Relatable, Comforting Quotes from "Doctor Slump" Drama

Don’t watch "Doctor Slump" if you want a medical show. It's about doctors who are struggling with their personal and professional lives. That’s why it’s called that. I like how it shows the problems and feelings of people in their 30s. 

Not everyone will enjoy it, but I think people this age can understand it. We have so much pressure to achieve our goals, get married, and find our purpose. I love the stories and lessons in this show, and the love stories are a bonus.

"Doctor Slump" drama quotes that hit home

This girl I liked back then. The girl I hated back then. (Jeong Woo)

The boy I wanted to grab by the collar back then. I met him again during the lowest point in my life. (Haneul)

As if someone was trying to ruin your life on purpose, life doesn’t go your way in times like this. We call this a slump. And this time, whenever, whoever it is, and no matter the reason, it'll always come. (Haneul)

We all have something that makes us depressed and we try to hide it. We might be scared of what people will think of us or what we will think of ourselves. But that doesn't matter.

Back then, I thought if I kept trying hard as I’d always done, life would continue to be just fine like it had been before. (Jeong Woo)

Back then, I thought all I had to do was look ahead and keep moving. (Haneul)

Nevertheless, things in life didn’t work out the way we wanted. (Jeong Woo)

Despite working harder than anyone else for 17 hours a day, I was still treated like a sinner and an idiot. (Haneul)

Everything in the world was normal. But all it took for my everyday life to fall apart was 3 minutes. (Haneul)

They once said in a movie that failure and defeat meant different things. Anyone can fail but defeat was an utter fiasco usually found in legends. I was defeated. (Jeong Woo)

Reality was different from the movies. We wanted to turn the tide of the trial with crucial evidence, but that was nothing but a pipe dream. (Haneul) 

Even if my life wasn’t that precious, I still didn’t think it was a worthless life. So why did I want to die? (Haneul)

Everyone in this day and age is depressed. (Hong Ran)

Everyone is a bit unhappy in life. It’s not just me. So I should stay strong. (Haneul) 

You’re just not aware that you’re exhausted. But we all get emotionally weary at times. (Psychiatrist)

You don’t have to take it so seriously. You pushed yourself too hard and couldn’t rest when you were tired. It’s an illness of the mind. (Psychiatrist)

They said my mind has an illness. Like panfacial fractures, my mind has been shattered into pieces. (Haneul)

Sometimes, you suddenly lose balance within your mind and you feel lethargic. You feel lonely and exhausted. And you feel depressed during this time of emotional fatigue. (Haneul)

The best thing you can do right now is rest. It’s not an option. It’s a must. (Psychiatry)

I’m the type who saves their most favorite food and eats it last. And that’s what I did with my happiness as well. (Haneul)

On some days, all I wanted to do was just lie down like this. On other days, I was motivated to do something. And on some days I think, ‘From now on, let’s live for myself’. But on other days, everything just seems futile. Then, there were days when I wanted to work again. There were also days when I wanted to stay unemployed. (Haneul) 

Depression forms a defense mechanism. To squeeze out serotonin and dopamine to make you happy, you feel a desire to overcome depression and to give up at the same time. So even if it feels like you’ll be in despair forever, within that despair, hope can sometimes arise. (Haneul)

I want a healthy daughter instead of a successful one. Whatever you do, I love you and care about you so much. (Haneul's mother to Haneul)

- Jeong Woo: Since you've hit rock bottom...
- Haneul: I should stay strong?
- Jeong Woo: No just stay down. Let's take a break while we're at rock bottom.

When the life I had worked so hard for fell apart, I was expecting something grand to comfort me. But ttebbokki, the arcade, his ridiculous words of comfort. These 3 things will bring me peace tonight. (Haneul)

I don’t have any friends from my school days. But then, a friend from those days came into my life... I now have a friend to reminisce about the past with. (Haneul)

You’re smiling. You seem to be enduring it. But I know you’re actually struggling. But during these hard times, if you had someone who could comfort you, would it help you get a little better? (Haneul)

If I could go back in time, since I feel so bad for the younger you, I’d like to give you a hug. (Jeong Woo)

I think you’re too harsh on yourself. Don’t worry about what others think and take care of yourself first. You need to be okay today to help yourself make it through tomorrow. (Jeong Woo)

To be honest, things are really tough. But I’m hanging in there thanks to you. (Jeong Woo to Haneul)

Taking a stroll at night while drinking some warm tea without a care in the world. Was wishing for such a day asking for too much? (Haneul)

Even if it wasn’t a life full of happiness, I just wanted a decent life.

We wanted to believe that only good things awaited us. Even if it wasn’t astonishing, we hoped to have a decent life. We desperately prayed for this small wish. (Haneul)

Just like how the rain would eventually stop, we wanted to stop thinking that this sadness would last forever. (Haneul)

Despite not knowing our futures, we still waited for the sun to rise. (Jeong Woo)

Why am I happy to have you by my side? When I see you, why do I feel relieved? (Jeong Woo)

Why do you come to mind first whenever I’m upset? Why do your words comfort me? (Haneul)

Life was like a kidney bean. There was something that happen out of my control. (Jeong Woo)

While happiness felt vague at times, misfortune always made its presence known. I hit rock bottom in the blink of an eye. And failure always went hand in hand with loneliness. (Jeong Woo)

You see, I was so desperate for someone who’d believe in me. I just wanted one person like that in my life. Then, you appeared. (Jeong Woo to Haneul)

