--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Every five minutes, every hour, every…" description: "\"Every five minutes, every hour, every day, every year that you waste worrying about your cancer - you have forfeited time that you could have been aliv..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f08/valerie-harper-4175_cancer_every-five-minutes-every-hour-every-day_1193349.png" --- # Every five minutes, every hour, every day, every year that… ![“Every five minutes, every hour, every day, every year that you waste worrying about your cancer - you have forfeited time that you could have been alive having fun.” quote by Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f08/valerie-harper-4175_cancer_every-five-minutes-every-hour-every-day_1193349.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f08/valerie-harper-4175_cancer_every-five-minutes-every-hour-every-day_1193349.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f08/valerie-harper-4175_cancer_every-five-minutes-every-hour-every-day_1193349.png) > “Every five minutes, every hour, every day, every year that you waste worrying about your cancer - you have forfeited time that you could have been alive having fun.” [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Worrying about illness steals precious time that could be spent enjoying life. **In simple terms:** Worry wastes life time. Key Takeaway Focus on living, not fearing. Themes health mindfulness life balance Mood reflective motivational Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - daily routine - medical appointments - support groups - personal planning Key Concepts existentialism psychology time management Questions to Reflect On - How much time do you spend fearing illness? - What activities would you prioritize if fear vanished? A Different Perspective Worry can also motivate early detection and proactive health actions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cancer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cancer/) [Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/day/) [Fun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fun/) [Having fun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/having-fun/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Worrying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worrying/) ## Related quotes > [“Anything that you find yourself worrying about regularly may find you suddenly wanting unrealistic changes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nagisa-tatsumi/anything-that-you-find-yourself-worrying-about-regularly-may-find-you/) Nagisa Tatsumi > [I know that sometimes when you are really worried about something, it ends up not being nearly as bad as you think it will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-moriarty/i-know-that-sometimes-when-you-are-really-worried-about-something-it/) [Laura Moriarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-moriarty/) > [You can't play worrying about, like, what will other people say about me. That's not how I've ever approached the game.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-rivers/you-can-t-play-worrying-about-like-what-will-other-people-say-about/) [Austin Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-rivers/) > [I spend a lot of time thinking and worrying about fatigue. It is the thing I struggle with the most.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kadeena-cox/i-spend-a-lot-of-time-thinking-and-worrying-about-fatigue-it-is-the/) [Kadeena Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kadeena-cox/) > [“Don't lose today by worrying about tomorrow!!!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-herbert/don-t-lose-today-by-worrying-about-tomorrow/) John F. Herbert > [It's my parents' attitudes to situations that gives me a sense of reality about what's worth worrying about, and what's not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chloe-madeley/it-s-my-parents-attitudes-to-situations-that-gives-me-a-sense-of/) [Chloe Madeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chloe-madeley/) > [I'm not worrying. I'm tired of being mad and sad and confused and for once I want to be happy, and aint.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-not-worrying-i-m-tired-of-being-mad-and-sad-and-confused-and-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you can't sleep, then get up and do something instead of lying there worrying. It's the worry that gets you, not the lack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/if-you-can-t-sleep-then-get-up-and-do-something-instead-of-lying/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [I do some kind of work, whether writing or painting or recording, on a daily basis. And it's so essential that when I'm involved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/i-do-some-kind-of-work-whether-writing-or-painting-or-recording-on-a/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [Most of us are worrying about the future so much that we can't enjoy the present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-sherman/most-of-us-are-worrying-about-the-future-so-much-that-we-can-t-enjoy/) [Harold Sherman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-sherman/) > [“Instead of worrying about what you cannot control, focus your energy on what you can create.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-bennett/instead-of-worrying-about-what-you-cannot-control-focus-your-energy/) [Roy Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-bennett/) > [Worrying does not take away tomorrow's troubles,it takes away today's peace. If you really enjoy this,please pass to others.It may brighten someone's day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/worrying-does-not-take-away-tomorrow-s-troubles-it-takes-away-today-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Today I will refuse to spend any time worrying about what might happen, and spend that time on what I want to have happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/today-i-will-refuse-to-spend-any-time-worrying-about-what-might/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“As far as I can tell, a leader ends up doing all the worrying and still needs to pitch in for the regular work.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-ee/as-far-as-i-can-tell-a-leader-ends-up-doing-all-the-worrying-and/) [Susan Ee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-ee/) > [If I spent all my time thinking and worrying about what people say or think about me, I wouldn't have time to live my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/if-i-spent-all-my-time-thinking-and-worrying-about-what-people-say-or/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) ## More by Valerie Harper > [Life does not owe me a shred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/life-does-not-owe-me-a-shred/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) > [Cancer reminds me of a very bad but tenacious performer who, although no one wants to see, insists on doing an encore, having a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/cancer-reminds-me-of-a-very-bad-but-tenacious-performer-who-although/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) > [I really got the 'Rhoda' flavor from studying my stepmother, Angela, who's Italian, not Jewish. There's really so little difference between the speech patterns…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/i-really-got-the-rhoda-flavor-from-studying-my-stepmother-angela-who/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) > [We think it's food that matters the most, but exercise and food both matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/we-think-it-s-food-that-matters-the-most-but-exercise-and-food-both/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) > [All of us are going to die. Every single one of us. So, while you're alive, be alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/all-of-us-are-going-to-die-every-single-one-of-us-so-while-you-re/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) > [I'm painfully middle class.