--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When things get unbearable, I wrap myself…" description: "\"When things get unbearable, I wrap myself into a tight ball and shut my eyes. Every muscle in my body is tense. I open my eyes and I'm still where I wa..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a76/elizabeth-wurtzel-1275_balls_when-things-get-unbearable-i-wrap-myself_1781300.png" --- # When things get unbearable, I wrap myself into a tight… ![“When things get unbearable, I wrap myself into a tight ball and shut my eyes. Every muscle in my body is tense. I open my eyes and I'm still where I was when I closed them to escape. Nothing's changed.” quote by Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a76/elizabeth-wurtzel-1275_balls_when-things-get-unbearable-i-wrap-myself_1781300.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a76/elizabeth-wurtzel-1275_balls_when-things-get-unbearable-i-wrap-myself_1781300.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a76/elizabeth-wurtzel-1275_balls_when-things-get-unbearable-i-wrap-myself_1781300.png) > “When things get unbearable, I wrap myself into a tight ball and shut my eyes. Every muscle in my body is tense. I open my eyes and I'm still where I was when I closed them to escape. Nothing's changed.” [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. Escaping pain by withdrawing inward leaves the external situation unchanged, highlighting avoidance's futility. **In simple terms:** Avoiding problems doesn't change them. Key Takeaway Face issues directly instead of retreating. Themes anxiety avoidance self‑care Mood frustrated reflective Type personal psychological When to use this quote - personal crisis - stress - mental health - self‑reflection Key Concepts psychology mindfulness Questions to Reflect On - What can you do to confront the source of your anxiety? - How might staying present change the outcome? A Different Perspective Avoidance may temporarily reduce distress but can prolong suffering. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Balls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balls/) [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Body Tense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body-tense-1486157/) [Changed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/changed/) [Escape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/escape/) [Eye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eye/) [Eyes Closed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eyes-closed/) [Muscles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/muscles/) [Shut Eyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shut-eyes/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Tense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tense/) [Tense Open](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tense-open-1864503/) [Unbearable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unbearable/) ## Related quotes > [Start from the body, and then go, slowly slowly, deeper. And don't start with anything else unless you have first solved the primary. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/start-from-the-body-and-then-go-slowly-slowly-deeper-and-don-t-start/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [“I love your taste, my shundori," he murmured, and she felt his body tense beneath her. "I can't get enough of it. I can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-featherstone/i-love-your-taste-my-shundori-he-murmured-and-she-felt-his-body-tense/) [Charlotte Featherstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-featherstone/) > [“Become aware of areas where your body is tense, and mentally “breathe into” those areas, seeing them relax as you breathe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-j-scott/become-aware-of-areas-where-your-body-is-tense-and-mentally-breathe/) [S.J. Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-j-scott/) > [“You can't keep pushing everyone away." She stood up from the chair, her body tense. 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I want to go back to my dream, back to Caleb. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-j-roberts/i-shut-my-eyes-tightly-willing-myself-to-go-back-to-sleep-i-want-to/) [C.J. Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-j-roberts/) > [“She had seen Daniel here earlier. He had come onto the ward, sat beside her bed. As soon as she saw him coming she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-edwards/she-had-seen-daniel-here-earlier-he-had-come-onto-the-ward-sat-beside/) [Mark Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-edwards/) > [“I shut my eyes tight, trying to savor the moment. I knew I would wish for that moment back every day of my life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-mcguire/i-shut-my-eyes-tight-trying-to-savor-the-moment-i-knew-i-would-wish/) [Jamie McGuire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-mcguire/) ## 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. 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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 Balls quotes > [It's a lot harder to play football when you haven't got the ball.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-gray/it-s-a-lot-harder-to-play-football-when-you-haven-t-got-the-ball/) [Andy Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-gray/) > [Once you pull the trigger, you've got to throw balls aggressively and with conviction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/once-you-pull-the-trigger-you-ve-got-to-throw-balls-aggressively-and/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. 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