--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't remember what it means to…" description: "\"“I don't remember what it means to breathe. I never, ever knew what it meant to feel.”\" — Tahereh Mafi" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f82/tahereh-mafi-229_breathe_i-don-t-remember-what-it-means-to-breath_1784692.png" --- # I don't remember what it means to breathe. I never, ever… ![“I don't remember what it means to breathe. I never, ever knew what it meant to feel.” quote by Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f82/tahereh-mafi-229_breathe_i-don-t-remember-what-it-means-to-breath_1784692.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f82/tahereh-mafi-229_breathe_i-don-t-remember-what-it-means-to-breath_1784692.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f82/tahereh-mafi-229_breathe_i-don-t-remember-what-it-means-to-breath_1784692.png) > ““I don't remember what it means to breathe. I never, ever knew what it meant to feel.”” [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator feels detached from basic sensations, indicating deep emotional numbness and alienation. **In simple terms:** Feeling numb and disconnected. Key Takeaway Seek moments that reconnect you to your body. Themes alienation emotion identity Mood melancholic introspective Type literary emotional When to use this quote - therapy - creative writing - mindfulness practice - support groups Key Concepts existential numbness self-awareness Questions to Reflect On - What sensations have you ignored? - How can you reclaim feeling? A Different Perspective The feeling may be a symptom of trauma, not a permanent state. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [Into the night, in the dark, he lay beside her, listening to her breathe. 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And do you think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallas-green/and-i-can-still-remember-you-know-i-can-still-hear-your-voice/) [Dallas Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallas-green/) > [I said this is meant to be for me it must be but for youits was just a game but I guess if it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mcglory/i-said-this-is-meant-to-be-for-me-it-must-be-but-for-youits-was-just/) [Greg Mcglory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mcglory/) > [“Hands, I think, were not meant to feel so much.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierce-brown/hands-i-think-were-not-meant-to-feel-so-much/) [Pierce Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierce-brown/) > [I feel like whatever is meant is meant. I feel like this is already written.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-baby/i-feel-like-whatever-is-meant-is-meant-i-feel-like-this-is-already/) [Lil Baby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-baby/) > [There's nothing wrong with the word conspiracy. It just means 'to breathe together.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janeane-garofalo/there-s-nothing-wrong-with-the-word-conspiracy-it-just-means-to/) [Janeane Garofalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janeane-garofalo/) > [“It's a very old word, it means 'to breathe into.' 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The world that lives inside of me was not the world you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbi-glines/you-weren-t-meant-for-the-ice-you-weren-t-made-for-the-pain-the-world/) [Abbi Glines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbi-glines/) > [When I graduated from college, I was told I could do great things and be great, but I didn't know what that meant and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-gibbs/when-i-graduated-from-college-i-was-told-i-could-do-great-things-and/) [Lauren Gibbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-gibbs/) > [“You were born in the backseat and from the moment I saw your beautiful face, everything changed for me. I never felt love like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-foor/you-were-born-in-the-backseat-and-from-the-moment-i-saw-your/) [Jennifer Foor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-foor/) ## More by Tahereh Mafi > [His hands are holding my cheeks, and he pulls back just to look me in the eye and his chest is heaving and he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/his-hands-are-holding-my-cheeks-and-he-pulls-back-just-to-look-me-in/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“think Adam is looking to break Kenji’s neck at this point.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/think-adam-is-looking-to-break-kenji-s-neck-at-this-point/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“I didn't want the clothes or the perfect shoes or the expensive anything. I didn't want to be draped in silk. All I ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/i-didn-t-want-the-clothes-or-the-perfect-shoes-or-the-expensive/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“infinite points of feeling for every nerve ending in my body”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/infinite-points-of-feeling-for-every-nerve-ending-in-my-body/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“He's too much. Everything about him is too much. His emotions, his actions, his anger, his aggression. His love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/he-s-too-much-everything-about-him-is-too-much-his-emotions-his/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“Right now I can't even control my own imagination as it grips my hair and drags me into the dark”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/right-now-i-can-t-even-control-my-own-imagination-as-it-grips-my-hair/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“I want you, I want all of you. I want you inside and out and catching your breath and aching for me like I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/i-want-you-i-want-all-of-you-i-want-you-inside-and-out-and-catching/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“I will give no one the satisfaction of my death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/i-will-give-no-one-the-satisfaction-of-my-death/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“I almost forget that she still hates me, despite how hard I’ve fallen for her. And I’ve fallen. So hard. I’ve hit the ground.