October 30th, 2018
There are always funny jokes in skits, movies, television shows, etc., about talking to yourself in public or talking to yourself in general. We laugh at the idea of having conversations with ourselves and often times if we see people doing it we think they’re crazy. The truth of the matter is that the majority of people talk to themselves. We have conversations about our life, arguments about decisions we want to make, laugh at things we do, internally, to ourselves, all the time. This internal conversation that we share with ourselves is also known as our internal dialogue.
Internal dialogue refers to a person’s inner voice that occurs while a person is awake. The conversation usually reflects both a person's unconscious and conscious beliefs and thoughts. Internal dialogue can be directed by you and can be an important aspect of developing and acknowledging who you are.
So why is even having an internal dialogue important? Well, since your internal dialogue occurs within yourself, confronting both unconscious and conscious thoughts, allows you to be real with yourself. Your internal dialogue provides you with logic and reasoning to apply to situations. It helps you make decisions about things you could possibly be having a hard time deciding on. It helps you weigh various opinions you have about things or decide if there's something you need to change. Your internal dialogue can also be reflections of yourself, your relationships, your purpose in life, etc. You can also control what is said in your internal dialogue. While some thoughts that arise are unconscious, most of them are what you choose to say to yourself. You have the ability to speak words of love and power to yourself. Within your internal dialogue there should be positive affirmations. When you look into the mirror what is your internal dialogue? Do you say things like: “You ate fast food yesterday. Ugh of course you did, that’s why you don’t look as good in those jeans as you did yesterday.” Or do you say things like: “Man you missed that workout today. That’s okay, you have been busy and trying your best to be consistent. Tomorrow is a new day.” The difference in these internal dialogues can guide how you see yourself. Remember, your internal dialogue happens every day, all day. If every day you are hearing negative things about yourself, how do you think that will shape you? What importance do you think the words in your internal dialogue have on you? It is also important to weed out where your thoughts are coming from. As a society, we are fed all sorts of things from media platforms constantly, as well as from our family and friends. Whether they are negative, positive, or both-- it can be hard to differentiate why you think a certain way about something-- or why you chose to make a certain decision. If you listen to your internal dialogue, it can allow you to unearth where these thoughts are coming from and if they are something you were fed or something you truly believe in.
Your internal dialogue is continuous and does not shut off. Your internal dialogue is a part of you and shapes how you think, how you act, how you see the world. While your internal dialogue is always running you can choose to ignore it. You can distract yourself from it or shut it out. Or you can choose to listen. You can choose to pay attention and converse with the beliefs and ideas and decisions that you internally have to live your life to the fullest. By being in touch with yourself, you are capable of being confident in how you choose to live your life. You will doubt yourself less and high-five yourself more. Your internal dialogue is important. It gives you self-love, self-understanding, and self-esteem. These are all aspects that add to overall happiness. When you are able to know yourself to the fullest extent (which can occur through engaging with your internal dialogue), you will lead more of a happy and successful life.
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