45 Quotes About Guilt and Shame

We all make mistakes in our lives that we are not proud of. Dealing with feelings of guilt and shame can leave us feeling devastated. Here are some great quotes about guilt and shame that can leave us feeling burdened.

“A man does not have to be an angel in order to be a saint.”

“A moment of self-compassion can change your entire day. A string of such moments can change the course of your life.”

“And yet, sometimes facts are no more than pitiful consequences, because guilt does not reside in our acts but in the intentions that give rise to our act. Everything turns on our intentions.”

“Conscience is what makes a boy tell his mother before his sister does.”

“Do you have patience to wait till your mud settles and the water is clear?”

“Do you want to meet the love of your life? Look in the mirror.”

“Empathy’s the antidote to shame. The two most powerful words when we’re in struggle: me too.”

“Every man is guilty of all the good he did not do.”

“Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future.”

“Feel no guilt. Getting married and giving birth does not mean that you have sold your life away to perfectly healthy people who can get their own damn socks.”

“Forgiveness is giving up the hope that the past could be any different.”

“Grief is not as heavy as guilt, but it takes more away from you.”

“Guilt is a destructive and ultimately pointless emotion.”

“Guilt is a useless feeling. It’s never enough to make you change direction–only enough to make you useless.”

“Guilt is also a way for us to express to others that we are a person of good conscience.”

“Guilt is not a response to anger; it is a response to one’s own actions or lack of action.”

“Guilt isn’t always a rational thing, Clio realized. Guilt is a weight that will crush you whether you deserve it or not.”

“Guilty feelings about clothes are totally unnecessary. A lot of people earn their living by making clothes, so you should never feel bad.”

“I get up and pace the room, as if I can leave my guilt behind me. But it tracks me as I walk, an ugly shadow made by myself.”

“If we are going to be kind, let it be out of simple generosity, not because we fear guilt or retribution.”

“If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete.”

“In the process of letting go you will lose many things from the past, but you will find yourself.”

“It has always seemed that a fear of judgment is the mark of guilt and the burden of insecurity.”

“It is better to risk saving a guilty person than to condemn an innocent one.”

“Lack of forgiveness causes almost all of our self-sabotaging behavior.”

“Make the most of your regrets; never smother your sorrow, but tend and cherish it till it comes to have a separate and integral interest. To regret deeply is to live afresh.”

“Maybe there’s more we all could have done, but we just have to let the guilt remind us to do better next time.”

“Mistakes are part of life. Everyone makes them. Everyone regrets them. But some learn from them and some end up making them again. It’s up to you to decide if you’ll use your mistakes to your advantage.”

“My guiding principle is this: Guilt is never to be doubted.”

“No guilt is forgotten so long as the conscience still knows of it.”

“One small crack does not mean that you are broken, it means that you were put to the test and you didn’t fall apart.”

“Only if you’ve been in the deepest valley can you ever know how magnificent it is to be on the highest mountain.”

“People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar.”

“Sometimes I just want to paint the words”It’s my fault” across my forehead to save people the time of being pissed off at me.”

“The most terrifying thing is to accept oneself completely.”

“The past has no power over the present moment.”

“The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.”

“There is no client as scary as an innocent.”

“Time passes unhindered. When we make mistakes, we cannot turn the clock back and try again. All we can do is use the present well.”

“To keep on trying in spite of disappointment and failure is the only way to keep young and brave. Failures become victories if they make us wise-hearted.”

“Was it you or I who stumbled first? It does not matter. The one of us who finds the strength to get up first, must help the other.”

“We see our sins reflected everywhere: in the pallor of our intimates’ faces, in the scratching of tree branches against windows, in the strange movements of everyday objects.”

“When we played softball, I’d steal second base, feel guilty and go back.”

“When you are guilty, it is not your sins you hate but yourself.”

“With everything that has happened to you, you can either feel sorry for yourself or treat what has happened as a gift. Everything is either an opportunity to grow or an obstacle to keep you from growing. You get to choose.”

Listening to the shame and letting it get the best of you can bring destruction to your life. Finding a way to break through your broken feelings and vulnerability will help you to make a new start.