--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Rock bottom is an inability to cope with…" description: "\"“Rock bottom is an inability to cope with the commonplace that is so extreme it makes even the grandest and loveliest things unbearable...Rock bottom i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42d/elizabeth-wurtzel-1275_bottom_rock-bottom-is-an-inability-to-cope-with_776888.png" --- # Rock bottom is an inability to cope with the commonplace… ![“Rock bottom is an inability to cope with the commonplace that is so extreme it makes even the grandest and loveliest things unbearable...Rock bottom is everything out of focus. It's a failure of vision, a failure to see the world as it is, to see the good in what it is, and only to wonder why the…” quote by Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42d/elizabeth-wurtzel-1275_bottom_rock-bottom-is-an-inability-to-cope-with_776888.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42d/elizabeth-wurtzel-1275_bottom_rock-bottom-is-an-inability-to-cope-with_776888.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42d/elizabeth-wurtzel-1275_bottom_rock-bottom-is-an-inability-to-cope-with_776888.png) > ““Rock bottom is an inability to cope with the commonplace that is so extreme it makes even the grandest and loveliest things unbearable...Rock bottom is everything out of focus. It's a failure of vision, a failure to see the world as it is, to see the good in what it is, and only to wonder why the hell things look the way they do and not some other way.”” [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When you hit rock bottom you lose the ability to see ordinary life clearly, making even beautiful things feel unbearable. **In simple terms:** Rock bottom blinds you to everyday beauty. Key Takeaway Seek clarity and reframe perspective. Themes despair vision clarity Mood melancholy hopeful Type reflective inspirational When to use this quote - personal crisis - mental health treatment - creative block - relationship turmoil Key Concepts psychology existential crisis perception Questions to Reflect On - How can you practice seeing the good in daily life? - What steps help restore mental clarity? A Different Perspective Recovery requires confronting underlying issues, not just changing outlook. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bottom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bottom/) [Commonplace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commonplace/) [Extremes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extremes/) [Failure Vision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure-vision-283845/) [Fall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fall/) [Focus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/focus/) [Hell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hell/) [Inability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inability/) [Inability Cope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inability-cope-2398514/) [Looks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looks/) [Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rock/) [Rock Bottom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rock-bottom/) [Rock Inability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rock-inability-5993611/) [Rocks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rocks/) [Unbearable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unbearable/) [Vision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vision/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Wonder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonder/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [“And I know, knew for sure, with an absolute certainty, that this is rock bottom, this what the worst possible thing feels like. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/and-i-know-knew-for-sure-with-an-absolute-certainty-that-this-is-rock/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [“-Failure of vision. Pakistan's founders expected the idea of Pakistan to shape the state of Pakistan; instead, a military bureaucracy governs the state and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-philip-cohen/failure-of-vision-pakistan-s-founders-expected-the-idea-of-pakistan/) [Stephen Philip Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-philip-cohen/) > [A preoccupation with the next world clearly shows an inability to cope credibly with this one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-k-morgan/a-preoccupation-with-the-next-world-clearly-shows-an-inability-to/) [Richard K. Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-k-morgan/) > [When things get unbearable, I wrap myself into a tight ball and shut my eyes. Every muscle in my body is tense. I open…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/when-things-get-unbearable-i-wrap-myself-into-a-tight-ball-and-shut/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [“There is stability in self-destruction, in prolonging sadness as a means of escaping abstractions like happiness. Rock bottom is a surprisingly comfortable place to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kris-kidd/there-is-stability-in-self-destruction-in-prolonging-sadness-as-a/) [Kris Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kris-kidd/) > [“The song was the late Ishihara Yujiro’s “Rusty Knife,” and Sakaguchi’s singing was so bad that it gave the lyric a strange new pathos…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/the-song-was-the-late-ishihara-yujiro-s-rusty-knife-and-sakaguchi-s/) [Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/) > [I did speak to a counsellor after hitting rock bottom. It really did help, talking to somebody that didn't know me and just pouring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kell-brook/i-did-speak-to-a-counsellor-after-hitting-rock-bottom-it-really-did/) [Kell