Maria Bamford Quotes

Part of the healing process is sharing with other people who care.

A women under stress is not immediately concerned with finding solutions to her problems but rather seeks relief by expressing herself and being understood.

The thing I really love about my fans is the vulnerability and openness, the crying and the hugs. They are so kind.

Everything affects you, and it doesn't measure how tough you are by being a rock and sitting by yourself. People need to talk. It's not a sign of weakness.

I love being able to share my story to help others relate or cope with their own stuff they have going on at home.

If you have things that make you sad, express them to other people.

Don't hold back from being an 'empath.' Don't be afraid of shedding your tears. Feel it. Feel the full extent of everything. It gives us strength.

I feel like sometimes we just need to speak more about what we're going through.

If we admit our depression openly and freely, those around us get from it an experience of freedom rather than the depression itself.

To share our stories is not only a worthwhile endeavor for the storyteller, but for those who hear our stories and feel less alone because of it.

It's a rare and precious thing to be close to suffering because our society - in many ways - tells us that suffering is wrong. If it's our own suffering, we try to hide it or isolate ourselves. If others are suffering, we're taught to put them away somewhere so we don't have to see it.

If you could literally 'rid' yourself of your problems by voicing them, I'd be all for it. But since that isn't so, why not reserve the spoken word for functional interactions and witticisms, if not declarations of love?

What people don't realize is that everybody needs support, one way or another.

I would hate to think I'm promoting sadness as an aesthetic. But I grew up in not just a family but a town and a culture where sadness is something you're taught to feel shame about. You end up chronically desiring what can be a very sentimental idea of love and connection. A lot of my work has been about trying to make a space for sadness.

You can't shelter it. You can't hide it. You have to let people know what you're going through, what you're feeling, what you think you have that's a problem.

I just love creating an environment where people can open up and say what's on their mind and in their heart.

I'm an emotional person, a very emotional person.

A certain amount of anger doesn't make us less empathetic, less humane, less loving. It just makes us real.

I cry a lot when I feel empathy. I can feel heartbroken by life, and I cry quite easily, sometimes for no reason. It's healthy, I think.

I sing my life. It's like I'm having group therapy 350 days a year, and the people who come to the show get that, and they're there for that - whether it's to be lifted up, or to be lifted out, or just entertained or inspired, or to feel not so alone.

It's often difficult to get perspective on your own stories, on your own experiences, without talking them through with someone who is genuinely interested in thinking about them. And that's the key.

Expressing my feelings and then the opportunity to share it with others is just such a gift.

I have too much respect for people to try to control them. But they are estranged from love, afraid to reach out and touch one another. We're afraid to appear sentimental or speak in platitudes because people will say, 'What a jerk!' It takes courage in our culture to be a lover.

If I weren't performing, I'd be a beauty editor or a therapist. I love creativity, but I also love to help others. My mother was a hairstylist, and they listen to everyone's problems - like a beauty therapist!

I'm an emotional guy.