---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You may cure yourself of a depression by…"
description: "\"You may cure yourself of a depression by forcing yourself to perform, in rapid order and with excruciating concentration, half a dozen or so unpleasant..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b69/robert-grudin-13477_chores_you-may-cure-yourself-of-a-depression-by_2018182.jpg"
---

#  You may cure yourself of a depression by forcing yourself…

![“You may cure yourself of a depression by forcing yourself to perform, in rapid order and with excruciating concentration, half a dozen or so unpleasant chores, especially if they have long been postponed. This is a kind of homeopathic purgative, a treatment of like with like.” quote by Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b69/robert-grudin-13477_chores_you-may-cure-yourself-of-a-depression-by_2018182.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b69/robert-grudin-13477_chores_you-may-cure-yourself-of-a-depression-by_2018182.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b69/robert-grudin-13477_chores_you-may-cure-yourself-of-a-depression-by_2018182.jpg)

> “You may cure yourself of a depression by forcing yourself to perform, in rapid order and with excruciating concentration, half a dozen or so unpleasant chores, especially if they have long been postponed. This is a kind of homeopathic purgative, a treatment of like with like.”

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Performing postponed unpleasant tasks with intense focus can act as a therapeutic purge, treating the mind like a disease needing a matching remedy.

**In simple terms:** Doing delayed chores intensely can lift depression.

Key Takeaway

Tackle postponed tasks with focus.

Themes

mental health productivity self‑help

Mood

practical encouraging

Type

advice self‑help

When to use this quote

- daily chores
- time management
- stress relief

Key Concepts

behavioral therapy homeopathic principle self‑discipline

Questions to Reflect On

- Which chore could you start now?
- How does focused action affect your mood?

A Different Perspective

It may not address underlying causes of depression.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Concentration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concentration/) [Depression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/depression/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Treatment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/treatment/)

## Related quotes

> [Perspective is the cure for depression.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bono/perspective-is-the-cure-for-depression/)

[Bono](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bono/)

> [A stroke is a very difficult thing. You get depressed. . . . What I found was this: the cure for depression is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirk-douglas/a-stroke-is-a-very-difficult-thing-you-get-depressed-what-i-found-was/)

[Kirk Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirk-douglas/)

> [Laugh at yourself and at life. Not in the spirit of derision or whining self-pity, but as a remedy, a miracle drug, that will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/og-mandino/laugh-at-yourself-and-at-life-not-in-the-spirit-of-derision-or-2/)

[Og Mandino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/og-mandino/)

> [“Best cure for depression? Watch Indian movies. They will make you laugh, cry, keep you wondering how silly humans can be while being captivated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kambiz-mostofizadeh/best-cure-for-depression-watch-indian-movies-they-will-make-you-laugh/)

[Kambiz Mostofizadeh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kambiz-mostofizadeh/)

> [I find myself frequently depressed - perhaps more so than any other person here. And I find no better cure for that depression than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/i-find-myself-frequently-depressed-perhaps-more-so-than-any-other/)

[Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/)

> [Laugh at yourself and at life. Not in the spirit of derision or whining self-pity, but as a remedy, a miracle drug, that will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/og-mandino/laugh-at-yourself-and-at-life-not-in-the-spirit-of-derision-or/)

[Og Mandino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/og-mandino/)

> [I start to think there really is no cure for depression, that happiness is an ongoing battle, and I wonder if it isn't one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/i-start-to-think-there-really-is-no-cure-for-depression-that/)

[Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/)

> [I was very academically inclined. But my inner life was in such turmoil. I'd go home and my home life was so miserable that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonja-sohn/i-was-very-academically-inclined-but-my-inner-life-was-in-such/)

[Sonja Sohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonja-sohn/)

> [I have fun writing. I don't make it a chore. I don't have to struggle with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/i-have-fun-writing-i-don-t-make-it-a-chore-i-don-t-have-to-struggle/)

[Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/)

> [If I'm home with no chore at hand, and a package of books has come, the television set and the chess board and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/if-i-m-home-with-no-chore-at-hand-and-a-package-of-books-has-come-the/)

[Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/)