Brook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kell-brook/) > [I feel like a stone you have picked up and thrown to the hard rock bottom of your heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-travis/i-feel-like-a-stone-you-have-picked-up-and-thrown-to-the-hard-rock/) [Randy Travis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-travis/) > [“After seven experiments with hundreds of children, we had some of the clearest findings I’ve ever seen: Praising children’s intelligence harms their motivation and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-dweck/after-seven-experiments-with-hundreds-of-children-we-had-some-of-the/) [Carol Dweck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-dweck/) > [“We'd hit rock bottom, but this is what is found there. The truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-eulberg/we-d-hit-rock-bottom-but-this-is-what-is-found-there-the-truth/) [Elizabeth Eulberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-eulberg/) > [When you hit rock bottom, you have nowhere to go but up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pattie-mallette/when-you-hit-rock-bottom-you-have-nowhere-to-go-but-up/) [Pattie Mallette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pattie-mallette/) > [Contrary to some self-serving reports, I am okay and strong. I have not hit rock bottom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-tomic/contrary-to-some-self-serving-reports-i-am-okay-and-strong-i-have-not/) [Bernard Tomic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-tomic/) > [When you hit rock bottom in life, dont rush to get back up on your feet. Take your time. Work your way up slowly.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-hit-rock-bottom-in-life-dont-rush-to-get-back-up-on-your/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Ridley Pearson also plays bass guitar and sings with the Rock Bottom Remainders, a band made up of such successful authors as Amy Tan,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-penzler/ridley-pearson-also-plays-bass-guitar-and-sings-with-the-rock-bottom/) [Otto Penzler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-penzler/) > [Sober alkies are often asked: "When did you hit rock bottom?" but a more informed question might be: "How many times did you hit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-ferguson/sober-alkies-are-often-asked-when-did-you-hit-rock-bottom-but-a-more/) [Craig Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-ferguson/) ## More by Elizabeth Wurtzel > [Belief is a good thing in principle, but an annoying thing in human beings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/belief-is-a-good-thing-in-principle-but-an-annoying-thing-in-human/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [I myself am hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/i-myself-am-hell/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [I can see that I imagine all kinds of rejection that never happens. I can see that I beg and plead for love that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/i-can-see-that-i-imagine-all-kinds-of-rejection-that-never-happens-i/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [“...if you ask anyone in the throes of depression how he got there, to pin down the turning point, he'll never know. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/if-you-ask-anyone-in-the-throes-of-depression-how-he-got-there-to-pin/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [I want to explain how exhausted I am. Even in my dreams. How I wake up tired. How I’m being drowned by some kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/i-want-to-explain-how-exhausted-i-am-even-in-my-dreams-how-i-wake-up/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [Its the people you are close to, the ones who love you, the ones who have seen your heart, who have touched your soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/its-the-people-you-are-close-to-the-ones-who-love-you-the-ones-who/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [if only my whole life could be words and music, if only everything else could slip away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/if-only-my-whole-life-could-be-words-and-music-if-only-everything/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [What I would do to be Alice climbing through the looking glass, taking one of those pills that makes you small ... so small.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/what-i-would-do-to-be-alice-climbing-through-the-looking-glass-taking/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [Divorce has taught us how to sleep with friends, sleep with enemies, and then act like its all perfectly normal in the morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/divorce-has-taught-us-how-to-sleep-with-friends-sleep-with-enemies/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [Just as our parents quieted us when we were noisy by putting us in front of the television set, maybe we're now learning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/just-as-our-parents-quieted-us-when-we-were-noisy-by-putting-us-in/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [I am sick of the girl who cries 'wolf' all the time. Even though not one of those cries was ever a false alarm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/i-am-sick-of-the-girl-who-cries-wolf-all-the-time-even-though-not-one/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [I'm lost in a loneliness that feels like forever ... like a solitude that never goes away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/i-m-lost-in-a-loneliness-that-feels-like-forever-like-a-solitude-that/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [It's the people you