"And I have to work so hard at talking positively to myself. If I don't, it's just real hard to get through the day, and I'll get really down, and just want to cry. My whole body language changes. I get more slumped over"
About this Quote
Delta Burke’s candor lands because it refuses the glossy version of confidence that celebrity culture sells back to us. She isn’t describing “self-love” as a brand or a mantra on a mug; she’s describing it as labor. “Work so hard” is the key phrase: positivity isn’t a personality trait she happens to possess, it’s a daily task she has to perform to stay functional. That framing quietly indicts the expectation that women, especially actresses, should look effortlessly composed while their inner life is anything but.
The subtext is bodily. Burke doesn’t just say she feels bad; she tracks the emotional slide into posture, into silhouette: “My whole body language changes… more slumped over.” It’s a reminder that mood isn’t only private and mental, it’s public and visible, which is especially loaded for someone whose career depends on being watched. In an industry that polices women’s bodies for a living, her admission reads like a backstage truth: despair shows up in the very thing you’re trained to control.
Context matters here: Burke became a major 1980s TV star and tabloid target, frequently scrutinized for her appearance. So when she talks about talking to herself just to “get through the day,” it carries the wear of a long, culturally enforced audition - not for roles, but for acceptability. The power of the quote is its plainspoken map from thought to feeling to physical collapse. It’s not melodrama; it’s an anatomy lesson in how shame and pressure travel through a person.
The subtext is bodily. Burke doesn’t just say she feels bad; she tracks the emotional slide into posture, into silhouette: “My whole body language changes… more slumped over.” It’s a reminder that mood isn’t only private and mental, it’s public and visible, which is especially loaded for someone whose career depends on being watched. In an industry that polices women’s bodies for a living, her admission reads like a backstage truth: despair shows up in the very thing you’re trained to control.
Context matters here: Burke became a major 1980s TV star and tabloid target, frequently scrutinized for her appearance. So when she talks about talking to herself just to “get through the day,” it carries the wear of a long, culturally enforced audition - not for roles, but for acceptability. The power of the quote is its plainspoken map from thought to feeling to physical collapse. It’s not melodrama; it’s an anatomy lesson in how shame and pressure travel through a person.
Quote Details
| Topic | Mental Health |
|---|
More Quotes by Delta
Add to List








