--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is two years since I emerged from…" description: "\"“It is two years since I emerged from depression and I no longer want myself dead. I want myself alive. I am no longer my own enemy. Depression is the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb4/sally-brampton-19544_depression_it-is-two-years-since-i-emerged-from-dep_993541.jpg" --- # It is two years since I emerged from depression and I no… ![“It is two years since I emerged from depression and I no longer want myself dead. I want myself alive. I am no longer my own enemy. Depression is the enemy. The monster lives at my gate. My hope is that, with sufficient effort and luck, I can keep it there.” quote by Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb4/sally-brampton-19544_depression_it-is-two-years-since-i-emerged-from-dep_993541.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb4/sally-brampton-19544_depression_it-is-two-years-since-i-emerged-from-dep_993541.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb4/sally-brampton-19544_depression_it-is-two-years-since-i-emerged-from-dep_993541.jpg) > ““It is two years since I emerged from depression and I no longer want myself dead. I want myself alive. I am no longer my own enemy. Depression is the enemy. The monster lives at my gate. My hope is that, with sufficient effort and luck, I can keep it there.”” [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. After emerging from depression, the writer frames the condition as an external monster to be kept at bay with effort and hope. **In simple terms:** Depression is an external battle that requires ongoing effort. Key Takeaway Keep hope alive and fight the inner monster. Themes mental health hope resilience self‑care Mood determined hopeful Type motivational self‑help When to use this quote - post‑depression therapy - daily journaling - support groups - mindfulness practice Key Concepts psychology addiction recovery Questions to Reflect On - What strategies sustain your hope? - How do you recognize early signs of relapse? A Different Perspective Recovery is not linear; setbacks may recur. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Depression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/depression/) ## Related quotes > [The more these readjustments are delayed ... the longer the depression will have to last, and the longer complete recovery is postponed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-rothbard/the-more-these-readjustments-are-delayed-the-longer-the-depression/) [Murray Rothbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-rothbard/) > [“Depression is the enemy of action.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-w-ironmonger/depression-is-the-enemy-of-action/) [J.W. Ironmonger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-w-ironmonger/) > [ “\[H\]e could feel his unshakable enemy, depression, blooming in him like a pernicious flower that could never quite be ripped out.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-speed/h-e-could-feel-his-unshakable-enemy-depression-blooming-in-him-like-a/) [Andrea Speed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-speed/) > [In the depth of the near depression, that he faced when he came in, Barack Obama and Democratic leaders in Congress provided 'recovery funds'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-hunt/in-the-depth-of-the-near-depression-that-he-faced-when-he-came-in/) [Jim Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-hunt/) > [One or two years ago, I didn't know who I was on court and I used to swear a lot. But now I've learned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-federer/one-or-two-years-ago-i-didn-t-know-who-i-was-on-court-and-i-used-to/) [Roger Federer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-federer/) > [You can make more friends in two months by becoming more interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/you-can-make-more-friends-in-two-months-by-becoming-more-interested/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [I spent two years in Palo Alto - what an awful, suffocating place for those of us who don't care about yoga, yogurts and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evgeny-morozov/i-spent-two-years-in-palo-alto-what-an-awful-suffocating-place-for/) [Evgeny Morozov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evgeny-morozov/) > [“Several times that day, the name or thought of Papa had come up. And each time, Francie had felt a flash of tenderness instead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/several-times-that-day-the-name-or-thought-of-papa-had-come-up-and/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [“The man could stop her heart, then send it into full gallop. Just a look at him. They’d been married more than two years,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-robb/the-man-could-stop-her-heart-then-send-it-into-full-gallop-just-a/) [J.D. Robb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-robb/) > [I am a big outliner. For my adult book, 'The Visibles,' I did not outline, and it took me two years to write because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-shepard/i-am-a-big-outliner-for-my-adult-book-the-visibles-i-did-not-outline/) [Sara Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-shepard/) > [You know, by the time you reach my age, you've made plenty of mistakes if you've lived your life properly. So you learn. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/you-know-by-the-time-you-reach-my-age-you-ve-made-plenty-of-mistakes/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [I don't think I've ever bench-pressed anything in my life. Until about two years ago I swam a mile almost every day. Then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-antosca/i-don-t-think-i-ve-ever-bench-pressed-anything-in-my-life-until-about/) [Nick Antosca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-antosca/) > [I don't want to go into space because of war. I think we would if it was triggered. If China said they want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/i-don-t-want-to-go-into-space-because-of-war-i-think-we-would-if-it/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [My first ever job after college was as a flight attendant. I wanted to travel and could not afford it, so I decided to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-winspear/my-first-ever-job-after-college-was-as-a-flight-attendant-i-wanted-to/) [Jacqueline Winspear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-winspear/) > [When I came to Chelsea, it was clear that, like many other players, I would first be loaned out. So I went to Belgium…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thorgan-hazard/when-i-came-to-chelsea-it-was-clear-that-like-many-other-players-i/) [Thorgan Hazard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thorgan-hazard/) ## More by Sally Brampton > [“One thing I know is true. Try never to abandon hope for if you do, hope will surely try to abandon you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/one-thing-i-know-is-true-try-never-to-abandon-hope-for-if-you-do-hope/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [“If our minds can hold us back, then they can push us forwards too.