grief can become numb, acting as a merciful shield against overwhelming pain.

**In simple terms:** Deep grief can numb feeling.

Key Takeaway

Accept numbness as protective.

Themes

grief psychology self‑care

Mood

somber thoughtful

Type

psychological philosophical

When to use this quote

- bereavement
- trauma recovery
- therapy sessions

Key Concepts

emotional numbing coping mechanisms

Questions to Reflect On

- When does numbness help?
- How to move beyond protective numbness?

A Different Perspective

May discourage processing emotions.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Compassion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compassion/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Feel Grief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feel-grief-314445/) [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Feels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels/) [Grief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grief/) [Grief Cauterizes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grief-cauterizes-2851021/) [Grief Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grief-pain-647976/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Levels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/levels/) [Mercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mercy/) [Numbness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/numbness/) [Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain/) [Resembling Grief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/resembling-grief-2851022/) [Scar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scar/)

## Related quotes

> [“I feel the grief and pain of everyone on this dark night.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lilo-abernathy/i-feel-the-grief-and-pain-of-everyone-on-this-dark-night/)

[Lilo Abernathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lilo-abernathy/)

> [The belief that a person can and should only feel grief over one sad event at a time is a truly disturbing estimate of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-armintrout/the-belief-that-a-person-can-and-should-only-feel-grief-over-one-sad/)

[Jennifer Armintrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-armintrout/)

> [“Grief reunites you with what you've lost. It's a merging; you go with the loved thing or person that's going away. You follow it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/grief-reunites-you-with-what-you-ve-lost-it-s-a-merging-you-go-with/)

[Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/)

> [“I’m bound together now in both sadness and hope. I feel grief every day, even if it’s a whisper in the background of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheri-davies/i-m-bound-together-now-in-both-sadness-and-hope-i-feel-grief-every/)

[Cheri Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheri-davies/)

> [One does not really feel much grief at other people's sorrows; one tries, and puts on a melancholy face, thinking oneself brutal for not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/one-does-not-really-feel-much-grief-at-other-people-s-sorrows-one/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [...Time does not heal, It makes a half-stitched scar That can be broken and again you feel Grief as total as in its first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/time-does-not-heal-it-makes-a-half-stitched-scar-that-can-be-broken/)

[Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/)

> [I feel no grief for being called something which I am not; in fact, it's enthralling, somehow, like a good back rub](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/i-feel-no-grief-for-being-called-something-which-i-am-not-in-fact-it/)

[Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/)

> [So often I wonder whether it is my right to capitalize, as I feel, so often, on the grief of others. But then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-z-danielewski/so-often-i-wonder-whether-it-is-my-right-to-capitalize-as-i-feel-so/)

[Mark Z. Danielewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-z-danielewski/)

> [“My friend Gordon Wheeler, who is a psychologist, explains that grief is the reminder of the depth of our love. Without love, there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama-xiv/my-friend-gordon-wheeler-who-is-a-psychologist-explains-that-grief-is/)

[Dalai Lama XIV](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama-xiv/)

> [We soon cease to feel the grief at the deaths of our friends, yet we continue to the end of our lives to miss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-brenan/we-soon-cease-to-feel-the-grief-at-the-deaths-of-our-friends-yet-we/)

[Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/)

> [“I could feel their grief as if it were a beast holding us down.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belinda-jeffrey/i-could-feel-their-grief-as-if-it-were-a-beast-holding-us-down/)

[Belinda Jeffrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belinda-jeffrey/)

> [“No, not just because it’s okay for boys to cry too. But because, Greyson, you are very lucky. Not everyone can feel things as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliann-garey/no-not-just-because-it-s-okay-for-boys-to-cry-too-but-because-greyson/)

[Juliann Garey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliann-garey/)

> [If you would have me weep, you must first of all feel grief yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/if-you-would-have-me-weep-you-must-first-of-all-feel-grief-yourself/)

[Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/)

> [I knew it in my bones. That this time was it. I had finally made my choice, and so had he. He let me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-han/i-knew-it-in-my-bones-that-this-time-was-it-i-had-finally-made-my/)

[Jenny Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-han/)

> [“She could no longer feel grief. She was now like a Geiger counter that had been subjected to too much radiation, no longer capable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liu-cixin/she-could-no-longer-feel-grief-she-was-now-like-a-geiger-counter-that/)

[Liu Cixin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liu-cixin/)

