--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People with mental illness are very much…" description: "\"“People with mental illness are very much like people without mental illness only more so. What we lose with a psychotic episode is the comforting assu..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac8/mark-vonnegut-10170_mental_people-with-mental-illness-are-very-much_1415901.png" --- # People with mental illness are very much like people… ![“People with mental illness are very much like people without mental illness only more so. What we lose with a psychotic episode is the comforting assurance that we can’t lose our mind. When most people look down they see solid ground. When I look down, I’m not so sure. Crazy thoughts are not the…” quote by Mark Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac8/mark-vonnegut-10170_mental_people-with-mental-illness-are-very-much_1415901.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac8/mark-vonnegut-10170_mental_people-with-mental-illness-are-very-much_1415901.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac8/mark-vonnegut-10170_mental_people-with-mental-illness-are-very-much_1415901.png) > ““People with mental illness are very much like people without mental illness only more so. What we lose with a psychotic episode is the comforting assurance that we can’t lose our mind. When most people look down they see solid ground. When I look down, I’m not so sure. Crazy thoughts are not the problem. Everyone has crazy thoughts. Hallucinations and delusions tend to catch the attention but aren’t the problem. The problem is that the world becomes discontinuous. We can’t attend to the world and take care of ourselves. So others try to take care of us and they do an imperfect job of it. There is no substitute for being well.”” [Mark Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-vonnegut/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Mental illness creates a sense of unreality that disrupts everyday functioning, making self‑care and engagement with the world difficult. **In simple terms:** Psychosis feels like a broken connection to reality. Key Takeaway Seek stable support and personal grounding. Themes mental health psychosis self‑care support reality Mood reflective empathetic Type personal clinical When to use this quote - clinical therapy - peer support groups - daily grounding practices Key Concepts discontinuity subjective experience social isolation Questions to Reflect On - How does your sense of reality change during crisis? - What small steps can restore continuity? A Different Perspective The quote may overgeneralize experiences; not all psychotic episodes feel the same. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Mental illness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mental-illness/) [Perfect job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perfect-job/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) ## Related quotes > [The vast majority of people who have mental illness problems never hurt anybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/the-vast-majority-of-people-who-have-mental-illness-problems-never/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [People with mental illnesses are dying on our streets. More than 350,000 are in jails and prisons. Most are people whose only real crime…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-earley/people-with-mental-illnesses-are-dying-on-our-streets-more-than-350/) [Pete Earley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-earley/) > [ Portray \[people with mental illness\] sympathetically, and portray them in all the richness and depth of their experience as people, and not as diagnoses. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elyn-saks/portray-people-with-mental-illness-sympathetically-and-portray-them/) [Elyn Saks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elyn-saks/) > [One day, I made a remark that I might work with people with mental illness, and somebody in the press heard it ,and it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalynn-carter/one-day-i-made-a-remark-that-i-might-work-with-people-with-mental/) [Rosalynn Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalynn-carter/) > [When I talk to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) and other patient support groups, I take questions at the end. At one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-vonnegut/when-i-talk-to-the-national-alliance-on-mental-illness-nami-and-other/) [Mark Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-vonnegut/) > [“At the end of his life, which had included financial ruin in the Great Depression, his wife's barbiturate addiction and death by overdose, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-vonnegut/at-the-end-of-his-life-which-had-included-financial-ruin-in-the-great/) [Mark Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-vonnegut/) > [With mental illness the trick is to not take your feelings so seriously; you’re zooming in and zooming away from things that go from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-vonnegut/with-mental-illness-the-trick-is-to-not-take-your-feelings-so/) [Mark Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-vonnegut/) > [Colds, ulcers, flu, and cancer are things we get. Schizophrenia is something we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-vonnegut/colds-ulcers-flu-and-cancer-are-things-we-get-schizophrenia-is/) [Mark Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-vonnegut/) > [“All the logic in the world could not blunt the pain. Logic could not blunt her terrible sense of personal failure. Only time would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/all-the-logic-in-the-world-could-not-blunt-the-pain-logic-could-not/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Management is the perfect job because when my mind is focused it's incredibly productive. When it gets unfocused or I have lots of free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joey-barton/management-is-the-perfect-job-because-when-my-mind-is-focused-it-s/) [Joey Barton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joey-barton/) > [“The police have the perfect job for abducting people!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-police-have-the-perfect-job-for-abducting-people/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [I don't think I've found the perfect job for me, but I know what I like, so that's halfway there, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-haskell/i-don-t-think-i-ve-found-the-perfect-job-for-me-but-i-know-what-i/) [Colleen Haskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-haskell/) > [We dream of the perfect wave, the perfect job, the perfect house. When we get there, we dream of something else,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-machado/we-dream-of-the-perfect-wave-the-perfect-job-the-perfect-house-when/) [Rob Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-machado/) > [My 20s were all about feeling desperate. Desperate to find a new boyfriend. Desperate to get the perfect job. Desperate to get rid of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessi-klein/my-20s-were-all-about-feeling-desperate-desperate-to-find-a-new/) [Jessi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessi-klein/) > [“The mood at the table is convivial throughout the meal. A dried-sausage and prosciutto plate gives way to briny sardines, which give way