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/if-our-minds-can-hold-us-back-then-they-can-push-us-forwards-too/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [“Imagine saying to somebody that you have a life-threatening illness, such as cancer, and being told to pull yourself together or get over it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/imagine-saying-to-somebody-that-you-have-a-life-threatening-illness/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [“I once read a theory about ‘positive thinking’ that seems to be true or, at least, made a sufficient impression on me to remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/i-once-read-a-theory-about-positive-thinking-that-seems-to-be-true-or/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [“Bad enough to be ill, but to feel compelled to deny the very thing that, in its worst and most active state, defines you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/bad-enough-to-be-ill-but-to-feel-compelled-to-deny-the-very-thing/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [“What we resist, will persist.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/what-we-resist-will-persist/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [“Killing oneself is, anyway, a misnomer. We don't kill ourselves. We are simply defeated by the long, hard struggle to stay alive. When somebody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/killing-oneself-is-anyway-a-misnomer-we-don-t-kill-ourselves-we-are/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [“I would not wish depression on anybody. And yet, it taught me a lot. I have not become suddenly mawkishly grateful for my life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/i-would-not-wish-depression-on-anybody-and-yet-it-taught-me-a-lot-i/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [As weird as it might seem to some people, there is nothing I love more than an empty house and the sound of silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/as-weird-as-it-might-seem-to-some-people-there-is-nothing-i-love-more/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [In this cash-rich, time-poor culture of ours, the most precious commodity we have is time...volunteering our precious time, is in this brutally self-involved world,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/in-this-cash-rich-time-poor-culture-of-ours-the-most-precious/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [“Try never to abandon hope for if you do, hope will surely try to abandon you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/try-never-to-abandon-hope-for-if-you-do-hope-will-surely-try-to/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [“Sometimes," says a fellow depressive, "I wish I was in a full body cast, with every bone in my body broken. That's how I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/sometimes-says-a-fellow-depressive-i-wish-i-was-in-a-full-body-cast/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [“Wanting to die (or 'suicidal ideation'as the experts would have it) goes hand in hand with the illness. It is a symptom of severe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/wanting-to-die-or-suicidal-ideation-as-the-experts-would-have-it-goes/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [“I find it easy to spot a depressive. The illness is scrawled across them like graffiti.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/i-find-it-easy-to-spot-a-depressive-the-illness-is-scrawled-across/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) > [“We are not easy to help. Nor are we easy to be around. Nobody with a serious illness is easy to be around. Although…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-brampton/we-are-not-easy-to-help-nor-are-we-easy-to-be-around-nobody-with-a/) [Sally Brampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) [Explore all 32 Sally Brampton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-brampton/) ## More Depression quotes > [These joys were so trifling as to be as imperceptible as grains of gold among the sand, and in moments of depression she saw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/these-joys-were-so-trifling-as-to-be-as-imperceptible-as-grains-of/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [“As ofttimes as it rains on my little spot of earth, you'd think I'd grow accustomed to the gloom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/as-ofttimes-as-it-rains-on-my-little-spot-of-earth-you-d-think-i-d/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [There's only so much for a man to take...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsten-gilchrist/there-s-only-so-much-for-a-man-to-take/) Kirsten Gilchrist > [“my stomach turned and burned with the acid of failure”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-ames/my-stomach-turned-and-burned-with-the-acid-of-failure/) Heidi Ames > [That is the real problem of depression - a condition which will affect an estimated one in five of the population at some point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-andreae/that-is-the-real-problem-of-depression-a-condition-which-will-affect/) [Giles Andreae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-andreae/) > [Im tired, tired of putting more effort than you do. Im tired of always having to start the conversation and if I dont, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-tired-tired-of-putting-more-effort-than-you-do-im-tired-of-always/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Once upon a time, there was a naïve and innocent girl who thought she could tame the beast and live happily ever after. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nenia-campbell/once-upon-a-time-there-was-a-na-ve-and-innocent-girl-who-thought-she/) [Nenia Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nenia-campbell/) > [“Why in depression" "If we are human, why not have the right to smile, Why in depression, young, and beautiful as earth, Why in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yanilsa-pena/why-in-depression-if-we-are-human-why-not-have-the-right-to-smile-why/) Yanilsa pena > [“Depression makes me stronger”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shayamalan/depression-makes-me-stronger/) Shayamalan > [“Shorter believes that psychosomatic illnesses (such as leg paralysis at the turn of the twentieth century or multiple personality disorder at the turn of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-watters/shorter-believes-that-psychosomatic-illnesses-such-as-leg-paralysis/) [Ethan Watters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-watters/) > [Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/depression-is-merely-anger-without-enthusiasm/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [Repression will provoke rebellion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-williamson/repression-will-provoke-rebellion/) Hugh Williamson > [I'm certainly not a perfect mother, but I'm trying to be what my mother wasn't for me. My mother's battled depression, so I understand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-hamill/i-m-certainly-not-a-perfect-mother-but-i-m-trying-to-be-what-my/) [Dorothy Hamill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-hamill/) > [Every trial endured and weathered in the right spirit makes a soul nobler and stronger than it was before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-buckham-kennedy/every-trial-endured-and-weathered-in-the-right-spirit-makes-a-soul/) James Buckham Kennedy > [Scars by Papa Roach. <3](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophielianne/scars-by-papa-roach-3/) Sophielianne [Browse all 4,965 Depression quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/depression/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It is two years since I emerged from depression and I no longer want myself dead. I want myself alive. I am no longer my own enemy. Depression is the enemy. The monster lives at my gate. 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