--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What [my patients] care about is my…" description: "\"“What [my patients] care about is my presence or absence as a human being. They gauge with unerring eye whether I am grounded enough on any given day t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d98/gabor-mat-1410_addiction-and-recove_what-my-patients-care-about-is-my-presen_644472.jpg" --- # What \[my patients\] care about is my presence or absence as… ![“What [my patients] care about is my presence or absence as a human being. They gauge with unerring eye whether I am grounded enough on any given day to co-exist with them, to listen to them as persons with feelings, hopes and aspirations as valid as mine. They can tell instantly whether I’m…” quote by Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d98/gabor-mat-1410_addiction-and-recove_what-my-patients-care-about-is-my-presen_644472.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d98/gabor-mat-1410_addiction-and-recove_what-my-patients-care-about-is-my-presen_644472.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d98/gabor-mat-1410_addiction-and-recove_what-my-patients-care-about-is-my-presen_644472.jpg) > ““What \[my patients\] care about is my presence or absence as a human being. They gauge with unerring eye whether I am grounded enough on any given day to co-exist with them, to listen to them as persons with feelings, hopes and aspirations as valid as mine. They can tell instantly whether I’m genuinely committed to their well-being or just trying to get them out of my way.”” [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Patients sense a clinician’s humanity and authenticity, which determines trust and therapeutic effectiveness. **In simple terms:** Patients feel trust when doctors are genuine and present. Key Takeaway Be fully present and authentic with patients. Themes empathy trust humanity Mood compassionate reflective Type clinical inspirational When to use this quote - clinical consultations - mental health therapy - palliative care Key Concepts patient-centered care authenticity therapeutic alliance Questions to Reflect On - How does your presence affect patient outcomes? - What barriers prevent you from being fully present? A Different Perspective If the doctor appears distracted, trust erodes quickly. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Addiction-and-recovery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/addiction-and-recovery/) [Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Patience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patience/) [Presence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/presence/) ## Related quotes > [Human life is thus only a perpetual illusion; men deceive and flatter each other. No one speaks of us in our presence as he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/human-life-is-thus-only-a-perpetual-illusion-men-deceive-and-flatter/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Love is like poker Sometimes you get a good hand and sometimes you get a bad one but that bad hand can be turned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wheaton/love-is-like-poker-sometimes-you-get-a-good-hand-and-sometimes-you/) [Wheaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wheaton/) > [The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-doctor-of-the-future-will-give-no-medicine-but-will-interest-his/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you find inner peace, neither the presence nor absence of any person, place or thing, condition, circumstance, or situation can be the Creator…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/when-you-find-inner-peace-neither-the-presence-nor-absence-of-any/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) > [One of the best feeling in the world is knowing that the presence and absence both mean to something to someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeigh-ilano/one-of-the-best-feeling-in-the-world-is-knowing-that-the-presence-and/) [Jeigh Ilano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeigh-ilano/) > [“When we wait for the unexpected, we open a philosophical and phenomenological dialogue about presence, absence, perception, and the psychological tension of expectation. .(…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-pevernagie/when-we-wait-for-the-unexpected-we-open-a-philosophical-and/) [Erik Pevernagie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-pevernagie/) > [“Presence and Absence A certain person may have, as you say, a wonderful presence: I do not know. What I do know is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idries-shah/presence-and-absence-a-certain-person-may-have-as-you-say-a-wonderful/) [Idries Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idries-shah/) > [“She felt it when she woke, not a presence but an absence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-hawkins/she-felt-it-when-she-woke-not-a-presence-but-an-absence/) [Paula Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-hawkins/) > [: There are only two on-buttons for fear, in any permutation you want. One is when something that shouldn't be is, meaning a presence.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guillermo-del-toro/there-are-only-two-on-buttons-for-fear-in-any-permutation-you-want/) [Guillermo del Toro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guillermo-del-toro/) > [I cannot sleep in your presence In your absence, tears prevent me you watch me my beloved on each sleepiness night and Only you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/i-cannot-sleep-in-your-presence-in-your-absence-tears-prevent-me-you/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [The best feeling in the world is knowing your presence and absence both mean something to someone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-best-feeling-in-the-world-is-knowing-your-presence-and-absence/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Testing shows the presence, not the absence of bugs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edsger-dijkstra/testing-shows-the-presence-not-the-absence-of-bugs/) [Edsger Dijkstra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edsger-dijkstra/) > [I think you can photograph a certain sliver of human presence in its absence... images taken in the empty rooms, the marks left on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-kuhn/i-think-you-can-photograph-a-certain-sliver-of-human-presence-in-its/) [Mona Kuhn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-kuhn/) > [One of the best feelings in the world is knowing that your presence and absence both mean something to someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-of-the-best-feelings-in-the-world-is-knowing-that-your-presence/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Some people will never ever appreciate your presence until your absence becomes permanent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-mark/some-people-will-never-ever-appreciate-your-presence-until-your/) [Terry Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-mark/) ## More by Gabor Maté > [“As parents who make every effort we can to raise our children in loving security, we do not need to feel more guilt than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/as-parents-who-make-every-effort-we-can-to-raise-our-children-in/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [“The fact is, we in this society are often quite removed from our own emotional reality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/the-fact-is-we-in-this-society-are-often-quite-removed-from-our-own/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [“Shame is the deepest of the “negative emotions,” a feeling we will do almost anything to avoid. Unfortunately, our abiding fear of shame impairs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/shame-is-the-deepest-of-the-negative-emotions-a-feeling-we-will-do/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [“Many adults have not attained maturity — have not mastered being independent, self-motivated individuals capable of tending their own emotional needs and of respecting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/many-adults-have-not-attained-maturity-have-not-mastered-being/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [Autonomy