--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Even at this stage, my preparations were…" description: "\"Even at this stage, my preparations were like strapping on a parachute in an airplane that was about to crash; the whole time I was preparing to hurl m..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f1/tracy-thompson-38198_airplane_even-at-this-stage-my-preparations-were_2821186.jpg" --- # Even at this stage, my preparations were like strapping on… ![“Even at this stage, my preparations were like strapping on a parachute in an airplane that was about to crash; the whole time I was preparing to hurl myself out the door, I clung to the hope that something would happen at the last minute to forestall that terrible necessity I felt-not hostility…” quote by Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f1/tracy-thompson-38198_airplane_even-at-this-stage-my-preparations-were_2821186.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f1/tracy-thompson-38198_airplane_even-at-this-stage-my-preparations-were_2821186.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f1/tracy-thompson-38198_airplane_even-at-this-stage-my-preparations-were_2821186.jpg) > “Even at this stage, my preparations were like strapping on a parachute in an airplane that was about to crash; the whole time I was preparing to hurl myself out the door, I clung to the hope that something would happen at the last minute to forestall that terrible necessity I felt-not hostility, as psychiatric texts would say, or vengeful rage, or a desire for attention. This was done in secret, out of a need to alleviate pain which was as implacable as thirst.” [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker describes desperate, secretive coping attempts that feel futile, clinging to a last‑minute hope to avoid an inevitable painful outcome. **In simple terms:** Desperate coping attempts feel futile, hoping for a last‑minute rescue. Key Takeaway Recognize when coping becomes self‑destructive. Themes despair coping hope psychology pain self‑destruction Mood distressed anxious reflective Type personal psychological When to use this quote - mental health crisis - self‑harm thoughts - seeking relief - secretive coping Key Concepts existential dread last‑minute rescue psychological avoidance Questions to Reflect On - What underlying pain drives these coping attempts? - How can healthier strategies replace desperate hope? A Different Perspective Such coping may reinforce hopelessness rather than resolve underlying issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Airplane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/airplane/) [Alleviate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alleviate/) [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Crash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crash/) [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/done/) [Doors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doors/) [Felt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/felt/) [Felt Hostility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/felt-hostility-899009/) [Happens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happens/) [Hostility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hostility/) [Last minute](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/last-minute/) [Lasts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lasts/) [Minutes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minutes/) [Necessity Felt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/necessity-felt-3591993/) [Need Alleviate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/need-alleviate-3591995/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain/) [Parachutes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parachutes/) [Preparation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preparation/) [Preparations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preparations/) [Preparations Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preparations-like-3591994/) [Preparing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preparing/) [Psychiatric](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychiatric/) [Rage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rage/) [Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret/) [Stage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stage/) [Suicidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suicidal/) [Terrible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrible/) [Thirst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thirst/) [Vengeful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vengeful/) [Whole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole/) ## Related quotes > [“what draws us to act is not the sensation we receive from the reward itself, but the need to alleviate the craving for that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nir-eyal/what-draws-us-to-act-is-not-the-sensation-we-receive-from-the-reward/) [Nir Eyal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nir-eyal/) > [But he had hardly felt the absurdity of those things, on the one hand, and the necessity of those others, on the other, (for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/but-he-had-hardly-felt-the-absurdity-of-those-things-on-the-one-hand/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [“If a man felt hostility and aversion, but saw that he had poor or no grounds for his feeling, the remedy was to look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gould-cozzens/if-a-man-felt-hostility-and-aversion-but-saw-that-he-had-poor-or-no/) [James Gould Cozzens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gould-cozzens/) > [“In Ifo he felt only hostility. The inhabitants eyed him nervously. Guled had come from a place of fighting and fear; as far as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-rawlence/in-ifo-he-felt-only-hostility-the-inhabitants-eyed-him-nervously/) [Ben Rawlence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-rawlence/) > [Whatever happened to preparations A through G?