---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Grieving is like being ill. You think the…"
description: "\"Grieving is like being ill. You think the entire world revolves around you and it doesn't.\" — Sue Grafton"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c2b/sue-grafton-1640_grieving_grieving-is-like-being-ill-you-think-the_1600726.png"
---

#  Grieving is like being ill. You think the entire world…

![“Grieving is like being ill. You think the entire world revolves around you and it doesn't.” quote by Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c2b/sue-grafton-1640_grieving_grieving-is-like-being-ill-you-think-the_1600726.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c2b/sue-grafton-1640_grieving_grieving-is-like-being-ill-you-think-the_1600726.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c2b/sue-grafton-1640_grieving_grieving-is-like-being-ill-you-think-the_1600726.png)

> “Grieving is like being ill. You think the entire world revolves around you and it doesn't.”

[Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/)

## About This Quote

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

Grief creates a self‑absorbed illusion of centrality, but reality remains indifferent to personal suffering.

**In simple terms:** Grief feels selfish but the world keeps turning.

Key Takeaway

Accept that grief is personal, not universal.

Themes

grief perspective self‑awareness

Mood

sad reflective

Type

emotional insightful

When to use this quote

- personal loss
- mental health counseling
- support groups
- journaling

Key Concepts

psychology existentialism

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you expand your view beyond personal pain?
- What practices help you stay grounded during grief?

A Different Perspective

Grief may also foster empathy, not just self‑centeredness.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Grieving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grieving/) [Grieving Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grieving-like-3492666/) [Ill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ill/) [Like Ill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-ill-4903471/) [Revolves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolves/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [World Revolves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-revolves-1068186/)

## Related quotes

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> [Parents. Honestly. Sometimes they really do think the world revolves around them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randa-abdel-fattah/parents-honestly-sometimes-they-really-do-think-the-world-revolves/)

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> [Yes, I do feel the world revolves around me. After all, I am the main character of my own life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefanie-schneider/yes-i-do-feel-the-world-revolves-around-me-after-all-i-am-the-main/)

[Stefanie Schneider](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefanie-schneider/)

> [So what you're saying is the entire world revolves around you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-tyler/so-what-you-re-saying-is-the-entire-world-revolves-around-you/)

[Rose Tyler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-tyler/)

> [One common denominator of super-affluent alpha men is the conviction, unchallenged every day, that the world revolves around them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-brown/one-common-denominator-of-super-affluent-alpha-men-is-the-conviction/)

[Tina Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tina-brown/)

> [I am not frightened of much, but I wouldn't like to get ill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-faithfull/i-am-not-frightened-of-much-but-i-wouldn-t-like-to-get-ill/)

[Marianne Faithfull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-faithfull/)

> [“World revolves around the person who is powerful in ethics.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raghuveer-maganti/world-revolves-around-the-person-who-is-powerful-in-ethics/)

[RAGHUVEER MAGANTI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raghuveer-maganti/)

> [“There are people nobody notices, but the world revolves around them. They're the quiet ones, the strong, peaceful ones, who form the unbreakable hub…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-smith/there-are-people-nobody-notices-but-the-world-revolves-around-them/)

[Deborah Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-smith/)

> [“We have one collective hope: the Earth And yet, uncounted people remain hopeless, famine and calamity abound Sufferers hurl themselves into the arms of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/we-have-one-collective-hope-the-earth-and-yet-uncounted-people-remain/)

[Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/)

> [I don't have an ego that makes me believe the world revolves around me. I am not self-absorbed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/i-don-t-have-an-ego-that-makes-me-believe-the-world-revolves-around/)

[Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/)

> [I sense that man lives life in the eyes that the world revolves around him.if man were to change that perspective that all revolve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-shaylitsa/i-sense-that-man-lives-life-in-the-eyes-that-the-world-revolves/)

[Edward Shaylitsa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-shaylitsa/)

> [Sometimes I think you passed in geography through cheating caz if havent have you would have known world revolves around sun not around you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-hathway/sometimes-i-think-you-passed-in-geography-through-cheating-caz-if/)

[Rose Hathway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-hathway/)

> [“What was going on here was something Smitty had seen before: a young person’s first real farewell to the world of school and college,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lanchester/what-was-going-on-here-was-something-smitty-had-seen-before-a-young/)

[John Lanchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lanchester/)

## More by Sue Grafton

> [“Life is hard. Life hurts. So what? You tough it out. You get through and then you'll feel good again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/life-is-hard-life-hurts-so-what-you-tough-it-out-you-get-through-and/)

[Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/)

> [“nothing wrong with a lie or two when the situation demanded it”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/nothing-wrong-with-a-lie-or-two-when-the-situation-demanded-it/)

[Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/)

