--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What people don't understand when you've…" description: "\"What people don't understand when you've already been a suicide and pulled through is that after the sadness comes fear: Where is my mind going with th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af2/emma-forrest-4318_fear_what-people-don-t-understand-when-you-ve_79458.png" --- # What people don't understand when you've already been a… ![“What people don't understand when you've already been a suicide and pulled through is that after the sadness comes fear: Where is my mind going with this? I don't want to die. I do not want to die. When you don't have so much control over your own thoughts, over the myriad voices in your head, you…” quote by Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af2/emma-forrest-4318_fear_what-people-don-t-understand-when-you-ve_79458.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af2/emma-forrest-4318_fear_what-people-don-t-understand-when-you-ve_79458.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af2/emma-forrest-4318_fear_what-people-don-t-understand-when-you-ve_79458.png) > “What people don't understand when you've already been a suicide and pulled through is that after the sadness comes fear: Where is my mind going with this? I don't want to die. I do not want to die. When you don't have so much control over your own thoughts, over the myriad voices in your head, you don't know where they could go.” [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Survivors of suicide attempts often experience lingering dread and loss of mental control, fearing a relapse despite wanting to live. **In simple terms:** Post‑suicide fear and mental chaos Key Takeaway Survival doesn't erase anxiety Themes mental health suicide recovery fear control thoughts Mood somber reflective hopeful Type personal testimony mental health insight When to use this quote - therapy sessions - support groups - personal journaling - crisis hotlines Key Concepts post‑traumatic stress intrusive thoughts self‑preservation Practical Applications - designing relapse‑prevention programs - training counselors to address post‑suicidal anxiety Questions to Reflect On - How can support systems reduce post‑suicidal fear? - What strategies help regain a sense of mental control? A Different Perspective Some argue that fear is a natural motivator for change, but it can also paralyze recovery if unaddressed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Sadness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sadness/) [Suicide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suicide/) [Voice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voice/) ## Related quotes > [I don't know how to say it exactly. Only...I want to die as myself. Does that make any sense?' he asks. I shake my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/i-don-t-know-how-to-say-it-exactly-only-i-want-to-die-as-myself-does/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [a simple question to identify your true home: where do you want to die?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/a-simple-question-to-identify-your-true-home-where-do-you-want-to-die/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [To hell with reality! I want to die in music, not in reason or in prose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-ferdinand-celine/to-hell-with-reality-i-want-to-die-in-music-not-in-reason-or-in-prose/) [Louis-Ferdinand Celine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-ferdinand-celine/) > [I don't want to die leaving the world as it is right now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tillie-olsen/i-don-t-want-to-die-leaving-the-world-as-it-is-right-now/) [Tillie Olsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tillie-olsen/) > [Yes -- or rather, it's not so much that I want to die as that I'm tired of living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ry-nosuke-akutagawa/yes-or-rather-it-s-not-so-much-that-i-want-to-die-as-that-i-m-tired/) [Ryūnosuke Akutagawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ry-nosuke-akutagawa/) > [The first time I ever saw platform shoes in the '70s, I knew they'd been revived from the '40s, and I felt sickened. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fran-lebowitz/the-first-time-i-ever-saw-platform-shoes-in-the-70s-i-knew-they-d/) [Fran Lebowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fran-lebowitz/) > [I don't want to die. I think death is a greatly overrated experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/i-don-t-want-to-die-i-think-death-is-a-greatly-overrated-experience/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [Three-quarters of people say they want to die at home, but only a quarter of people actually do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katy-butler/three-quarters-of-people-say-they-want-to-die-at-home-but-only-a/) [Katy Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katy-butler/) > [Because it's still a heartache. And nothing makes you want to die more than that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-nichols/because-it-s-still-a-heartache-and-nothing-makes-you-want-to-die-more/) [Lee Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-nichols/) > [I know what it's like to have a bunch of material that's working that you don't care about. You want to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-c-k/i-know-what-it-s-like-to-have-a-bunch-of-material-that-s-working-that/) [Louis C. K](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-c-k/) > [He who does not want to die should not want to live. For life is tendered to us with the proviso of death. Life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/he-who-does-not-want-to-die-should-not-want-to-live-for-life-is/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [I don't want to die without knowing who I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-fonda/i-don-t-want-to-die-without-knowing-who-i-am/) [Jane Fonda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-fonda/) > [I want to live but I want to die. What do I do?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-vizzini/i-want-to-live-but-i-want-to-die-what-do-i-do/) [Ned Vizzini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-vizzini/) > [If you feel like you want to die, it's time to sit down and make a list of all the things you haven't done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deacon-jones/if-you-feel-like-you-want-to-die-it-s-time-to-sit-down-and-make-a/) [Deacon Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deacon-jones/) > [We have to call it "freedom": who'd want to die for "a lesser tyranny"](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mignon-mclaughlin/we-have-to-call-it-freedom-who-d-want-to-die-for-a-lesser-tyranny/) [Mignon McLaughlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mignon-mclaughlin/) ## More by Emma Forrest > [But I saw the pain and sadness in everything, and swirled it round my mouth like a fine wine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/but-i-saw-the-pain-and-sadness-in-everything-and-swirled-it-round-my/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [I think it's sort of the hypothetical point where communism and fascism meet. They love tragedy, and they love surface beauty. You just watch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/i-think-it-s-sort-of-the-hypothetical-point-where-communism-and/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [I do think everything that happens in American pop culture sort of prescribes for England and does end up happening there six months