Yes, you read that right! Although you might think that talking to yourself means either you’re losing it, or you’ve already lost it, the act itself is in fact a sign of sanity. People speak to themselves in times of stress, loneliness, and especially confusion.
An Example of When You Might Talk to Yourself, and Why
Imagine you’re running late for work. It’s been a rough morning, you can’t seem to get anything together to start your day and on top of that, you realize your car keys have magically disappeared from the place you left them. What do you do? Initially, you freak out in your head and most likely have thoughts such as “Oh my god I’m going to be late for work”, “What if I get fired?”, and “Where the heck did I put my keys?”.
Cognitively, your brain realizes you are under a state of stress and in order to solve the problem, it will didactically direct you to help yourself find a solution.
In other words, you speak to yourself.
This is our brain’s way of helping us deal with situations that cause mental chaos. It is reasonable and highly beneficial to speak out loud to yourself because it helps you solve problems faster, and can also bring you mental clarity.
Furthermore, Talking to Yourself Can Combat Loneliness, and Can Also be Motivational.
Ever catch yourself speaking your thoughts out loud at the gym trying to convince yourself to do one more sit-up or run one more lap? Of course you have. These are perfect examples of ways that self-talk is profoundly valuable and even recommended to aid in your well-being.
So don’t worry. When you do end up finding your car keys, feel free to say, “Good job, you did it,” and don’t think twice about whether or not you’ve lost your mind.
Afterall, the person that matters most, is you.
If you would like to speak with a doctor about medication management, and are in the Ardmore or Wynnewood areas, please feel free to contact me.
“Laughing Buddha” photo by rauter25 is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0
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