is impossible as long as one is driven by anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/autonomy-is-impossible-as-long-as-one-is-driven-by-anything/) [Gabor Mate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [“If a mother has eight children, there are eight mothers. This is not simply because of the fact that the mother was different in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/if-a-mother-has-eight-children-there-are-eight-mothers-this-is-not/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [“Without attachment, the parent succeeds at most in cowing a child into obedience, at the price of grave damage to the relationship and to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/without-attachment-the-parent-succeeds-at-most-in-cowing-a-child-into/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [“Attachment is our connection with the world. In the earliest attachment relationships, we gain or lose the ability to stay open, self-nurturing and healthy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/attachment-is-our-connection-with-the-world-in-the-earliest/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [“So what you've actually got is traumatized children. When children are traumatized that affects how they feel about themselves, which is deeply ashamed because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/so-what-you-ve-actually-got-is-traumatized-children-when-children-are/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [“Even without world wars, revolutions and emigration, siblings growing up in the same home almost never share the same environment. More accurately, brothers and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/even-without-world-wars-revolutions-and-emigration-siblings-growing/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [“We think that there are people who are normal over here, and then there’s the pathological ones who have depression, anxiety, addiction or schizophrenia…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/we-think-that-there-are-people-who-are-normal-over-here-and-then/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [“One cannot get much more vulnerable than to expose oneself psychologically. To share oneself with another and then be misunderstood or rejected is, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/one-cannot-get-much-more-vulnerable-than-to-expose-oneself/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [“The areas of the cortex responsible for attention and self-regulation develop in response to the emotional interaction with the person whom we may call…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/the-areas-of-the-cortex-responsible-for-attention-and-self-regulation/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [“Peer-oriented children live in a universe of severely limited and superficial attachments. The quest for sameness being the least vulnerable way of attaching, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/peer-oriented-children-live-in-a-universe-of-severely-limited-and/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) > [“The United States contains less than 5 percent of the world’s population but houses nearly a quarter of the world’s prisoners.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabor-mat/the-united-states-contains-less-than-5-percent-of-the-world-s/) [Gabor Maté](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) [Explore all 244 Gabor Maté quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabor-mat/) ## More Addiction-and-recovery quotes > [“Not much more than a broke disgrace who's hooked on tonics, so excuse him if his poker face has puke on it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannibal-lecture/not-much-more-than-a-broke-disgrace-who-s-hooked-on-tonics-so-excuse/) Hannibal Lecture > [“Not in My Backyard (NIMBY) does not work. Opiate addicts live in our communities and in our families & they work in our businesses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-kassels/not-in-my-backyard-nimby-does-not-work-opiate-addicts-live-in-our/) Steven Kassels > [“Like all sex and love addicts, I can feel someone’s attention and attraction from a hundred yards away—hell, I can feel them from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/like-all-sex-and-love-addicts-i-can-feel-someone-s-attention-and/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“This madman must be stopped.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dianne-harman/this-madman-must-be-stopped/) [Dianne Harman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dianne-harman/) > [“It was difficult to know where to find comfort, especially since I could no longer medicate myself with my oldest and deepest fantasy: that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/it-was-difficult-to-know-where-to-find-comfort-especially-since-i/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“Stepping out of other people’s drama cycles was scary, weird, and difficult for me at first. I felt guilty for keeping the focus on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/stepping-out-of-other-people-s-drama-cycles-was-scary-weird-and/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“If you ever feel alone, just remember someone else is feeling the same. Loneliness’s greatest weapon is making you believe you’re the only one—the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brittany-burgunder/if-you-ever-feel-alone-just-remember-someone-else-is-feeling-the-same/) [Brittany Burgunder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brittany-burgunder/) > [“We exist to fully participate in the creation our own lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-sorenson/we-exist-to-fully-participate-in-the-creation-our-own-lives/) [Toni Sorenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-sorenson/) > [“Mom rubbed the back of my neck and we kept walking, away from the kids and the colors and the high-pitched, happy voices. Seeing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-sargent-swank/mom-rubbed-the-back-of-my-neck-and-we-kept-walking-away-from-the-kids/) Amy Sargent Swank > [“But what really matters is what's under the hood, and without continued attention to routine maintenance and repairs, it isn't long before the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cope-moyers/but-what-really-matters-is-what-s-under-the-hood-and-without/) [William Cope Moyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cope-moyers/) > [“As I listened to the other addicts share their life experiences, I began to hear the story of my own life, told in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/as-i-listened-to-the-other-addicts-share-their-life-experiences-i/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“People often talk about crawling into the rooms of recovery on their knees, but when I turned to twelve-step for the second time, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/people-often-talk-about-crawling-into-the-rooms-of-recovery-on-their/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“A nation forgetting its own laughter is in a sad state of affairs”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherry-marie-gallagher/a-nation-forgetting-its-own-laughter-is-in-a-sad-state-of-affairs/) Sherry Marie Gallagher > [“If I were to create a word that more accurately describes alcoholism and addiction, I would say it was dependencyism. Sounds silly, doesn't it?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-prentiss/if-i-were-to-create-a-word-that-more-accurately-describes-alcoholism/) [Chris Prentiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-prentiss/) > [“Alcoholics Anonymous was proclaimed the correct treatment for alcoholism over seventy-five years ago despite the absence of any scientific evidence of the approach’s efficacy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-dodes/alcoholics-anonymous-was-proclaimed-the-correct-treatment-for/) [Lance Dodes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-dodes/) [Browse all 54 Addiction-and-recovery quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/addiction-and-recovery/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“What [my patients] care about is my presence or absence as a human being. 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