to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-rosen/the-mood-at-the-table-is-convivial-throughout-the-meal-a-dried/) Ali Rosen ## More by Mark Vonnegut > [Most adults have forgotten what they had to do to survive childhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-vonnegut/most-adults-have-forgotten-what-they-had-to-do-to-survive-childhood/) [Mark Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-vonnegut/) > [I didn't like the '60s because it was too important what people who had nothing to do with the war thought about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-vonnegut/i-didn-t-like-the-60s-because-it-was-too-important-what-people-who/) [Mark Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-vonnegut/) > [“He couldn't help thinking that all that money we were spending blowing up things and killing people so far away, making people the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-vonnegut/he-couldn-t-help-thinking-that-all-that-money-we-were-spending/) [Mark Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-vonnegut/) > [“Beyond a certain point, gathering further evidence of the hurtfulness and shortcomings of one’s family, employer, et cetera is like eating the same poisonous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-vonnegut/beyond-a-certain-point-gathering-further-evidence-of-the-hurtfulness/) [Mark Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-vonnegut/) > [“I often took him as one of God's little jokes on me. 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Having…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-vonnegut/i-don-t-think-the-people-today-who-start-hearing-voices-stop-eating/) [Mark Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-vonnegut/) > [“At the end of his life, which had included financial ruin in the Great Depression, his wife's barbiturate addiction and death by overdose, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-vonnegut/at-the-end-of-his-life-which-had-included-financial-ruin-in-the-great/) [Mark Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-vonnegut/) > [“My parents were told by the principal of West Barnstable Elementary School and my teacher that I was a bright boy whose spelling was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-vonnegut/my-parents-were-told-by-the-principal-of-west-barnstable-elementary/) [Mark Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-vonnegut/) > [“If you want to pick out the people who go crazy from time to time in my family, find the ones in the photos…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-vonnegut/if-you-want-to-pick-out-the-people-who-go-crazy-from-time-to-time-in/) [Mark Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-vonnegut/) [Explore all 67 Mark Vonnegut quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-vonnegut/) ## More Mental quotes > [“This one’s mental.’ ‘Eccentric.’ ‘What’s the difference?’ ‘A bag of cash.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/this-one-s-mental-eccentric-what-s-the-difference-a-bag-of-cash/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [Sport is not just about entertainment. It is equally about winning and losing, pooling and galvanising the energy of the youth, upgrading people's physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-ambani/sport-is-not-just-about-entertainment-it-is-equally-about-winning-and/) [Nita Ambani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-ambani/) > [Biggest Challenges in life are more mental then physical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/biggest-challenges-in-life-are-more-mental-then-physical/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think a big part of success in football is mental, not physical. How you are inside your head matters more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iker-casillas/i-think-a-big-part-of-success-in-football-is-mental-not-physical-how/) [Iker Casillas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iker-casillas/) > [Mental health is an issue close to my heart - an issue, indeed, I've covered repeatedly for Channel 4 News.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathy-newman/mental-health-is-an-issue-close-to-my-heart-an-issue-indeed-i-ve/) [Cathy Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathy-newman/) > [Be curious not judge mental](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknow/be-curious-not-judge-mental/) Unknow > [Because there is actually something very interesting in Goodfellas, how the style of the film changes as time goes by and based on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-cox/because-there-is-actually-something-very-interesting-in-goodfellas/) [Alex Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-cox/) > [“It is unnatural to fear something natural.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/it-is-unnatural-to-fear-something-natural/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [I think we need to talk about mental illness a lot more. People complain about tax dollars and say we don't have the money.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nia-long/i-think-we-need-to-talk-about-mental-illness-a-lot-more-people/) [Nia Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nia-long/) > [“Mental illness is not something you misunderstand in this era. Get educated because bias is no different than racism.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/mental-illness-is-not-something-you-misunderstand-in-this-era-get/) [Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/) > [Ninety-nine percent of getting over a problem is mental.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-hopkins/ninety-nine-percent-of-getting-over-a-problem-is-mental/) [Bernard Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-hopkins/) > [The first principle of cognitive therapy is that all your moods are created by your 'cognitions,' or thoughts. A cognition refers to the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-d-burns/the-first-principle-of-cognitive-therapy-is-that-all-your-moods-are/) [David D. Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-d-burns/) > [Those things that give you pleasure, they can only give you mental pain...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mazher-mazher50/those-things-that-give-you-pleasure-they-can-only-give-you-mental-pain/) Mazher (@mazher50 > [It is true that my mental age is quite young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ok-taec-yeon/it-is-true-that-my-mental-age-is-quite-young/) [Ok Taec-yeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ok-taec-yeon/) > [“My mind," he said, "rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram or the most intricate analysis,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/my-mind-he-said-rebels-at-stagnation-give-me-problems-give-me-work/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) Browse all 1,466 Mental quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“People with mental illness are very much like people without mental illness only more so. What we lose with a psychotic episode is the comforting assurance that we can’t lose our mind. When most people look down they see solid ground. When I look down, I’m not so sure. Crazy thoughts are not the problem. Everyone has crazy thoughts. Hallucinations and delusions tend to catch the attention but aren’t the problem. The problem is that the world becomes discontinuous. We can’t attend to the world and take care of ourselves. 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