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/i-almost-forget-that-she-still-hates-me-despite-how-hard-i-ve-fallen/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [All I ever wanted was to reach out and touch another human being not just with my hands but with my heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/all-i-ever-wanted-was-to-reach-out-and-touch-another-human-being-not/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“It's the kind of kiss that makes you realize oxygen is overrated.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/it-s-the-kind-of-kiss-that-makes-you-realize-oxygen-is-overrated/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“That’s when I understand. Of course she’s not okay. Of course she didn’t get any sleep last night. Last night she almost killed one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/that-s-when-i-understand-of-course-she-s-not-okay-of-course-she-didn/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“I used to have a family. He”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/i-used-to-have-a-family-he/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“I've never been able to follow through.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/i-ve-never-been-able-to-follow-through/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [“ground where it smells like ice and metal and dirt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/ground-where-it-smells-like-ice-and-metal-and-dirt/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) [Explore all 821 Tahereh Mafi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) ## More Breathe quotes > [“Well come and stand a little bit closer, breathe in and get a bit higher. You'll ever know what hit you when I get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/savage-garden/well-come-and-stand-a-little-bit-closer-breathe-in-and-get-a-bit/) [Savage Garden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/savage-garden/) > [I like fantasy, but I don't live and breathe fantasy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-schmidt-hissrich/i-like-fantasy-but-i-don-t-live-and-breathe-fantasy/) [Lauren Schmidt Hissrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-schmidt-hissrich/) > [“Live your dreams. Breathe your dreams. Never give up on your dreams.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avijeet-das/live-your-dreams-breathe-your-dreams-never-give-up-on-your-dreams/) [Avijeet Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/avijeet-das/) > [And wheresoever, in his rich creation, Sweet music breathes--in wave, or bird, or soul-- 'Tis but the faint and far reverberation Of that great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-sargent-osgood/and-wheresoever-in-his-rich-creation-sweet-music-breathes-in-wave-or/) [Frances Sargent Osgood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-sargent-osgood/) > [Dawn's faint breath breathes with your mouth at the ends of empty streets. Gray light your eyes, sweet drops of dawn on dark hills.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesare-pavese/dawn-s-faint-breath-breathes-with-your-mouth-at-the-ends-of-empty/) [Cesare Pavese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesare-pavese/) > [Why couldn't Jesus command us to obsess over everything, to try to control and manipulate people, to try not to breathe at all, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/why-couldn-t-jesus-command-us-to-obsess-over-everything-to-try-to/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [...As the disparity between the rich and the poor grows, the fight to corner resources is intensifying. To push through their "sweetheart deals," to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/as-the-disparity-between-the-rich-and-the-poor-grows-the-fight-to/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [There were people asking 'Can women be funny?' People still ask that. It's like asking: 'Can women breathe in and out?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-walters/there-were-people-asking-can-women-be-funny-people-still-ask-that-it/) [Julie Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-walters/) > [We need to be more conversant with it because science is in our lives. It's in everything. It's in the food we eat. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/we-need-to-be-more-conversant-with-it-because-science-is-in-our-lives/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [“Before we can make seismic professional, economic, and sociological changes, we have to squeeze out of our Spanx and remember how it feels to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-hays-coomer/before-we-can-make-seismic-professional-economic-and-sociological/) [Sarah Hays Coomer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-hays-coomer/) > [Manchester United breathe football. When I have to make hard decisions, I always listen to little boy inside me and what he wants. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-van-persie/manchester-united-breathe-football-when-i-have-to-make-hard-decisions/) [Robin van Persie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-van-persie/) > [I drink to feel / I smoke to breathe / Just look what love / Has done to me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kacey-musgraves/i-drink-to-feel-i-smoke-to-breathe-just-look-what-love-has-done-to-me/) [Kacey Musgraves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kacey-musgraves/) > [Wherever you are is the perfect place to awaken. This moment is the exact place to practice compassion and loving awareness. 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