--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The thing about Whitney,\" I said, \"is…" description: "\"“The thing about Whitney,\" I said, \"is that she was always really private. So you never knew if anything was wrong with her.”\" — Sarah Dessen" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3a/sarah-dessen-110_private_the-thing-about-whitney-i-said-is-that-s_3109415.png" --- # The thing about Whitney," I said, "is that she was always… ![“The thing about Whitney," I said, "is that she was always really private. So you never knew if anything was wrong with her.” quote by Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3a/sarah-dessen-110_private_the-thing-about-whitney-i-said-is-that-s_3109415.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3a/sarah-dessen-110_private_the-thing-about-whitney-i-said-is-that-s_3109415.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3a/sarah-dessen-110_private_the-thing-about-whitney-i-said-is-that-s_3109415.png) > ““The thing about Whitney," I said, "is that she was always really private. So you never knew if anything was wrong with her.”” [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She emphasizes that Whitney’s private nature made it impossible to detect her struggles. **In simple terms:** Privacy can hide personal pain. Key Takeaway Pay attention to subtle signs of distress. Themes privacy relationships empathy Mood concerned reflective Type observational advice When to use this quote - friendships - family dynamics - mental health monitoring Key Concepts emotional intelligence social perception Questions to Reflect On - How can you respect privacy while offering support? - What signs might indicate hidden distress? A Different Perspective Privacy may also protect personal boundaries and prevent unwarranted intrusion. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Private](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/private/) [Private Knew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/private-knew-5295676/) [Really Private](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/really-private-240289/) [Thing Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thing-whitney-5425864/) [Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whitney/) [Whitney Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whitney-said-5425863/) ## Related quotes > [I'm as moody and complex and private as anyone I ever knew.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-o-neal/i-m-as-moody-and-complex-and-private-as-anyone-i-ever-knew/) [Ryan O'Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-o-neal/) > [I realized that my identity as a novelist was private. Only I knew how much of a novelist I was!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-chee/i-realized-that-my-identity-as-a-novelist-was-private-only-i-knew-how/) [Alexander Chee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-chee/) > [I've always been really private about my personal life. I don't talk about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agyness-deyn/i-ve-always-been-really-private-about-my-personal-life-i-don-t-talk/) [Agyness Deyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agyness-deyn/) > [I'm really private, and also, when I'm home, I'm home. I don't like people in on my business. I believe that you can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-allan/i-m-really-private-and-also-when-i-m-home-i-m-home-i-don-t-like/) [Gary Allan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-allan/) > [One open, one closed. It was no wonder that the first image that came to mind when I thought of either of my sisters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/one-open-one-closed-it-was-no-wonder-that-the-first-image-that-came/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [“I am still the center sister. But I see it differently now. There has to be a middle. Without it, nothing can truly be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/i-am-still-the-center-sister-but-i-see-it-differently-now-there-has/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [What was a really private and nice relationship was judged and made to be something ugly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marla-maples/what-was-a-really-private-and-nice-relationship-was-judged-and-made/) [Marla Maples](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marla-maples/) > [I've chosen not to talk about my really private life to the press - I've never invited a huge amount of attention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-myles/i-ve-chosen-not-to-talk-about-my-really-private-life-to-the-press-i/) [Sophia Myles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-myles/) > [Look at Kate Bush, Patti Smith, Yoko Ono - three really private people, but when they're on stage or when they're singing, they let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viv-albertine/look-at-kate-bush-patti-smith-yoko-ono-three-really-private-people/) [Viv Albertine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viv-albertine/) > [When people talk about my business, my life, I'm really private. Maybe someone thinks I'm arrogant or something, but it's just me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-balotelli/when-people-talk-about-my-business-my-life-i-m-really-private-maybe/) [Mario Balotelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-balotelli/) > [Car-essential is a real turn-off to me, so yeah, I just want a friendly holiday resort with a villa and a pool, but which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-webb/car-essential-is-a-real-turn-off-to-me-so-yeah-i-just-want-a-friendly/) [Robert Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-webb/) > [When we go to sleep ordinarily, we're doing something really private. It's kind of an intimate, private connection with our sort of physical humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-richter/when-we-go-to-sleep-ordinarily-we-re-doing-something-really-private/) [Max Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-richter/) > [Listen, I've done a lot of TV shows, people honestly don't care about me. Sometimes that's annoying because I wished that people cared a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-crosby/listen-i-ve-done-a-lot-of-tv-shows-people-honestly-don-t-care-about/) [Charlotte Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-crosby/) > [If I go to the city, I'm happy that I'm free, that nobody knows who I am. I guess we have done a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-schumacher/if-i-go-to-the-city-i-m-happy-that-i-m-free-that-nobody-knows-who-i/) [Mick Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-schumacher/) > [I've always been really private.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-nash/i-ve-always-been-really-private/) [Kate Nash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-nash/) ## More by Sarah Dessen > [Sometimes a question can hurt more than an answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/sometimes-a-question-can-hurt-more-than-an-answer/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [“if i were a book i would be so open”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/if-i-were-a-book-i-would-be-so-open/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [Harder to get in than out, like so little else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/harder-to-get-in-than-out-like-so-little-else/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [“At times, I found myself questioning his very existence, even though I knew I had, in fact, spotted him, with my own eyes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/at-times-i-found-myself-questioning-his-very-existence-even-though-i/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [You don't have to say it out loud. I already know why you like me.' 