« Where's my jar of body butter? Damn, you always throw everything around and then can’t find it!«.
I don't talk to anyone. I'm just looking for my favorite lotion.« Yeah, here you go! You rolled it under the bed!«.
« I often talk to myself for a long time“,” admits Gigi Angle.
And this doesn't just happen when I'm in the privacy of my own home.
I'm talking to myself while I'm walking outside. When I'm sitting in the office or when I'm shopping.
Thinking out loud helps me materialize what I'm thinking about. This allows me to understand the meaning of things and events.
When a person talks to himself, from the outside he looks crazy. We all know it: mentally ill people talk to themselves, right? After all, not everyone can talk to someone who is sitting between their ears.
I'm sure a lot of people saw me wandering the streets of New York and thought, "Oh my god, drug addiction is really terrible." And, yes, sometimes I talk to things like Gollum from The Lord of the Rings - especially rings and jewelry in general.
I decided to study the phenomenon. And do you know what turned out to be?
Talking to yourself is actually a sign of genius.
The smartest people on the planet talk to themselves.
Look at the internal monologues greatest thinkers. Look at the poems! Look at the history!
Albert Einstein was talking to himself. When he was a teenager, he had no desire to communicate with peers. I preferred to keep everything to myself. Einstein.org reports that he "liked to quietly repeat the same phrases to himself several times."
As you can see, I'm not alone. And I'm not completely crazy. I'm probably just very smart. Ha!
Talking to yourself makes your brain work more efficiently.
The authors of the experiment, Daniel Swigley and Gary Lupyan, gave 20 different people The task is to find a specific product in the supermarket - for example, bread, milk or an apple. During the first series of the test, participants had to silently scurry around the store. In the second set, they were asked to say out loud the name of what they were looking for. Needless to say, they did it much better the second time?
The scientific publication Live Science explains this phenomenon by the fact that talking out loud - even to oneself - causes the areas of the brain responsible for memory to work more actively. And this gives a tangible effect.
Here's how Lyupyan explains it:
“If you know what an object looks like, then talking to yourself will help you find it. You know that, for example, a banana is yellow and has a special oblong shape. When you say "banana" out loud, your brain activates its visual abilities to help you find it. So yes, it works."
Children who talk to themselves develop faster.
There is scientific evidence that indicates that children who talk to themselves from childhood generally develop faster. They begin to lace their own shoes earlier, do better in school, know more words and learn to read more quickly than syllables.
And since children learn to speak by listening to and imitating adults, they usually pick up the habit of self-talk from their parents. So, at least in the family and in the presence of your children, you can feel free to help yourself think in this way.
Talking to yourself helps organize your thoughts.
When my thoughts are incoherent and I need to organize them, I know that the easiest way to do this is to start saying everything that is going on in my head out loud.
Plus, psychologists know that vocalized questions calm the nerves. If something is bothering you, talk it out. It will become easier.
Psychologist Linda Sapadin even argues that speaking out loud about your problems can help you make important and difficult decisions.
Everyone knows that The best way To solve a problem is to talk it out. So why not do it alone, on your own?
Self-talk helps you achieve your goals.
Making a list of your goals and immediately starting to fulfill them is an unrealistic task. And it's very depressing.
But if you start saying your goals out loud, it will be easier for you to achieve what you want. If you support yourself through the process, each step will seem less difficult and less time-consuming.
Sapadin explains:
“When you talk about your goals out loud, it's easier for your attention to focus. Plus, you reinforce your intentions with words and control your emotions. It becomes much more difficult for the brain to be distracted.”
In general, you understand. We, who like to chat alone, are, of course, the “crazy ones”, but in fact we are also the smartest and effective people of all.
We do not regret the time spent listening to our inner voice. Now we will speak to ourselves loudly and proudly!
If a person talks to himself out loud, is the diagnosis of mental illness obvious or is this behavior normal? It all depends on the characteristics of these “conversations”, their frequency and the presence of other symptoms.
As you know, all people, without exception, conduct internal dialogues. This is completely normal, because this is how things happen thought processes. Sometimes pieces of internal conversations “break out”, which is also nothing to worry about. For example, a person thought about something for a long time, looked for answers to some questions and finally found it. Joy on this occasion overwhelms him, and he shouts something like “hurray,” “I’m great,” etc. This happens to everyone from time to time.
Some people accompany complex work with mumbling, saying certain things out loud so as not to “lose” sight or get confused. If at the same time they are aware of the fact that they are talking to themselves, then about no mental illness out of the question. Just a harmless personality trait.