> [I'm a big advocate of a work-for-pay setup rather than an allowance that isn't attached to chores - it's a great way to impart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suze-orman/i-m-a-big-advocate-of-a-work-for-pay-setup-rather-than-an-allowance/)

[Suze Orman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suze-orman/)

> [If you can, start your own business while you're working another job so that your bills get paid. Choose something that you love, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-roy/if-you-can-start-your-own-business-while-you-re-working-another-job/)

[Rachel Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-roy/)

> [Naive optimism and pervasive pessimism are both to be avoided, therefore. It's not an easy balance to maintain, to be asked to work away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/naive-optimism-and-pervasive-pessimism-are-both-to-be-avoided/)

[Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/)

> [I actually recommend as little actual counting as possible in a life partnership. But, when there's a sense of injustice brewing between you, some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-hax/i-actually-recommend-as-little-actual-counting-as-possible-in-a-life/)

[Carolyn Hax](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-hax/)

> [I don't enjoy killing, but when done righteously, it's just a chore, like any other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua/i-don-t-enjoy-killing-but-when-done-righteously-it-s-just-a-chore/)

[Joshua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua/)

## More by Robert Grudin

> [If the estimated age of the cosmos were shortened to seventy-two years, a human life would take about ten seconds. But look at time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/if-the-estimated-age-of-the-cosmos-were-shortened-to-seventy-two/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [Truth is rhythmical: if it implies stasis, it is platitude. Truth is syncopated: if it supplies all the terms, there is one term too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/truth-is-rhythmical-if-it-implies-stasis-it-is-platitude-truth-is/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [“Because we believe that one moment is more or less like the next, we lose touch with the essential urgency of the present, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/because-we-believe-that-one-moment-is-more-or-less-like-the-next-we/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [To be open to inspiration, one must cultivate a leaning for the problematic, a chronic attraction to things that do not totally fit, agree,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/to-be-open-to-inspiration-one-must-cultivate-a-leaning-for-the/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [“...like gravity, beauty is a force whose existence is inferred from its apparent effects.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/like-gravity-beauty-is-a-force-whose-existence-is-inferred-from-its/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [Those who labor for bread or money alone are condemned to their reward.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/those-who-labor-for-bread-or-money-alone-are-condemned-to-their-reward/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [The happy individual is able to renew daily and with full consciousness all the basic expressions of human identity: work, love, communication, play, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/the-happy-individual-is-able-to-renew-daily-and-with-full/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [No psychological message is so open to question as that which tells us that we have nothing left to do or to give.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/no-psychological-message-is-so-open-to-question-as-that-which-tells/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [Happiness may well consist primarily of an attitude toward time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/happiness-may-well-consist-primarily-of-an-attitude-toward-time/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [Psychologically time is seldom homogenous but rather is as full of shapes as space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/psychologically-time-is-seldom-homogenous-but-rather-is-as-full-of/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [Individuals we consider happy commonly seem complete in the present and we see them constantly in their wholeness: attentive, cheerful, open rather than closed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/individuals-we-consider-happy-commonly-seem-complete-in-the-present/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [The extent to which we live from day to day, from week to week, intent on details and oblivious to larger presences, is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/the-extent-to-which-we-live-from-day-to-day-from-week-to-week-intent/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [Excellence of mind itself, rightly conceived, is expertise in beauty; creativity is wise love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/excellence-of-mind-itself-rightly-conceived-is-expertise-in-beauty/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [True intimacy is a human constant. People of all types find it equally hard to achieve, equally precious to hold. Age, education, social status,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/true-intimacy-is-a-human-constant-people-of-all-types-find-it-equally/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

> [At pains to define liberty, that most resolute of indefinables, our minds fall back on spatial images; on birds, sailboats, and mountains; the untethered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/at-pains-to-define-liberty-that-most-resolute-of-indefinables-our/)

[Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

[Explore all 50 Robert Grudin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/)

## More Chores quotes

> [I don't enjoy killing, but when done righteously, it's just a chore, like any other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua/i-don-t-enjoy-killing-but-when-done-righteously-it-s-just-a-chore/)

[Joshua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua/)