## More by Elizabeth Gilbert

> [That's your friend. My husband is my best friend. He's not the mirror that holds up my flaws. He's just the guy who's like,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/that-s-your-friend-my-husband-is-my-best-friend-he-s-not-the-mirror/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [“Not to mention that I have finally arrived at that age where a woman starts to question whether the wisest way to get over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/not-to-mention-that-i-have-finally-arrived-at-that-age-where-a-woman/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [“The Buddha taught that all human suffering is rooted in desire. Don't we all know this to be true? Any of us who have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/the-buddha-taught-that-all-human-suffering-is-rooted-in-desire-don-t/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [ “And while \[we\] do have possibilities that are vast and magnificent and almost infinite in scope, it's important to remember that our choice-rich lives… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/and-while-we-do-have-possibilities-that-are-vast-and-magnificent-and/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [Learn your way around loneliness. Make a map of it. Sit with it, for once in your life. Welcome to the human experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/learn-your-way-around-loneliness-make-a-map-of-it-sit-with-it-for/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [If we never leave our house except to drive to work, do we need to be even remotely aware of this powerful, humbling, extraordinary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/if-we-never-leave-our-house-except-to-drive-to-work-do-we-need-to-be/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [I will tell you why we have these extraordinary minds and souls, Miss Whittaker," he continued, as though he had not heard her. "We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/i-will-tell-you-why-we-have-these-extraordinary-minds-and-souls-miss/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [Both the five-year-olds looked at me with bewilderment and a bit of fearful uncertainty. I had a sudden horrifying image of the woman I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/both-the-five-year-olds-looked-at-me-with-bewilderment-and-a-bit-of/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [“Clearing out all your misery gets you out of the way. You cease being an obstacle, not only to yourself but to anyone else.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/clearing-out-all-your-misery-gets-you-out-of-the-way-you-cease-being/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [The ingredients of both darkness and light are equally present in all of us,...The madness of this planet is largely a result of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/the-ingredients-of-both-darkness-and-light-are-equally-present-in-all/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [I was full of a hot, powerful sadness and would have loved to burst into the comfort of tears, but tried hard not to,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/i-was-full-of-a-hot-powerful-sadness-and-would-have-loved-to-burst/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [“I live in nature where everything is connected, circular. The seasons are circular. The planet is circular, and so is the planet around the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/i-live-in-nature-where-everything-is-connected-circular-the-seasons/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [“His spelling was several degrees beyond arbitrary, and his punctuation brought reason to sigh with unhappiness. But”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/his-spelling-was-several-degrees-beyond-arbitrary-and-his-punctuation/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [Before you realize this truth, say the Yogis, you will always be in despair, a notion nicely expressed in this exasperated line from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/before-you-realize-this-truth-say-the-yogis-you-will-always-be-in/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

> [I actually have a great deal of respect for antidepressants; I think they can be enormously mighty tools toward recovery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/i-actually-have-a-great-deal-of-respect-for-antidepressants-i-think/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

[Explore all 1,156 Elizabeth Gilbert quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

## More Body quotes

> [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/)

[Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/)

> [The very purpose for being in this body, for every one of us, is to live and rejoice in that virgin area, that untouched,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/the-very-purpose-for-being-in-this-body-for-every-one-of-us-is-to/)

[Sri Sri Ravi Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/)

> [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/)

[Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/)

> [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/)

[Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/)

> [I've used the Phoenix Centrifuge to replicate what the body's going to go through on the flight up. I've also done some gravity tests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/i-ve-used-the-phoenix-centrifuge-to-replicate-what-the-body-s-going/)

[Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/)

> [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/)

[Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/)

> [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/)

[Jennifer Siebel Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-siebel-newsom/)

> [Boys and boys' body image and clothes have become just as important an issue for boys as for girls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalind-wiseman/boys-and-boys-body-image-and-clothes-have-become-just-as-important-an/)

[Rosalind Wiseman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalind-wiseman/)

> [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/)

[Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/)

> [Racism is a cancer. You cannot ignore it and it'll go away. If you ignore cancer, it simply metastasizes and consumes the whole body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daryl-davis/racism-is-a-cancer-you-cannot-ignore-it-and-it-ll-go-away-if-you/)

[Daryl Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daryl-davis/)

> [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/)

[Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/)

> [I read a couple of books about neuroscience and the relationship between the mind and the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-kinnaman/i-read-a-couple-of-books-about-neuroscience-and-the-relationship/)

[Joel Kinnaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-kinnaman/)

> [If japa is maintained, no useless talk during work will be possible. The mind will always remain peaceful. Modern day diseases are mostly psychosomatic.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mata-amritanandamayi/if-japa-is-maintained-no-useless-talk-during-work-will-be-possible/)

[Mata Amritanandamayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mata-amritanandamayi/)

> [It is the incongruous thing in my entire life, this isolation.. ... My work requires it - but I myself have no need or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsden-hartley/it-is-the-incongruous-thing-in-my-entire-life-this-isolation-my-work/)

[Marsden Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsden-hartley/)

> [My friends, this body - perhaps more than any other gathering in human history - now faces that difficult task.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/my-friends-this-body-perhaps-more-than-any-other-gathering-in-human/)

[Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/)

[Browse all 20,814 Body quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "There is a level of grief so deep that it stops resembling grief at all. The pain becomes so severe that the body can no longer feel it. The grief cauterizes itself, scars over, prevents inflated feeling. Such numbness is a kind of mercy.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Elizabeth Gilbert"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/there-is-a-level-of-grief-so-deep-that-it-stops-resembling-grief-at/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Body"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/there-is-a-level-of-grief-so-deep-that-it-stops-resembling-grief-at/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f99/elizabeth-gilbert-131_body_there-is-a-level-of-grief-so-deep-that-i_1907310.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f99/elizabeth-gilbert-131_body_there-is-a-level-of-grief-so-deep-that-i_1907310.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f99/elizabeth-gilbert-131_body_there-is-a-level-of-grief-so-deep-that-i_1907310.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“There is a level of grief so deep that it stops resembling grief at all. The pain becomes so severe that the…” — Elizabeth Gilbert",
                "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": "Elizabeth Gilbert",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "There is a level of grief...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/there-is-a-level-of-grief-so-deep-that-it-stops-resembling-grief-at/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/there-is-a-level-of-grief-so-deep-that-it-stops-resembling-grief-at/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
