--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I felt as if I had no control over what I…" description: "\"I felt as if I had no control over what I said, as if loathsome, ugly words were waiting inside me like snakes and toads looking for a chance to sneak ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/gloria-whelan-31722_chance_i-felt-as-if-i-had-no-control-over-what_1596524.jpg" --- # I felt as if I had no control over what I said, as if… ![“I felt as if I had no control over what I said, as if loathsome, ugly words were waiting inside me like snakes and toads looking for a chance to sneak out before I could stop them.” quote by Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/gloria-whelan-31722_chance_i-felt-as-if-i-had-no-control-over-what_1596524.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/gloria-whelan-31722_chance_i-felt-as-if-i-had-no-control-over-what_1596524.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/gloria-whelan-31722_chance_i-felt-as-if-i-had-no-control-over-what_1596524.jpg) > “I felt as if I had no control over what I said, as if loathsome, ugly words were waiting inside me like snakes and toads looking for a chance to sneak out before I could stop them.” [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker feels powerless, with harmful thoughts surfacing uncontrollably like dangerous creatures. **In simple terms:** Feeling trapped by intrusive, ugly thoughts. Key Takeaway Practice mindfulness to observe thoughts. Themes mental health self‑control language anxiety inner dialogue Mood anxious introspective Type psychological motivational When to use this quote - therapy sessions - writing - public speaking - stressful conversations Key Concepts cognitive intrusion self‑criticism emotional regulation Questions to Reflect On - What triggers these thoughts? - How can you pause before speaking? A Different Perspective Thoughts can be redirected with awareness. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [Snakes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snakes/) ## Related quotes > [The past shouts at you, the ugly words or actions echo down across the years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-merullo/the-past-shouts-at-you-the-ugly-words-or-actions-echo-down-across-the/) [Roland Merullo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-merullo/) > [“I retreat from my bars, wondering why people who live outside choose such ugly words. Maybe that is what happens when you are outside,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rene-denfeld/i-retreat-from-my-bars-wondering-why-people-who-live-outside-choose/) [Rene Denfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rene-denfeld/) > [... her taste in music haunted my memory and I had to stop at Tower Records on the Upper West Side to buy ninety…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-easton-ellis/her-taste-in-music-haunted-my-memory-and-i-had-to-stop-at-tower/) [Bret Easton Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-easton-ellis/) > [I'm the guilty one for uttering those terrible, ugly words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-sterling/i-m-the-guilty-one-for-uttering-those-terrible-ugly-words/) [Donald Sterling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-sterling/) > [“...he called me whore, slut, bitch…all the beautiful ugly words that secretly thrilled me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sommer-marsden/he-called-me-whore-slut-bitch-all-the-beautiful-ugly-words-that/) [Sommer Marsden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sommer-marsden/) > [“This moment is not life waiting to happen, goals waiting to be achieved, words waiting to be spoken, connections waiting to be made, regrets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-foster/this-moment-is-not-life-waiting-to-happen-goals-waiting-to-be/) [Jeff Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-foster/) > [“She took a breath before she said the words she'd been waiting almost nine years to say. 'So what was wrong with me?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/priscilla-glenn/she-took-a-breath-before-she-said-the-words-she-d-been-waiting-almost/) [Priscilla Glenn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/priscilla-glenn/) > [Tears are words waiting to be spoken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/tears-are-words-waiting-to-be-spoken/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“how much time like this it holds on how much time resting is going to start up again --- knows it --- at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-collobert/how-much-time-like-this-it-holds-on-how-much-time-resting-is-going-to/) Danielle Collobert > [“Because I love you." The words were always there. They were only waiting for me to say them.—Kellen to Calienta”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-keyes/because-i-love-you-the-words-were-always-there-they-were-only-waiting/) Stephanie Keyes > [“In soul of every newborn baby, words are waiting to be written.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/in-soul-of-every-newborn-baby-words-are-waiting-to-be-written/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [The more guys I meet, the more I like snakes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-more-guys-i-meet-the-more-i-like-snakes/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm very scared of snakes, I really don't like snakes, not even on my phone when I see it, I can't touch it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andreas-pereira/i-m-very-scared-of-snakes-i-really-don-t-like-snakes-not-even-on-my/) [Andreas Pereira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andreas-pereira/) > [Like Indiana Jones, I don't like snakes - though that might lead some to ask why I'm in politics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theresa-may/like-indiana-jones-i-don-t-like-snakes-though-that-might-lead-some-to/) [Theresa May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theresa-may/) > [“He saw virus particles shaped like snakes, in negative images. They were white cobras tangled among themselves, like the hair of Medusa. They were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-preston/he-saw-virus-particles-shaped-like-snakes-in-negative-images-they/) [Richard Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-preston/) ## More by Gloria Whelan > [I couldn’t live with myself if I thought nothing could get better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/i-couldn-t-live-with-myself-if-i-thought-nothing-could-get-better/) [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) > [You're making yourself too important. Guilt comes from feeling we're at the center of the universe. We're not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/you-re-making-yourself-too-important-guilt-comes-from-feeling-we-re/) [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) > [But what doesn’t die is the love we give to others. There is no end to that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/but-what-doesn-t-die-is-the-love-we-give-to-others-there-is-no-end-to/) [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) > [They were all brilliant. They wrote books and painted pictures, and if they ever stopped talking, which I was sure they would never do,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/they-were-all-brilliant-they-wrote-books-and-painted-pictures-and-if/) [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) > [“With a mind as bright as yours you will want to find a proper school to continue your education. … You must continue the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/with-a-mind-as-bright-as-yours-you-will-want-to-find-a-proper-school/) [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) > [I liked having some time to myself. Our family was such a close one, you could get smothered. Of course, we didn't always agree…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/i-liked-having-some-time-to-myself-our-family-was-such-a-close-one/) [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) > [I