But there are other cases. For example, a person is talking in all seriousness with someone visible only to him - with some non-existent interlocutor. He asks questions and “hears” the answers, reacting accordingly. Or he simply conducts a monologue, addressing someone who is not really there.
Or the person seems to be playing somewhat
roles, changing voice, intonation, facial expression. That is, he splits into two and creates a “one-man show,” without realizing it, but sincerely believing that there are two or even three of him. This and the previous case are no longer the norm. Most likely we are talking about a mental illness called schizophrenia.This term is of Greek origin and is translated as division of the mind. “Schizo” – I split, “freno” – mind, soul. The disease represents a person’s loss of contact with reality, a loss of coherence in thinking, which naturally affects behavior. One of the main symptoms of schizophrenia is hallucinations. These, in fact, become the reason for conversations with oneself.
A person may think that he sees someone or simply hears voices. Often the latter are commanding and order the patient to do something. As a result, a person suffering from schizophrenia can commit the most terrible acts - even murder or suicide. In order to recognize the disease in time and protect a person from danger, loved ones should be attentive to the slightest manifestations of the disease. And regular conversations with yourself are one of them.
Thus, thinking out loud can be both a variant of the norm and a symptom mental pathology. If a person talks to himself sometimes and is aware of this, then there is no need to worry. If conversations take place with someone who is not actually there, you should consult a doctor.
Thinking out loud and alone with yourself does not mean that you are crazy. As strange as it may seem, such conversations can bring tangible benefits. We will talk about why it is so important to at least sometimes think out loud with yourself.
It has long been noted that talking out loud is one of the characteristic signs the smartest people. Many geniuses had this feature. This is confirmed not only historical facts, but is also reflected in works of literature, painting, and even in scientific works. It is known that Albert Einstein reasoned out loud when thinking about his theories, Immanuel Kant said: “To think means to talk to oneself... to hear oneself.”
What is this phenomenon and why does a person need it? It turns out that almost all people tend to talk out loud to themselves. And this happens quite often - at least once every few days. Psychologists from the American University of Wisconsin-Madison argue that such a habit is not a deviation, but, on the contrary, has a positive effect on brain function.
Left to yourself, take a closer look at both.
Stanislav Jerzy Lec
If you are bored alone with yourself, then you are in bad company.
Jean-Paul Sartre
As a result of a person talking out loud to himself, the brain begins to work more efficiently, and therefore the person:
1. Can find items faster
An experiment was conducted in which participants were asked to find lost objects. Such activities, according to researchers, provoke people to talk to themselves. While completing the task, one group had to remain silent, and the participants in the second group could reason with themselves without restrictions. As a result, the second group completed the task more successfully; its participants found the lost things faster. Scientists explain this by the fact that speech significantly increases attention, speeds up perception and the thought process, which helps the brain quickly find the right solution.
By pronouncing the name of an object and talking to ourselves about our previous actions, we activate not only our memory, but also concentrate better.
2. Learns faster and thinks faster
It has long been noted that a mathematical (for example) problem read aloud by the student himself is solved faster. The fact is that two channels of perception are involved - auditory and visual, plus - reading aloud is somewhat slower than reading “to oneself”, and thus the brain better perceives the condition of the problem and the solution comes faster. Therefore, children in the learning process often pronounce and repeat what they do. This makes it possible to remember for the future ways to solve those problems that arise.
When repeating out loud educational material the same thing happens - the brain better assimilates and remembers information (due to several channels of perception), its structuring occurs, and articulatory muscles develop and adapt to pronouncing new words, which makes it easier to reproduce the learned material in class. As a result, memory improves, speech and verbal handling of complex concepts develop.
3. Calms down, successfully organizes and structures thoughts
In moments of emotional stress (and sometimes in a calm state), a person’s thoughts randomly jump and rush around, there is complete confusion in the head. Speaking out loud what worries you slows down the process of anxiety and slows down the flow of thoughts. This allows you to calm down and clear your thoughts. After all, in a calm state it is easier to sort everything out and come to a reasonable, albeit sometimes difficult, decision.
4. Reaches the goal faster
At least once in our lives, each of us said to ourselves: “That’s it, I start on Monday.” new life“I go on a diet, learn English, go to the gym.” But at least once in our lives, each of us never did anything. But if we agreed to run in the morning with our friend, then it’s more difficult to retreat from the agreement.
By speaking out loud our intended goals, we agree with ourselves to start doing something, we take upon ourselves unique obligations, which are more difficult to break. This is how the psyche works in an interesting way.
