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She still had her bad days, no question, when the black dog of depression sniffed her out and settled its crushing weight on her chest and breathed its pungent dog breath in her face. On those days she called in sick to the IT shop where, most days, she untangled tangled networks for a song. On those days she pulled down the shades and ran dark for twelve or twenty-four or seventy-two hours, however long it took for the black dog to go on home to its dark master.
Lev Grossman
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Interpretation

What this quote means

The quote illustrates the struggle with depression and the importance of acknowledging one's bad days.

This quote metaphorically describes depression as a 'black dog' that visits unexpectedly and imposes its weight on the individual, highlighting the reality of mental health struggles. It emphasizes that even when one may lead a seemingly normal life, they can face overwhelming challenges that warrant taking time to rest and recover, showing that it's important to care for oneself during difficult times.

Themes

DepressionMental HealthBad DaysSelf-CareResilience

In practice

Example use cases

In a speech about mental health awareness, one could use this quote to highlight the importance of recognizing and addressing depression.

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