are close to, the ones who love you, theo nes who have seen your heart, who have touched your soul-…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/it-s-the-people-you-are-close-to-the-ones-who-love-you-theo-nes-who/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [“When you do drugs, you count like a chemist: The numbers are wild, the formulas are easy. Then, when you try to get clean,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/when-you-do-drugs-you-count-like-a-chemist-the-numbers-are-wild-the/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [Everything's plastic, we're all going to die sooner or later, so what does it matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/everything-s-plastic-we-re-all-going-to-die-sooner-or-later-so-what/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) [Explore all 261 Elizabeth Wurtzel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) ## More Bottom quotes > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Filmmaking, like sex, isn't a polite enterprise. It involves a lot of mess and the bottom line is, if somebody ain't screaming, you're not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-woods/filmmaking-like-sex-isn-t-a-polite-enterprise-it-involves-a-lot-of/) [James Woods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-woods/) > [I was terrible student. I was capable, but I never like being told what to do, so I was always in the bottom class…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-lilley/i-was-terrible-student-i-was-capable-but-i-never-like-being-told-what/) [Chris Lilley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-lilley/) > [The contempt for law and the contempt for the human consequences of lawbreaking go from the bottom to the top of American society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-contempt-for-law-and-the-contempt-for-the-human-consequences-of/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [I plead with my Moonlight fans to give this show a chance if they let me give it a chance. I can’t do Moonlight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-o-loughlin/i-plead-with-my-moonlight-fans-to-give-this-show-a-chance-if-they-let/) [Alex O'Loughlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-o-loughlin/) > [Well, the bottom line is that I'm extremely pleased with 'The Stupids.' I'm pleased that it's coming out, and it should look good. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-landis/well-the-bottom-line-is-that-i-m-extremely-pleased-with-the-stupids-i/) [John Landis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-landis/) > [Search for the seed of good in every adversity. Master that principle and you will own a precious shield that will guard you well…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/og-mandino/search-for-the-seed-of-good-in-every-adversity-master-that-principle/) [Og Mandino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/og-mandino/) > [I would have had a clause in my contract; I would've definitely put some fine print in my contract that said, "If the president…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-budden/i-would-have-had-a-clause-in-my-contract-i-would-ve-definitely-put/) [Joe Budden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-budden/) > [Of course the Dharma-body of the Buddha was the hedge at the bottom of the garden. At the same time, and no less obviously,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/of-course-the-dharma-body-of-the-buddha-was-the-hedge-at-the-bottom/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [When I hit bottom, I can attack the problem and get to where I want to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-rodman/when-i-hit-bottom-i-can-attack-the-problem-and-get-to-where-i-want-to/) [Dennis Rodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-rodman/) > [If I had lost the popular vote but won the electoral college and in my first day as president the intelligence community came to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/if-i-had-lost-the-popular-vote-but-won-the-electoral-college-and-in/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [The bottom line, in the professional level, no matter where you go, there's going to be competition. That's what it is. At the end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-tolzien/the-bottom-line-in-the-professional-level-no-matter-where-you-go/) [Scott Tolzien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-tolzien/) > [Life is a climb and it's a struggle getting to the top but the drop to the bottom can be quick and so I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miley-cyrus/life-is-a-climb-and-it-s-a-struggle-getting-to-the-top-but-the-drop/) [Miley Cyrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miley-cyrus/) > [One thing you learned as a Cubs fan: when you bought you ticket, you could bank on seeing the bottom of the ninth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-garagiola/one-thing-you-learned-as-a-cubs-fan-when-you-bought-you-ticket-you/) [Joe Garagiola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-garagiola/) > [The political satirist usually votes against their own interests, but the bottom line is that it doesn't really matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lizz-winstead/the-political-satirist-usually-votes-against-their-own-interests-but/) [Lizz Winstead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lizz-winstead/) [Browse all 2,558 Bottom quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bottom/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Rock bottom is an inability to cope with the commonplace that is so extreme it makes even the grandest and loveliest things unbearable...Rock bottom is everything out of focus. 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