To me, you’re like my anxiety medication. My life is so bitter and salty. But you’re so sweet. It felt like I was eating candy in a salt pond. (Jeong Woo to Haneul)

Whenever I’d feel happy, I’d suddenly feel anxiety within my heart. (Haneul)

You kept me on my feet when my life was on the verge of collapsing. And I completely fell for you. That’s when I’d suddenly become anxious. I was afraid that you’d hurt me, too... If I’m this unstable, could we ever be happy? (Haneul to Jeong Woo)

You’re always suppressing your feelings, understanding, and yielding to others. Perhaps that’s why you became so weary. (Jeong Woo)

Can’t you just struggle by my side? Whatever that pain is, let’s go through it together. (Jeong Woo to Haneul)

Can I wait for you? Can I wait until you feel better? (Jeong Woo)

Don’t be too happy. But don’t be too sad, either. (Jeong Woo)

Like soju, my life is so bitter. (Haneul)

My life is like spicy chicken feet that makes me tear up. (Jeong Woo)

Everyone has something they can never attain no matter how much they try. (Jeong Woo)

Looking back, I think I really missed having this kind of ordinary life. Previously, family, love, or people around me weren’t all that important to me. But when I was struggling, I was comforted by the most ordinary of things. (Haneul)

At times, receiving quiet and subtle comfort can be more helpful. (Haneul)

If I need a reason to overcome this trauma, there’s no better reason than you. (Jeong Woo to Haneul)

Living an ordinary life is the hardest and most amazing thing to do. (Hong Ran)

Self-esteem is like a tower of pebbles you stack everyday. It crumbles once you have doubts and think, ‘Whats the point?’ Have confidence, believe in yourself, and keep stacking those pebbles up. Then, before you know it, you’ll have a house or a sturdy castle. (Psychiatrist)

Our what-if questions kept tormenting us. (Jeong Woo)

Someone once said you forgive someone not for their sake but for yours. Hating someone is so exhausting. It’s painful, miserable, and upsetting. Feeling that way towards someone is dearly hurting you. But it would be too cruel to tell you to forgive him. After everything you’ve been through? So for now, let’s wait. (Ms. Kong)

Since I’m in love, even little things in life shine as bright as stars. (Haneul)

Your gaze is full of love, but your words are so cold. It makes me swoon even when you’re scolding me. (Jeong Woo to Haneul)

I had never known what love really was. But I thought it could be something similar to praying. I always pray that you’ll be happy and successful. (Jeong Woo to Haneul)

I wanted to get her [Haneul] a ring. I’ve always wanted to. That was the moment I realized I wanted to be with her for a long time. (Jeong Woo)

The fireworks disappeared quickly. But the display continued to live in my memory. The lights soared, shined, and dispersed. And we realized everything was bound to disappear and the only things that last are the memories... We could let go of things we wanted to forget and hold on to memories we wanted to keep. Just like the fireworks.(Haneul)

You said you saw me in pain more while we’d been together. But I was happy many more times. You taught me how to reduce the pain. I learned how to forget my sadness... When I saw you cry for my pain, it made me believe in the power of warmth. (Jeong Woo to Haneul)

Whenever I was struggling or in pain, you embraced me like this bandage. (Jeong Woo to Haneul)

To me, you’ll always be the rainbow over the glistening ocean. So you can shine in your own way. (Ms. Kong)

When we first experienced despair, everything was out of control. We thought our lives were over. We thought we couldn't get out of our slumps for a long time. Yet, our slumps weren’t as deep as we had originally thought. (Jeong Woo)

Looking back, the moment when we fell down was the turning point in our lives. The moment when we believed our lives were over was a new beginning. (Haneul, Jeong Woo)

They’ll accept their misfortunes. "I can become miserable again, but that’s okay," "Should misfortunes come, I have the strength to endure them." That’s what they believe. (Psychiatrist)

We learned to be in pain for a moment and to cherish memories for awhile. In the end, we could escape our slumps. (Jeong Woo)

Life is a long journey. Even if I fail to reach a goal at a specific place or time, it doesn’t make my life worthless. It could be in the next place I visit or it could happen tomorrow. Good fortune exists and it’s waiting for me. That’s what I believe now. (Haneul)

I could be happy today and suddenly sad tomorrow. But it’s okay. If there’s sadness, there will always be happiness as well. We have the strength now to endure sadness and misfortunes. And that’s enough. (Jeong Woo, Haneul)

What is "Doctor Slump" about?

The series is a rom-com that follows the love-hate journey of Nam Haneul (Park Shin-hye) and Yeo Jeong-woo (Park Hyung-sik), 2 doctors who had bright futures but hit rock bottom due to various reasons. They used to be bitter rivals in high school and went their separate ways after graduation. However, fate brings them together again when they lose their jobs and have to share Haneul’s house.

Genre: Medical, romcom

Network: JTBC

Number of episodes: 16

Writer: Baek Seon-woo

Director: Oh Hyun-jong 

Main cast:

• Park Hyung-sik as Yeo Jeong-woo: a former star plastic surgeon who faced a career-ending mishap.
• Park Shin-hye as Nam Haneul: a top-notch student who worked hard to become an anesthesiologist but left the hospital after being exhausted by a harsh mentor.
• Yoon Park as Bin Dae-yeong: a plastic surgeon who competes with his famous college peer Jeong-woo in solitude.
• Gong Seong-ha as Lee Hong-ran: an anesthesiologist and Haneul’s closest friend.
• Oh Dong-min as Min Kyung-min: a friend of Jeong-woo and a senior of Haneul who is the youngest professor in the anesthesiology department.