Hysterical Quotes

“Risk "no." Risk the double-text. Risk being unlikeable and being perceived as unreasonable and risk being called a fucking bitch. Risk "being a bitch." Risk "bad" words. Risk mistakes and risk being corrected and risk losing those who won't forgive. Risk refusal. Risk acknowledgement. Risk trouble. Risk the question. Risk demanding care. Risk a voice that doesn't demure, a voice that is difficult, unaesthetic, charged, forthright, sappy. Risk it, or risk living a half-a-person life.”
― Elissa Bassist, Hysterical: A Memoir

“I thought I could become normal by deciding, but thoughts are not facts; the body is facts. And if you silence the body, well, you can't.”
― Elissa Bassist, Hysterical: A Memoir

“Some of the language above, which is really a dialect of patriarchy, is also known as “DARVO”—“Deny, Attack, and Reverse Victim and Offender”—a rhetorical strategy abusers use to defend themselves and to further gaslight those they abuse.”
― Elissa Bassist, Hysterical: A Memoir