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/whatever-happened-to-preparations-a-through-g/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [Each fight has its own preparations and challenges.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gennady-golovkin/each-fight-has-its-own-preparations-and-challenges/) [Gennady Golovkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gennady-golovkin/) > [“Now then, we've had a capital lunch, and we're quite ready. Have all the painful preparations been made?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-gilbert-2/now-then-we-ve-had-a-capital-lunch-and-we-re-quite-ready-have-all-the/) [W.S. Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-gilbert-2/) > [While reishi mushrooms have historically been prepared as teas or infusions, other modern preparations include capsules, tinctures, and fractionated extracts of mushrooms, mycelium, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-stamets/while-reishi-mushrooms-have-historically-been-prepared-as-teas-or/) [Paul Stamets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-stamets/) > [I have not compromised in the last seven years on my preparations, be it a small series or a World Cup. I know that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/smriti-mandhana/i-have-not-compromised-in-the-last-seven-years-on-my-preparations-be/) [Smriti Mandhana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/smriti-mandhana/) > [When a suitable quantity of India ink is introduced into the circulation of a living anaesthetized animal, it is evenly mixed with the blood,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-krogh/when-a-suitable-quantity-of-india-ink-is-introduced-into-the/) [August Krogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-krogh/) > [“Never abbreviate your dreams. Only short-hand people always do that. Their punishment is that they can't stretch far, further and forward into the future.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/never-abbreviate-your-dreams-only-short-hand-people-always-do-that/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [None of us suddenly becomes something overnight. The preparations have been in the making for lifetime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-godwin/none-of-us-suddenly-becomes-something-overnight-the-preparations-have/) [Gail Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-godwin/) > [I kept my speeches short as captain. I focused on the key points of the opposition of the day. As coach, I was never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-beckenbauer/i-kept-my-speeches-short-as-captain-i-focused-on-the-key-points-of/) [Franz Beckenbauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-beckenbauer/) > [I would like to mention some preparations that were required of me. The first preparation is to take a right attitude toward life. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peace-pilgrim/i-would-like-to-mention-some-preparations-that-were-required-of-me/) [Peace Pilgrim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peace-pilgrim/) > [“Should we start making preparations here? (Tory) Punk-ass won’t come to my island! He knows better. You don’t tap on the Devil’s shoulder unless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/should-we-start-making-preparations-here-tory-punk-ass-won-t-come-to/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) ## More by Tracy Thompson > [It seemed to me the basic definition of mental illness, this persistent, painful inability to simply be with someone else. It might be lifelong,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/it-seemed-to-me-the-basic-definition-of-mental-illness-this/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [“We live in a culture where we put our most intimate secrets on the Internet and have no idea who our next- door neighbors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/we-live-in-a-culture-where-we-put-our-most-intimate-secrets-on-the/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [A broken leg can be remembered and located: "It hurt right below my knee, it throbbed, I felt sick at my stomach." But mental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/a-broken-leg-can-be-remembered-and-located-it-hurt-right-below-my/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [I don't know when the idea of suicide first occurred to me. In some ways, it had been in the back of my mind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/i-don-t-know-when-the-idea-of-suicide-first-occurred-to-me-in-some/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [Having a mood disorder is not synonymous with having artistic talent, but it is true that people in the so-called creative professions-writers, actors, artists,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/having-a-mood-disorder-is-not-synonymous-with-having-artistic-talent/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [The anxiety was like poison ivy. It took nothing to set off that mental itch-a chance remark, remembering an event from the day before-but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/the-anxiety-was-like-poison-ivy-it-took-nothing-to-set-off-that/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [“The brain is the only organ that tries to make sense of its pain. It is as if the bone were trying to understand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/the-brain-is-the-only-organ-that-tries-to-make-sense-of-its-pain-it/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [Reality is rarely what we imagine. Great and noble things do not always happen for great and noble reasons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/reality-is-rarely-what-we-imagine-great-and-noble-things-do-not/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [Better to inflict pain on myself than to let other people do it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/better-to-inflict-pain-on-myself-than-to-let-other-people-do-it/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [“The unexamined life is not worth living, but the unlived life is not worth examining.