> [I actually recommend as little actual counting as possible in a life partnership. But, when there's a sense of injustice brewing between you, some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-hax/i-actually-recommend-as-little-actual-counting-as-possible-in-a-life/)

[Carolyn Hax](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-hax/)

> [Naive optimism and pervasive pessimism are both to be avoided, therefore. It's not an easy balance to maintain, to be asked to work away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/naive-optimism-and-pervasive-pessimism-are-both-to-be-avoided/)

[Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/)

> [If you can, start your own business while you're working another job so that your bills get paid. Choose something that you love, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-roy/if-you-can-start-your-own-business-while-you-re-working-another-job/)

[Rachel Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-roy/)

> [I'm a big advocate of a work-for-pay setup rather than an allowance that isn't attached to chores - it's a great way to impart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suze-orman/i-m-a-big-advocate-of-a-work-for-pay-setup-rather-than-an-allowance/)

[Suze Orman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suze-orman/)

> [If I'm home with no chore at hand, and a package of books has come, the television set and the chess board and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/if-i-m-home-with-no-chore-at-hand-and-a-package-of-books-has-come-the/)

[Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/)

> [I have fun writing. I don't make it a chore. I don't have to struggle with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/i-have-fun-writing-i-don-t-make-it-a-chore-i-don-t-have-to-struggle/)

[Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/)

> [I was very academically inclined. But my inner life was in such turmoil. I'd go home and my home life was so miserable that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonja-sohn/i-was-very-academically-inclined-but-my-inner-life-was-in-such/)

[Sonja Sohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonja-sohn/)

> [I long for the bulbs to arrive, for the early autumn chores are melancholy, but the planting of bulbs is the work of hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-long-for-the-bulbs-to-arrive-for-the-early-autumn-chores-are/)

[May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/)

> [Thinking critically is a chore. It does not come naturally or easily. And if the fruits of such efforts are not carefully displayed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perry-deangelis/thinking-critically-is-a-chore-it-does-not-come-naturally-or-easily/)

Perry DeAngelis

> [Reading is awesome and flexible and fits around chores and earning money and building the future and whatever else I’m doing that day. My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-walton/reading-is-awesome-and-flexible-and-fits-around-chores-and-earning/)

[Jo Walton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-walton/)

> [Helping others isn't a chore; it is one of the greatest gifts there is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liya-kebede/helping-others-isn-t-a-chore-it-is-one-of-the-greatest-gifts-there-is/)

[Liya Kebede](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liya-kebede/)

> [My idea of superwoman is someone who scrubs her own floors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bette-midler/my-idea-of-superwoman-is-someone-who-scrubs-her-own-floors/)

[Bette Midler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bette-midler/)

> [Actually, what will be shown from here to eternity will be Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr cavorting on the beach. From Here to Eternity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manny-farber/actually-what-will-be-shown-from-here-to-eternity-will-be-burt/)

[Manny Farber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manny-farber/)

> [“Please report to Supreme Commander Leo for your superfun list of chores!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/please-report-to-supreme-commander-leo-for-your-superfun-list-of/)

[Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/)

Browse all 249 Chores quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "You may cure yourself of a depression by forcing yourself to perform, in rapid order and with excruciating concentration, half a dozen or so unpleasant chores, especially if they have long been postponed. This is a kind of homeopathic purgative, a treatment of like with like.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Robert Grudin"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/you-may-cure-yourself-of-a-depression-by-forcing-yourself-to-perform/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Chores"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/you-may-cure-yourself-of-a-depression-by-forcing-yourself-to-perform/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b69/robert-grudin-13477_chores_you-may-cure-yourself-of-a-depression-by_2018182.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b69/robert-grudin-13477_chores_you-may-cure-yourself-of-a-depression-by_2018182.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b69/robert-grudin-13477_chores_you-may-cure-yourself-of-a-depression-by_2018182.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“You may cure yourself of a depression by forcing yourself to perform, in rapid order and with excruciating…” — Robert Grudin",
                "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": "Robert Grudin",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "You may cure yourself of a...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/you-may-cure-yourself-of-a-depression-by-forcing-yourself-to-perform/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/you-may-cure-yourself-of-a-depression-by-forcing-yourself-to-perform/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