> [“I can just about promise you Philip Marlowe was never as dainty as I.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/i-can-just-about-promise-you-philip-marlowe-was-never-as-dainty-as-i/)

[Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/)

> [“You can always push people around, but it's not a good idea. Better to let them volunteer information for reasons of their own. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/you-can-always-push-people-around-but-it-s-not-a-good-idea-better-to/)

[Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/)

> [You can't make anyone love you and you can't stop anyone from dying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/you-can-t-make-anyone-love-you-and-you-can-t-stop-anyone-from-dying/)

[Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/)

> [“Some people die accidentally. It's a fact.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/some-people-die-accidentally-it-s-a-fact/)

[Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/)

> [Thinking is hard work, which is why you don't see many people doing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/thinking-is-hard-work-which-is-why-you-don-t-see-many-people-doing-it/)

[Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/)

> [Pay enough for anything and it passes for taste.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/pay-enough-for-anything-and-it-passes-for-taste/)

[Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/)

> [“It’s hard to have faith in your fellow man when you’re forced to look at some of his handiwork.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/it-s-hard-to-have-faith-in-your-fellow-man-when-you-re-forced-to-look/)

[Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/)

> [Insecure people have a special sensitivity for anything that finally confirms their own low opinion of themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/insecure-people-have-a-special-sensitivity-for-anything-that-finally/)

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> [“I wondered if I'd ever be nice enough to volunteer for anything. I was hoping not.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/i-wondered-if-i-d-ever-be-nice-enough-to-volunteer-for-anything-i-was/)

[Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/)

> [Ideas are easy. It's the execution of ideas that really separates the sheep from the goats.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/ideas-are-easy-it-s-the-execution-of-ideas-that-really-separates-the/)

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> [“You can't believe everything you hear. Sometimes, you can't even believe your eyes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/you-can-t-believe-everything-you-hear-sometimes-you-can-t-even/)

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> [“Life is simple. You're the one making things complex.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-grafton/life-is-simple-you-re-the-one-making-things-complex/)

[Sue Grafton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/)

[Explore all 217 Sue Grafton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-grafton/)

## More Grieving quotes

> [This is a proof of a well-trained mind, to rejoice in what is good and to grieve at the opposite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/this-is-a-proof-of-a-well-trained-mind-to-rejoice-in-what-is-good-and/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [Certainly, it is. Love is love, and loss is loss. We all love, and we all die, and everyone suffers the pain of grieving.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynsay-sands/certainly-it-is-love-is-love-and-loss-is-loss-we-all-love-and-we-all/)

[Lynsay Sands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynsay-sands/)

> [“...what happens when you return and find nothing but a hollowed shell, shingles and floor, walls and echoes and the light that lead you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kellie-elmore/what-happens-when-you-return-and-find-nothing-but-a-hollowed-shell/)

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[Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/)

> [... I think we grieve forever, but that goes for love too, fortunately for us all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-k-fisher/i-think-we-grieve-forever-but-that-goes-for-love-too-fortunately-for/)

[M. F. K. Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-k-fisher/)

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> [The longer I live, the more it grieves me to see man, who occupies his supreme place for the very purpose of imposing his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/the-longer-i-live-the-more-it-grieves-me-to-see-man-who-occupies-his/)

[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/)

> [“There's always a last time. If you could remember every last time, you'd never stop grieving.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-tropper/there-s-always-a-last-time-if-you-could-remember-every-last-time-you/)

[Jonathan Tropper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-tropper/)

> [I never could keep a promise. I do not blame myself for this weakness, because the fault must lie in my physical organization. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-never-could-keep-a-promise-i-do-not-blame-myself-for-this-weakness/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [In general satire, every man perceives A slight attack, yet neither fears nor grieves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-crabbe/in-general-satire-every-man-perceives-a-slight-attack-yet-neither/)

[George Crabbe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-crabbe/)

> [Those who grieve frequently find themselves alone. Missed is the laughter of children, the commotion of teenagers, and the tender, loving concern of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-s-monson/those-who-grieve-frequently-find-themselves-alone-missed-is-the/)

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> [Or maybe a person is just made up of a lot of peopleMaybe we’re accumulating these new selves all the time. Hauling them in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/or-maybe-a-person-is-just-made-up-of-a-lot-of-peoplemaybe-we-re/)

[Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/)

> [Any kind of grieving that is not allowed causes a break. In our culture, grieving in public is not encouraged, but in other cultures,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-ripley/any-kind-of-grieving-that-is-not-allowed-causes-a-break-in-our/)

[Alice Ripley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-ripley/)

> [It always grieves me to contemplate the initiation of children into the ways of life when they are scarcely more than infants. It checks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/it-always-grieves-me-to-contemplate-the-initiation-of-children-into/)

[Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/)

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