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living-but-the-unlived-life-is-not/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) > [I yearned to get better; I told myself I was getting better. In fact, the depression was still there, like a powerful undertow. Sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-thompson/i-yearned-to-get-better-i-told-myself-i-was-getting-better-in-fact/) [Tracy Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) [Explore all 12 Tracy Thompson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-thompson/) ## More Airplane quotes > [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [I shoot in black and white, sometimes color, sometimes if it looks good I shoot out the window of the airplanes or whatever, anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barry/i-shoot-in-black-and-white-sometimes-color-sometimes-if-it-looks-good/) [Robert Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barry/) > [I've jumped out of an airplane 34 times. I've dove 212 feet under water. I've done a lot of things that defied death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ventura/i-ve-jumped-out-of-an-airplane-34-times-i-ve-dove-212-feet-under/) [Jesse Ventura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ventura/) > [I believe that anyone who flies in an airplane and doesn't spend most of his time looking out the window wastes his money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-reisner/i-believe-that-anyone-who-flies-in-an-airplane-and-doesn-t-spend-most/) [Marc Reisner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-reisner/) > [We live in a world where it has become politically correct to avoid absolutes. Many want all religions to be given the same honor,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-live-in-a-world-where-it-has-become-politically-correct-to-avoid/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [On the second airplane to france and we're done ! yeyyyyyyyyy !! this one was more full :P](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shmmopy/on-the-second-airplane-to-france-and-we-re-done-yeyyyyyyyyy-this-one/) [Shmmopy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shmmopy/) > [The way I see it, you can either work for a living or you can fly airplanes. Me, I'd rather fly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/len-morgan/the-way-i-see-it-you-can-either-work-for-a-living-or-you-can-fly/) [Len Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/len-morgan/) > [I'm 17 years old. I'm not a straight-A student or anything. Even so, I figured out how to make an Internet that they can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cory-doctorow/i-m-17-years-old-i-m-not-a-straight-a-student-or-anything-even-so-i/) [Cory Doctorow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cory-doctorow/) > [I don't have a fear of flying; I have a fear of crashing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-bob-thornton/i-don-t-have-a-fear-of-flying-i-have-a-fear-of-crashing/) [Billy Bob Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-bob-thornton/) > [From computers to information technology to airplanes, it has been America's unique blend of republican government and free-market capitalism that has allowed us to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-nethercutt/from-computers-to-information-technology-to-airplanes-it-has-been/) [George Nethercutt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-nethercutt/) > [I've been racking my brain. I've been trying to figure out how Bob Dole's luggage got on my airplane...I told the doctor, I said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/i-ve-been-racking-my-brain-i-ve-been-trying-to-figure-out-how-bob/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [Sometimes life is like being stuck in the middle-seat of an airplane, next to a ridiculously fat person and a crying baby.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-life-is-like-being-stuck-in-the-middle-seat-of-an-airplane/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm sure the most favorite airplane in my career would still be the Sabre F86 cleft wing , which allowed me to be credited…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buzz-aldrin/i-m-sure-the-most-favorite-airplane-in-my-career-would-still-be-the/) [Buzz Aldrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buzz-aldrin/) > [I do not use airplanes. They strike me as unsporting. You can have an automobile accident-and survive. You can be on a sinking ship-and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/i-do-not-use-airplanes-they-strike-me-as-unsporting-you-can-have-an/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [John Travolta said he sometimes lets his friends take control of his airplane even though they don't know what they're doing. Then Travolta said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conan-o-brien/john-travolta-said-he-sometimes-lets-his-friends-take-control-of-his/) [Conan O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conan-o-brien/) [Browse all 935 Airplane quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/airplane/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Even at this stage, my preparations were like strapping on a parachute in an airplane that was about to crash; the whole time I was preparing to hurl myself out the door, I clung to the hope that something would happen at the last minute to forestall that terrible necessity I felt-not hostility, as psychiatric texts would say, or vengeful rage, or a desire for attention. 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