At the same time, discussing each step with ourselves, we prepare the brain and psyche, thereby removing internal resistance and making the task easier for ourselves, making everything less complicated, clearer and more specific. We spend less energy fighting ourselves, which means we have more energy left to achieve our goals, this makes it possible to see things in perspective and move forward more firmly and confidently.
5. Gets rid of loneliness
Thoughts are spoken out loud most often when a person is alone in a room. If a person is lonely or is not used to being alone, then this is one of the unconscious ways to get rid of loneliness.
6. Eliminates self-doubt
By speaking out loud the events that happened, a person calms down and begins to analyze. Such monologues help relieve emotional stress, coordinate actions and put thoughts in order. But most importantly, they help you hear yourself, and not just accept the negative opinions of others. And also, to come to the conclusion that not everything is as bad as it seemed at the first moment.
Read also:
The cause of inner speech
Inner dialogues, whether spoken out loud or not, are normal. Scientists suggest that a person talks to himself, on average, about 70% of the time. How did such communication with oneself arise, where does our inner voice, and such as he is?
1. Negative self-talk. If parents believe that the child must be kept under a tight rein, constantly reprimanded, forbidden, scolded and punished, then the inner voice will tell you that you are incompetent, lazy, bungled or a loser. Such children often grow up to be pessimistic, uninitiative, lacking self-confidence, aggressive, and even failures. According to scientists, most often such an inner voice in a child is formed by people who carry real life negativity and condemnation.
But there is good news! It lies in the fact that your inner voice can be reconfigured to a positive strategy. And finally hear praise and support from yourself. How to work on yourself?
Firstly, learn to turn off your inner voice in time, especially when you begin not only to scold yourself, but simply to “gnaw” at yourself for a mistake. To do this, you need to try to focus, for example, on simultaneously tracking sensations in three different points of the body, or perceive three sounds from your environment. With such a load of consciousness, the inner voice with negative information will not reach you.
Secondly, learn to approach yourself positively. In response to your own criticism, learn to ask yourself the question: “What was good and positive in what I did or in what happened. Was everything really so hopeless? Learn to see and appreciate everything O the best thing you have. When assessing an event, first of all think about what was done correctly and well? And then the internal critic and scolder will have no power over you.
2. Positive internal dialogue. If the child hears from his parents that he is loved and valued, he is given support and offered help, or if he can do it, they encourage him to solve the problem himself, and then express meaningful praise (for example, “how you carefully and quickly did !”, and not just “well done!”), then the inner voice will be supportive, encouraging, constructive and motivating to find a solution to the problems or problems that have arisen.
An inner voice, based on high but adequate self-esteem, based on love, support and self-respect, will help in achieving your goals, creating inner harmony, peace of mind, increasing inner strength. Our internal dialogue should help in personal life, work and in the process of self-development. It should be short and constructive, not intimidating, not causing anxiety, not causing panic, not lowering self-esteem. And also, be able to shut up in time so as not to distract from the world around you and real life.
Pathology
All of the above, of course, does not apply to pathological conditions when a person is talking with an invisible interlocutor, especially if it lasts for a long time. Such strange behavior loved one should alert you, this is a reason to definitely apply for professional help. Moreover, it’s not a runny nose – it won’t go away on its own. Be healthy!
Don't be embarrassed to admit that you are talking to yourself. This is not a shame at all - on the contrary, this feature speaks of incredible potential. Scientists have proven that people who support their actions with mental cues or simply accompanying phrases turn out to be geniuses! So, if you're the type who constantly mutters to yourself, you can be proud of that.
Experimental study
A practicing psychologist, Gary Lupyan, decided to check how internal conversation is connected with memory mechanisms. To do this, he selected 20 voluntary participants, who were shown several objects. Then all the people were asked to remember what these objects were. All participants in the experiment were divided into two groups: those who listed the names out loud, and those who completed the task silently. Based on the results of the analysis of the collected data, the scientist determined that people who used the verbal form of expressing thoughts were able to quickly remember objects. The silent ones lagged behind them by about 50-100 milliseconds. 
Gary himself noticed that he often talks to himself when looking for something, for example, in a supermarket. This is what prompted him to create such an amazing experiment. The research psychologist also identified a number of reasons why geniuses conduct internal conversations. 
It develops memory processes
By giving yourself verbal guidance, a person activates the sensory mechanisms of the brain. Roughly speaking, this is how he helps himself think. The brain focuses on what is said and processes information much faster. 
It's easier to concentrate this way
If you pronounce the name of an object, then all thoughts will be directed only to it. In this case, you will not be distracted by foreign objects. However, Gary Lupyan argues that this rule only applies if a person knows what the thing he is looking for looks like. By the way, many scientists agree with him in this statement. When you talk about a familiar object, the brain immediately reproduces its image. If the thing is not familiar to you, then your thought processes reach a dead end. Naturally, it is unlikely that you will be able to concentrate. 
