--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: So there are no ill effects?” I asked…" description: "\"“So there are no ill effects?” I asked. “Well, as I said, you could die.” I looked him in the eye, my one good eye flicking back and forth between the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ab/jonathan-messinger-39847_quote_so-there-are-no-ill-effects-i-asked-well_407933.jpg" --- # So there are no ill effects?” I asked. “Well, as I said… ![“So there are no ill effects?” I asked. “Well, as I said, you could die.” I looked him in the eye, my one good eye flicking back and forth between the two of his. “So, if you had to give me odds for living another forty years, say until I was seventy, what would the odds be?” “I’m not very good at…” quote by Jonathan Messinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ab/jonathan-messinger-39847_quote_so-there-are-no-ill-effects-i-asked-well_407933.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ab/jonathan-messinger-39847_quote_so-there-are-no-ill-effects-i-asked-well_407933.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ab/jonathan-messinger-39847_quote_so-there-are-no-ill-effects-i-asked-well_407933.jpg) > ““So there are no ill effects?” I asked. “Well, as I said, you could die.” I looked him in the eye, my one good eye flicking back and forth between the two of his. “So, if you had to give me odds for living another forty years, say until I was seventy, what would the odds be?” “I’m not very good at that sort of thing.” “Ten to one? One hundred to one?” “I’ve never really understood what that means,” he said. “Just give me the odds.” “Of you living till you’re seventy?” he said. “I’d say it’s thirty-five, seventy-five.” I shook my head. Dr. Owen and his nineteenth-century frame, blunt disregard for my need to be reassured and fucked-up math was too much. This man was making my world small. I imagined he was a moon who had just eclipsed me. - "Bicycle Kick”” [Jonathan Messinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-messinger/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A patient asks a doctor for survival odds, receiving vague answers that highlight uncertainty and the human need for reassurance. **In simple terms:** The doctor gives unclear odds, showing how people seek certainty about life. Key Takeaway Seek clarity and realistic expectations when facing health uncertainties. Themes mortality uncertainty doctor‑patient communication Mood anxious thoughtful hopeful Type informative emotional dialogue When to use this quote - medical consultations - end‑of‑life planning - risk assessment - patient advocacy Key Concepts probability psychology of risk trust in expertise Questions to Reflect On - How do vague medical predictions affect patients? - What can patients do to get clearer information? A Different Perspective The doctor’s evasiveness may erode trust. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Forth Odds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forth-odds-3643946/) [Odds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/odds/) [Odds Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/odds-good-334478/) [Odds Living](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/odds-living-3643944/) [Seventy Odds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seventy-odds-3643945/) ## Related quotes > [“The odds may be good, but the goods may be odd.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerusha-jones/the-odds-may-be-good-but-the-goods-may-be-odd/) [Jerusha Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerusha-jones/) > [When it comes to finding available men in Minnesota, the odds are good, but the goods are odd.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrison-keillor/when-it-comes-to-finding-available-men-in-minnesota-the-odds-are-good/) [Garrison Keillor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrison-keillor/) > [Even if we remember the past, odds are good we'll still repeat it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-gavriel-kay/even-if-we-remember-the-past-odds-are-good-we-ll-still-repeat-it/) [Guy Gavriel Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-gavriel-kay/) > [As actors, if you get a pilot on HBO or on USA, your odds are good that it's going to get picked up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-dekay/as-actors-if-you-get-a-pilot-on-hbo-or-on-usa-your-odds-are-good-that/) [Tim DeKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-dekay/) > [“Any odds are good odds for the damned”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-pike/any-odds-are-good-odds-for-the-damned/) [christopher pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-pike/) > [“the odds are good, but the goods are odd”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-masello/the-odds-are-good-but-the-goods-are-odd/) [Robert Masello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-masello/) > [One needs to be slow to form convictions, but once formed they must be defended against the heaviest odds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/one-needs-to-be-slow-to-form-convictions-but-once-formed-they-must-be/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [Anybody who is an entrepreneur is a person who essentially has impaired judgment. 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One hundred to one?” “I’ve never really understood what that means,” he said. “Just give me the odds.” “Of you living till you’re seventy?” he said. “I’d say it’s thirty-five, seventy-five.” I shook my head. Dr. Owen and his nineteenth-century frame, blunt disregard for my need to be reassured and fucked-up math was too much. This man was making my world small. 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