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/i-m-painfully-middle-class/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) > [I don't know a great deal about Alzheimer's - just what it does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/i-don-t-know-a-great-deal-about-alzheimer-s-just-what-it-does/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) > [I have had acupuncture regularly, and I engage in visualization, which is actually an actor's tool, visualizing myself kicking out the cancer, making up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/i-have-had-acupuncture-regularly-and-i-engage-in-visualization-which/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) > [I first met Rhoda Morgenstern in the spring of 1970.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/i-first-met-rhoda-morgenstern-in-the-spring-of-1970/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) > [I've had very deep moments of sadness. What I do is really sob, really cry, do whatever it is, and then kind of release…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/i-ve-had-very-deep-moments-of-sadness-what-i-do-is-really-sob-really/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) > [Comedy is saving me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/comedy-is-saving-me/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) > [Life is amazing. Live it to the fullest. Stay as long as you can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/life-is-amazing-live-it-to-the-fullest-stay-as-long-as-you-can/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) > [If I wake up in the night terrified, I try to find a way to not let the fear have me. Every moment you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/if-i-wake-up-in-the-night-terrified-i-try-to-find-a-way-to-not-let/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) > [Death is out there for all of us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/death-is-out-there-for-all-of-us/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) > [I'm happier because I had to face what all of us try not to face: that we're going to die. It's a fact.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/i-m-happier-because-i-had-to-face-what-all-of-us-try-not-to-face-that/) [Valerie Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) [Explore all 115 Valerie Harper quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/) ## More Cancer quotes > [Women still, when they have breast cancer, go to work; they still lead their lives. They have to. I just did what I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-potter/women-still-when-they-have-breast-cancer-go-to-work-they-still-lead/) [Monica Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-potter/) > [If one truly has lost hope, one would not be on hand to say so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-bentley/if-one-truly-has-lost-hope-one-would-not-be-on-hand-to-say-so/) [Eric Bentley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-bentley/) > [Racism is a cancer. You cannot ignore it and it'll go away. If you ignore cancer, it simply metastasizes and consumes the whole body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daryl-davis/racism-is-a-cancer-you-cannot-ignore-it-and-it-ll-go-away-if-you/) [Daryl Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daryl-davis/) > [Historically, more people have died of religion than cancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-francis/historically-more-people-have-died-of-religion-than-cancer/) [Dick Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-francis/) > [“Our kind of love can go into remission, but it's always waiting to return. Like the world sweetest cancer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/our-kind-of-love-can-go-into-remission-but-it-s-always-waiting-to/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [Bollywood is a cancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-banerjee/bollywood-is-a-cancer/) [Victor Banerjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-banerjee/) > [You should be angry. You must not be bitter. Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. It doesn't do anything to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/you-should-be-angry-you-must-not-be-bitter-bitterness-is-like-cancer/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [When people go get chemo, they're not injecting themselves with will - I have lost various loved ones to cancer, and I certainly don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-c-hall/when-people-go-get-chemo-they-re-not-injecting-themselves-with-will-i/) [Michael C. Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-c-hall/) > [“the doctor hesitated before breaking the news to her. "those aren't stars. it's cancer." - forty years a smoker”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-lovelace/the-doctor-hesitated-before-breaking-the-news-to-her-those-aren-t/) [Amanda Lovelace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-lovelace/) > [I loved you to the moon and back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-swift/i-loved-you-to-the-moon-and-back/) [Taylor Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-swift/) > [The risk of developing carcinoma of the lung increases steadily as the amount smoked increases. If the risk among non-smokers is taken as unity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-doll/the-risk-of-developing-carcinoma-of-the-lung-increases-steadily-as/) Richard Doll > [I would do away with super PACs. I think it's a cancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-conrad/i-would-do-away-with-super-pacs-i-think-it-s-a-cancer/) [Kent Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-conrad/) > [Aging is like enlightenment at gunpoint. Before I had cancer, I lived my life for my art. After I had cancer, I lived my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-halprin/aging-is-like-enlightenment-at-gunpoint-before-i-had-cancer-i-lived/) [Anna Halprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-halprin/) > [If you are a white male, you don't deserve to live. You are a cancer, you're a disease, white males have never contributed anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-ignatiev/if-you-are-a-white-male-you-don-t-deserve-to-live-you-are-a-cancer/) [Noel Ignatiev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-ignatiev/) > [The way I look at it is, cancer research is absolutely nonpartisan. Cancer is very democratic in the sense that it attacks people regardless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-h-koch/the-way-i-look-at-it-is-cancer-research-is-absolutely-nonpartisan/) [David H. Koch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-h-koch/) [Browse all 3,177 Cancer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cancer/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Every five minutes, every hour, every day, every year that you waste worrying about your cancer - you have forfeited time that you could have been alive having fun.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Valerie Harper" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/every-five-minutes-every-hour-every-day-every-year-that-you-waste/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cancer" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/every-five-minutes-every-hour-every-day-every-year-that-you-waste/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f08/valerie-harper-4175_cancer_every-five-minutes-every-hour-every-day_1193349.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f08/valerie-harper-4175_cancer_every-five-minutes-every-hour-every-day_1193349.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f08/valerie-harper-4175_cancer_every-five-minutes-every-hour-every-day_1193349.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Every five minutes, every hour, every day, every year that you waste worrying about your cancer - you have…” — Valerie Harper", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Valerie Harper", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-harper/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Every five minutes, every hour, every...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/every-five-minutes-every-hour-every-day-every-year-that-you-waste/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-harper/every-five-minutes-every-hour-every-day-every-year-that-you-waste/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```