looked forward to making friends at school, but I had come late and friendships had already been formed. I couldn’t find my way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/i-looked-forward-to-making-friends-at-school-but-i-had-come-late-and/) [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) > [Even our recreation was scheduled. There was no time to look for birds or wander into the nearby woods. We were put into teams…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/even-our-recreation-was-scheduled-there-was-no-time-to-look-for-birds/) [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) > [“I have qualms and wonder what a qualm would look like if you painted it -- probably like a bowl of melting ice cream…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/i-have-qualms-and-wonder-what-a-qualm-would-look-like-if-you-painted/) [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) > [But will you not have a house to care for? Meals to cook? Children whining for this or that? Will you have time for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/but-will-you-not-have-a-house-to-care-for-meals-to-cook-children/) [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) > [It is hard to give up what you know for what you don’t know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/it-is-hard-to-give-up-what-you-know-for-what-you-don-t-know/) [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) > [I find having your own car is like a passport to the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/i-find-having-your-own-car-is-like-a-passport-to-the-world/) [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) > [People long to go backward in their imagination as well as forward. We don't wish simply to exist forever in some future; we wish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/people-long-to-go-backward-in-their-imagination-as-well-as-forward-we/) [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) > [I thought I understood what was best. I knew too little and believed too soon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/i-thought-i-understood-what-was-best-i-knew-too-little-and-believed/) [Gloria Whelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) [Explore all 15 Gloria Whelan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/) ## More Chance quotes > [Before I debuted, it was my goal to make my debut, and afterwards, I aimed at winning champion titles on television music shows, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyuna/before-i-debuted-it-was-my-goal-to-make-my-debut-and-afterwards-i/) [Hyuna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyuna/) > [I understand it's promotion, but no one ever gave me a chance. No one ever thought I'd be the champ, and look where I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stipe-miocic/i-understand-it-s-promotion-but-no-one-ever-gave-me-a-chance-no-one/) [Stipe Miocic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stipe-miocic/) > [I might, by chance, write something just as shoddy; But then I wouldn't show it to everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/i-might-by-chance-write-something-just-as-shoddy-but-then-i-wouldn-t/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [When I get a chance to play golf or go on a boat with good people, take the boat out and put some lobsters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-mac/when-i-get-a-chance-to-play-golf-or-go-on-a-boat-with-good-people/) [Bernie Mac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-mac/) > [The happy medium is television. And if you find a good suitor, you can do it for years. With movies, you roll the dice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-campbell/the-happy-medium-is-television-and-if-you-find-a-good-suitor-you-can/) [Bruce Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-campbell/) > [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/) [Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/) > [I have heard that if you pull a bent breath through the second hole of a harmonica tuned to the key of Georgia while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buddy-wakefield/i-have-heard-that-if-you-pull-a-bent-breath-through-the-second-hole/) [Buddy Wakefield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buddy-wakefield/) > [There are times when we can feel destiny close around us like a fist around a doorknob. Sure, we can resist. But a knob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/there-are-times-when-we-can-feel-destiny-close-around-us-like-a-fist/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Pain held no terror for him. Pain was, if not friend, then family, something he had grown up with in his crèche, learning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/pain-held-no-terror-for-him-pain-was-if-not-friend-then-family/) [Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/) > [Love changes people, for better or for worse. You could look at it as a chance for you to change. The best kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-changes-people-for-better-or-for-worse-you-could-look-at-it-as-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“It's not who, it's when”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-taubas/it-s-not-who-it-s-when/) Alejandro Taubas > [Childhood is Last Chance Gulch for happiness. After that, you know too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/childhood-is-last-chance-gulch-for-happiness-after-that-you-know-too/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [I thought my first few jobs would just be off, off, off, off, off broadway. And by chance and how the world works, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-dorfman/i-thought-my-first-few-jobs-would-just-be-off-off-off-off-off/) [Tommy Dorfman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-dorfman/) > [If you’re worrying about the past, you’ve got a good chance of screwing up the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-a-tullman/if-you-re-worrying-about-the-past-you-ve-got-a-good-chance-of/) [Howard A. Tullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-a-tullman/) > [To be successful, one must take chances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-stargell/to-be-successful-one-must-take-chances/) [Willie Stargell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-stargell/) [Browse all 12,460 Chance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I felt as if I had no control over what I said, as if loathsome, ugly words were waiting inside me like snakes and toads looking for a chance to sneak out before I could stop them.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gloria Whelan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/i-felt-as-if-i-had-no-control-over-what-i-said-as-if-loathsome-ugly/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Chance" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/i-felt-as-if-i-had-no-control-over-what-i-said-as-if-loathsome-ugly/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/gloria-whelan-31722_chance_i-felt-as-if-i-had-no-control-over-what_1596524.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/gloria-whelan-31722_chance_i-felt-as-if-i-had-no-control-over-what_1596524.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/gloria-whelan-31722_chance_i-felt-as-if-i-had-no-control-over-what_1596524.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I felt as if I had no control over what I said, as if loathsome, ugly words were waiting inside me like…” — Gloria Whelan", "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": "Gloria Whelan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-whelan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I felt as if I had...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/i-felt-as-if-i-had-no-control-over-what-i-said-as-if-loathsome-ugly/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-whelan/i-felt-as-if-i-had-no-control-over-what-i-said-as-if-loathsome-ugly/#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 } } ] } ```