'You do, huh?' 'Yep.' He wrapped his arms around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/you-don-t-have-to-say-it-out-loud-i-already-know-why-you-like-me-you/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [No relationship is perfect, ever. There are always some ways you have to bend, to compromise, to give something up in order to gain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/no-relationship-is-perfect-ever-there-are-always-some-ways-you-have/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [When you had to do something, you had to do it. And eventually, if you were lucky, you did it well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/when-you-had-to-do-something-you-had-to-do-it-and-eventually-if-you/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [the truth about forever is that it is happening right now](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/the-truth-about-forever-is-that-it-is-happening-right-now/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [I jammed my hand in my jacket pocket, bracing myself fo the next hit, and fel something. Something grainy and samll, sticking to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/i-jammed-my-hand-in-my-jacket-pocket-bracing-myself-fo-the-next-hit/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [I had no illusions about love anymore. It came, it went, it left casualties or it didn't. People weren't meant to be together forever,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/i-had-no-illusions-about-love-anymore-it-came-it-went-it-left/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [“But maybe that isn't so bad. You can't love anyone that way more than once in a lifetime. It's too hard and it hurts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/but-maybe-that-isn-t-so-bad-you-can-t-love-anyone-that-way-more-than/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [This was just one night, one chance to vary and see where it took me. The fireflies were probably already out: maybe it wasn’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/this-was-just-one-night-one-chance-to-vary-and-see-where-it-took-me/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [call it chicken salad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/call-it-chicken-salad/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [“For me, however, it was a mix of the two, this constant push and pull. I loved it here. But I'd been in that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/for-me-however-it-was-a-mix-of-the-two-this-constant-push-and-pull-i/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [I think whenever a writer is really enjoying themselves and liking what they are doing, that shows on the page.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/i-think-whenever-a-writer-is-really-enjoying-themselves-and-liking/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) [Explore all 1,251 Sarah Dessen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) ## More Private quotes > [I don't like to meddle in my private affairs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/i-don-t-like-to-meddle-in-my-private-affairs/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) > [Nothing is more private than a woman's body; it is her physical, emotional, and moral citadel. She cannot be free at all if she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-b-smedes/nothing-is-more-private-than-a-woman-s-body-it-is-her-physical/) [Lewis B. Smedes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-b-smedes/) > [Markets are designed to allow individuals to look after their private needs and to pursue profit. It's really a great invention and I wouldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/markets-are-designed-to-allow-individuals-to-look-after-their-private/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) > [I'm against unanswerable concentrations of power, whether that be government or private industry or religious figures - anybody who is not accountable to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-suarez/i-m-against-unanswerable-concentrations-of-power-whether-that-be/) [Daniel Suarez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-suarez/) > [Each time I think I've created time for myself, along comes a throwback to disrupt my private space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/each-time-i-think-i-ve-created-time-for-myself-along-comes-a/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [Research promoted by NARA within a major coalition of Federal and private sector research partners has at last demonstrated that an Electronic Records Archives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-weinstein/research-promoted-by-nara-within-a-major-coalition-of-federal-and/) [Allen Weinstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-weinstein/) > [Every reform was once a private opinion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/every-reform-was-once-a-private-opinion/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Ninety-eight percent of the singing I did was private singing - it was in the shower, at the dishwasher, driving my car, singing with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-ronstadt/ninety-eight-percent-of-the-singing-i-did-was-private-singing-it-was/) [Linda Ronstadt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-ronstadt/) > [The reality is that the work I do is not private work. I bring all my secrets, my life, to my work. Anybody who's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-garcia/the-reality-is-that-the-work-i-do-is-not-private-work-i-bring-all-my/) [Andy Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-garcia/) > [I love being a private company. I don't ever want to be forced to not do the things I need to do to keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kendra-scott/i-love-being-a-private-company-i-don-t-ever-want-to-be-forced-to-not/) [Kendra Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kendra-scott/) > [“The public good must come before private interests.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/the-public-good-must-come-before-private-interests/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [People initially think I'm a snob because I'm intensely private.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evangeline-lilly/people-initially-think-i-m-a-snob-because-i-m-intensely-private/) [Evangeline Lilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evangeline-lilly/) > [The claim of the State Socialists, however, that this right would not be exercised in matters pertaining to the individual in the more intimate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-tucker/the-claim-of-the-state-socialists-however-that-this-right-would-not/) [Benjamin Tucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-tucker/) > [Pro-lifers have long been castigated for bringing private values into the public square. But actually it is the pro-abortion position that is based on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-pearcey/pro-lifers-have-long-been-castigated-for-bringing-private-values-into/) [Nancy Pearcey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-pearcey/) > [With things in my personal life, if I talk about it, it doesn't stay personal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-szohr/with-things-in-my-personal-life-if-i-talk-about-it-it-doesn-t-stay/) [Jessica Szohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-szohr/) [Browse all 1,400 Private quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/private/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The thing about Whitney,\" I said, \"is that she was always really private. 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