Reasons To Stay Alive is the true story of how Matt Haig, the author, overcame the depression that had almost annihilated him and learned the “Art of living” again. Heart-rending and inspiriting both at the same time, it is not just a book, it is a ray of hope for the low spirited humans.
Being someone, who has gone through depression, I can undoubtedly say, this is the rawest content on depression I have come across. Each word of this book is as true as it can get. In fact, this book is one of the best-articulated narrations of what a person in depression goes through.
At one point in the book, Matt Haig says, “Words, just sometimes, can set you free.”
And that hit me really hard because every word of this book is definitely a source of freedom for those feeling low.
So keeping in mind the above words, here we’ve compiled some of the best words from this perfect work of art that will literally set you free.
#1:
It may be a dark cloud passing across the sky, but—if that is the metaphor—you are the sky. You were there before it. And the cloud can’t exist without the sky, but the sky can exist without the cloud.
#2:
Wherever you are, at any moment, try and find something beautiful. A face, a line out of a poem, the clouds out of a window, some graffiti, a wind farm. Beauty cleans the mind.
#3:
There is no standard normal. Normal is subjective. There are seven billion versions of normal on this planet.
Also Read: Powerful Lessons from the life of a Young Woman who survived a Suicide Attempt
#4:
Your mind is a galaxy. More dark than light. But the light makes it worthwhile. Which is to say, don’t kill yourself. Even when the darkness is total. Always know that life is not still. Time is space. You are moving through that galaxy. Wait for the stars.
Also Read: Matt Haig Quotes from The Midnight Library That Talk Life
#5:
Life is the people who love you. No one will ever choose to stay alive for an iPhone. It’s the people we reach via the iPhone that matter.
And once we begin to recover, and to live again, we do so with new eyes. Things become clearer, and we are aware of things we weren’t aware of before.
#6:
Once the storm is over you won’t remember how you made it through, how you managed to survive. You won’t even be sure, in fact, whether the storm is really over. But one thing is certain. When you come out of the storm you won’t be the same person who walked in. That’s what this storm’s all about.
Also Read: 10 Feel-Good Matt Haig Quotes from the book Notes on a Nervous Planet
#7:
Nothing lasts forever. This pain won’t last. The pain tells you it will last. Pain lies. Ignore it. Pain is a debt paid off with time.
#8:
Minds have their own weather systems. You are in a hurricane. Hurricanes run out of energy eventually. Hold on.
#9:
How to stop time: kiss.
How to travel in time: read.
How to escape time: music.
How to feel time: write.
How to release time: breathe.
#10:
Imagine all the time we had was bottled up, like wine, and handed over to us. How would we make that bottle last? By sipping slowly, appreciating the taste, or by gulping?
#11:
Read Emily Dickinson. Read Graham Greene. Read Italo Calvino. Read Maya Angelou. Read anything you want. Just read. Books are possibilities. They are escape routes. They give you options when you have none. Each one can be a home for an uprooted mind.
Grab your copy here: Amazon.in | Amazon.com
Also Read: Best Books To Help You Develop the HABIT of READING
The Best Books:
Recommended Reading Lists
1. Best Books To Help You Develop the HABIT of READING
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3. Best Books on STOCK MARKET & INVESTING
4. Best Books To Help You Find HOPE During Your Darkest of Times
That’s all we have for today. Thanks a lot for tuning in to HappinessDhaba. Do let me know your views on these in the comment section. And, don’t forget to add more to the list.
Signing off with my favorite words.
Zindagi Zindabad!
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