A great way to “organize thoughts on shelves”
An excellent example of the effect of internal communication in in this case- an attempt to calm oneself down in anger. When a person is angry, he acts on emotions, and his thoughts are ahead of his reason. Talking to yourself helps you return to reality. In this way, thoughts are cleared of aggressive emotions and become more constructive.
“It’s like I’m writing subtitles for my life,” admits 37-year-old Alexandra. – Everything I’m going to do, I comment out loud: “It’s warm today, I’ll wear a blue skirt”; “I’ll withdraw a couple of thousand from the card, that should be enough.” If my friend hears it, it’s not scary - he’s used to it. But in public place people start looking at me sideways and I feel stupid.”
It helps me concentrate. By saying our actions out loud, we are not at all striving for communication - so why don’t we just remain silent? “The need for comments appears when the task facing us requires concentration,” notes psychotherapist Andrei Korneev, a specialist in somatic psychology. – There was a period in the lives of each of us when we described out loud everything that we did or were going to do. Although we may not remember it: it happened at the age of about three years. Such speech, addressed to no one, is a natural stage of development; it helps the child to navigate the objective world, move from spontaneous reactions to conscious actions and learn to manage them. Then external speech “collapses”, turns into internal speech, and we stop noticing it.” But it can “unfold” again and sound out loud if we perform some complex sequence of operations, for example, assembling an electronic circuit or preparing a dish according to a new recipe. Its function is the same: it makes it easier for us to manipulate objects and helps us plan them.
Elena, 41 years old, Norwegian language teacher
“Criticizing myself out loud, or even scolding, was a habit for me. I never thought about it and somehow involuntarily made a remark to myself in the psychotherapist’s office. And he asked: “Who told little Lena that she was a klutz?” It was like an epiphany: I remembered that this is exactly how my school teacher scolded me. And I stopped saying that - because I don’t think so, these words are not mine!”
I'm letting out my emotions. Exclamations that have no addressee can be a manifestation of strong feelings: indignation, delight. One day, Pushkin, alone, “clapping his hands and shouting, “Oh yes Pushkin! what a son of a bitch!” - I was so pleased with my work. Replies: “At least it’s gone!” student before an exam, “so what to do about it?” the accountant over the quarterly report and the things we say while looking after the train we missed - they all have the same reason. “A statement in such a situation serves as an emotional release and is often accompanied by an energetic gesture,” explains Andrei Korneev. “Strong is a surge of energy, and it requires some kind of manifestation outside so that we can get rid of excess tension.” I continue to have an internal dialogue. Sometimes we seem to look at ourselves from the outside - and evaluate, scold, and lecture. “If these are monotonous statements in which the same assessments are made, little dependent on changes in circumstances, this is a consequence of emotional trauma, most likely received in childhood,” says Andrei Korneev. “An unresolved conflict turns into an internal one: one part of us conflicts with another.” Strong feeling that we experienced in the past found no outlet (for example, we could not express anger towards our parents) and remained locked inside. And we relive it, repeating out loud the words once addressed to us.
What to do?
Separate your thoughts from others
Who speaks to us during such monologues? Are we really expressing our own thoughts and opinions or are we repeating what our parents, relatives or close friends once told us? “Try to remember who it was. Imagine that this person is now in front of you, suggests Andrei Korneev. - Listen to his words. Find an answer that you can give now, as an adult, taking into account your life experience and knowledge. As a child, you may have been confused or scared, unsure of how to respond, or afraid. Today you have something to say, and you will be able to defend yourself.” This exercise helps complete the experience.
Try to speak more quietly
“If talking through actions helps you, you don’t need to try to get rid of it,” reassures Andrey Korneev. – And if disapproving glances or comments from others who do not want to be aware of your plans interfere with this, then try to avoid them. What should I do for this? Speak more quietly, in a whisper. This is just that rare case when the more illegible, the better. Then those around you will not suspect for a second that you are addressing them, and awkward situations will become smaller. Gradually you can switch to silent pronunciation, it’s a matter of training.” Look closely and you will notice other people moving their lips near a store shelf with twenty types of cereals. But this doesn't bother anyone.
Prepare in advance
Make a grocery list when going to the store. Calculate your time when getting ready for the train. Learn all exam papers. Planning and careful preparation will eliminate the need to think on your feet and worry out loud. Of course, there are emergencies that are beyond our control and that cannot be foreseen. But, hand on heart, we admit that they happen rarely.
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