later,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/i-do-think-everything-that-happens-in-american-pop-culture-sort-of/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [“Bad people very often do one good thing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/bad-people-very-often-do-one-good-thing/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [I wish I had been less keen to inject my own opinions, but I was a teenager and your teenage self is generally an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/i-wish-i-had-been-less-keen-to-inject-my-own-opinions-but-i-was-a/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [“When he asked if he was mine, tears in his eyes, I think he knew what he would do, what he would have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/when-he-asked-if-he-was-mine-tears-in-his-eyes-i-think-he-knew-what/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [I want you to stay. I never want there to be a time when we don't share space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/i-want-you-to-stay-i-never-want-there-to-be-a-time-when-we-don-t/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [In other words, it was a struggle with himself. And the product of that struggle: anger, bitterness, resentment, envy or transformation, aspiration, hope, decency..the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/in-other-words-it-was-a-struggle-with-himself-and-the-product-of-that/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [“I don't want to go to university. I don't like unity and I hate verses. I just love the choruses of songs. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/i-don-t-want-to-go-to-university-i-don-t-like-unity-and-i-hate-verses/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [I enjoy films where two characters are coming of age, just different ages. That's why I love 'Paper Moon' so much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/i-enjoy-films-where-two-characters-are-coming-of-age-just-different/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [He was only twenty-five.He was young enough to miss his youth just as it was slipping away. The worst kind of loss-the one that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/he-was-only-twenty-five-he-was-young-enough-to-miss-his-youth-just-as/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [Jeff Bridges says that the reason he's one of the few stars in Hollywood whose made his marriage last for decades is that every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/jeff-bridges-says-that-the-reason-he-s-one-of-the-few-stars-in/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [If you don't know who you are, madness gives you something to believe in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/if-you-don-t-know-who-you-are-madness-gives-you-something-to-believe/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [“I win, and we discover that when men peer into a car that is blasting "True Faith" on the outskirts of San Franscisco, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/i-win-and-we-discover-that-when-men-peer-into-a-car-that-is-blasting/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [“No one knows we're there, no one sees us. We never leave the room. I think about the secret voice you use when you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/no-one-knows-we-re-there-no-one-sees-us-we-never-leave-the-room-i/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) [Explore all 112 Emma Forrest quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) ## More Fear quotes > [This may sound strange, but although I feel like I know everything about my characters, the brand of shampoo they use, how many cavities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/this-may-sound-strange-but-although-i-feel-like-i-know-everything/) [Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/) > [“That horrible stinging sensation returned, the muscles behind my eyes straining as the first tear began to fall. “I’m scared, too. For eighteen months…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devon-ashley/that-horrible-stinging-sensation-returned-the-muscles-behind-my-eyes/) [Devon Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devon-ashley/) > [“...Often that which most we fear births the resolve that spurs us on to altitudes we could not have achieved, had we continued walking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-t-anderson/often-that-which-most-we-fear-births-the-resolve-that-spurs-us-on-to/) [M.T. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-t-anderson/) > [What an incredible drug fear is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/what-an-incredible-drug-fear-is/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“Anything that you find yourself worrying about regularly may find you suddenly wanting unrealistic changes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nagisa-tatsumi/anything-that-you-find-yourself-worrying-about-regularly-may-find-you/) Nagisa Tatsumi > [“We all know how the thing we secretly fear is not a secret at all but the open and eternal thing that predicts its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/we-all-know-how-the-thing-we-secretly-fear-is-not-a-secret-at-all-but/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [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 had nowhere to go and did not wish to be seen by anyone for fear they would recognize my sadness and so for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-dewitt/i-had-nowhere-to-go-and-did-not-wish-to-be-seen-by-anyone-for-fear/) [Patrick deWitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-dewitt/) > [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/) [Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/) > [“Snip off the little worries and expressions of worry” like little branches atop a tall tree.28 If you are truly worried, sharing your concerns…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-sanders/snip-off-the-little-worries-and-expressions-of-worry-like-little/) [Tim Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-sanders/) > [“Fear and desire for pleasure. Aggressiveness comes out of fear, predominantly, and sexuality predominantly out of the other. But they mix in the middle.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-french/fear-and-desire-for-pleasure-aggressiveness-comes-out-of-fear/) [Marilyn French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-french/) > [“Carrie Fisher. “Stay afraid, but do it anyway.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-union/carrie-fisher-stay-afraid-but-do-it-anyway/) [Gabrielle Union](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-union/) > [“Yes, the issue was courage. It always had been, even as a kid. Things scared him. He couldn't help it. Noise scared him, dark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-brien/yes-the-issue-was-courage-it-always-had-been-even-as-a-kid-things/) [Tim O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-brien/) > [Don't be afraid of hard work. Nothing worthwhile comes easily. Don't let others discourage you or tell you that you can't do it. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-b-elion/don-t-be-afraid-of-hard-work-nothing-worthwhile-comes-easily-don-t/) [Gertrude B. Elion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-b-elion/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) [Browse all 35,569 Fear quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What people don't understand when you've already been a suicide and pulled through is that after the sadness comes fear: Where is my mind going with this? I don't want to die. I do not want to die. 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