Hello! Hola! Namaste! Did you hear these greetings in your head? Then your inner critic is definitely voicing the thoughts in your own voice. You might also be wondering if this is a weird start to an article.
But trust us, you are going to enjoy this post till the end Because it is all about the inner monologue which is commonly known to describe the voice speaking to you in your mind. So let’s find out more about it, shall we?
What Is An Internal Monologue? Understand More About It!
An inner monologue also known as an internal monologue happens because of a brain mechanism in your head or you can say the little voices in your head.
Sometimes, it can be your motivator or the worst critic. It helps during various tasks like rehearsing tough conversations, helping with directions, or giving advice.
It also helps you to rehearse anything in your head without speaking out loud. Though it has many benefits it can also have disadvantages like it can hinder your reading speed.
In simple terms, inner monologue is like an inner voice narrator from the moment you wake till you go back to sleep. It is frequent for some and weird for those who don’t have it.
Why Do We Have An Internal Monologue? Science Behind Inner Monologue!
Internal monologue happens because of a corollary discharge, which is a brain signal. This signal helps the person distinguish between external and internal stimuli. It occurs to all humans.
Everybody can hear their own voices in their mind, but not everyone can experience it! Researchers are still discovering the theory of internal monologue.
Apart from that, the corollary discharge also assists the person to distinguish between all their sensory experiences.
Moreover, it helps your auditory system to process speech hearing, which is absent in people without inner monologue. Corollary discharge helps why the sound of your voice is different on a recording from when you are talking to other people.
Moreover, the internal monologue also helps you to focus on your own voice and cancel other external stimuli. It also organizes your thoughts without saying a single word out loud.
People with inner monologues can ask questions to themselves and brainstorm the answers.
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Do You Have An Inner Monologue? Let’s Find Out!
Don’t know whether you have an inner monologue or not? Well, there are various signs that show you have it. Let’s check out some:
1. You Talk To Yourself
The most common sign is having self-talk in your head. You might be trying to solve a puzzle by speaking to yourself in your mind.
2. Songs Get Stuck In Your Head
The other common sign is when a song suddenly pops up in your head. Around 98 percent of people have experienced this in their lives.
3. You Replay A Favorite Podcast Or Movie In Your Mind
Just like the songs, your brain involuntarily throws the memories of your favorite films or podcasts to the surface without any warning. From an emotional scene to any shot that you were impressed with after watching the movie, it can be anything.
4. You Rehearse In Front Of An Imaginary Audience.
Well, everyone has done this! You talk to yourself by using the words you want to say during a speech or presentation.
5. You Read To Yourself
You can listen to your voice in your mind while reading an article or a book.
So if you have any of these, then you have an internal monologue.
Easy Tips To Have Positive Inner Monologue
Below we have shared six tips to master your internal monologue and live a happy life.
1. Spend Time In Silence
Our thoughts range from 60,000 to 80,000 typically. So meditation can help you to turn off unwanted talks that occur in your head.
2. Cultivate Gratitude
Divert your attention to those things that you are grateful for by verbally reminding yourself or writing them down in a book. Thus, it shifts your concentration from negative to positive thinking.
3. Actively Avoid Negativity
We tend to catch negative events faster than positive ones. So a simple way to turn away from the negativity and fill yourself with a positive environment like watching sunsets, having tasty meals, and so on.
4. Harness The Power Of Affirmations
“I am” are the two strong words that can make you a powerful person. So use affirmative words while you are having an inner monologue.
5. Practice Impeccable Speech And Behavior
Once you start practicing your behavior and speech, your inner monologue will become more refined and positive.
6. Remember You’re True Nature
When you find yourself drowning in melodrama and ego hype, remind yourself who you truly are and free yourself from any limitations.
7. Practice, practice, practice!
“Practice makes a man perfect.” Well, it surely does! Follow all the above tips regularly and see the difference in your inner monologue within a month.
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What It’s Like Living Without An Inner Monologue
A life without an inner monologue can be difficult for some people. Suppose a person is running late for work, they know that they are late, but they are not thinking, “I am super late. I need to go to bed earlier, and so on.”
The story of a person without an inner monologue when they are in a panic attack is also different. Instead of having repetitive or compulsive thoughts, their anxiety will manifest in a more physical way.
They don’t tell themselves, “Oh my gosh!” or in other words, we usually say when we are in a panic attack.
Sometimes, a song may pop into their head and they can hear a singer’s voice. However, they don’t hear their own voice because they don’t have an inner monologue.
In other cases, if a boss asks a person without inner monologue to do some work when they are about to leave, they don’t think, “Oh man, my boss is giving me such pain and a headache.”
Instead of that, they get frustrated and do the chore. But they don’t have any thoughts about it in their mind. Sometimes it becomes so difficult for these people, they have to communicate outside their minds with actual words to translate what they are thinking.
It does take effort and time and it is based on written over verbal communication
What Are The Pros And Cons Of Inner Monologue
Pros:
- It enhances problem-solving, performance, self-motivation, critical thinking, behavior, productivity, criticism, judgment, self-awareness, as well as self-reflection skills.
- It can lower your stress levels and make you more resilient against setbacks.
- Helps in supporting your working memory.
- Helps in presentation or speech preparation.
- Replay instructions in your mind.
- One can achieve peak performance in terms of imagination and creativity.
Cons:
- It can affect your self-esteem and confidence.
- It may cause depression, neurosis, and anxiety.
- It can produce all the self-comparisons and opinions which can sometimes affect negatively.
- It can affect your mind if you had bad past memories with your close ones.
- Negative inner monologue can impact your performance at work or school.
- Overthink increases and it might affect you in various ways.
- You have no control over your thoughts.
- You will always be anticipating the future.
Frequently Asked Question
1. What percentage of people have an inner monologue?
According to some sources, not all individuals have 100 percent inner monologue at a time. But there are some cases where some individuals have it sometimes.
It is estimated that around 30 percent to 50 percent of individuals have inner monologues frequently. It narrates their thoughts throughout the day.
2. What Is no internal monologue called?
If a person has no inner monologue, then there is no need to worry. Though it may be a common occurrence, there are high chances some people may have never experienced it.
If a person has never experienced it then they might be suffering from aphantasia. It is sometimes called “blindness of the mind’s eye.”
Individuals who are suffering from this are unable to create visual images in their minds. They cannot even picture their room or their loved one’s face.
3. Does everyone talk to themselves in their head?
Yes, almost everyone talks to themselves in their mind because the inner monologue helps them to get their daily tasks done such as their job, home chores, as well as other routines.
They are constantly having internal talks related to past, present, or future work. Some even call it inner chatter. However, some people may not experience it.
But this doesn’t pose the same kind of internal speech where you can hear your voice expressing something.
4. Can you turn off your inner monologue?
Yes, you can! There are several ways to stop or control internal monologue. You can try doing meditation or practicing imagery. Doing meditation helps most of the time to keep that fervent critic which is our brain in check.
The brain activity called DMN, aka the default mode network, mostly happens when we are daydreaming or not focused.
Thus, this helps the internal voice to come back into your mind to start an inner monologue.
If you want to stop it, simply say ‘stop’ and repeat your daily affirmative words like ‘I am strong, ‘I am worthy, ‘I am confident, or any other words that work for you.
But make sure to keep repeating those words until the internal voice in your head disappears. Inner monologue can be stressful when you are working or doing something that requires 100 percent attention.
You can even write down something that you are grateful for in your gratitude journal at any time of the day. Feeling grateful gives you a calm and peaceful feeling and shuts off unwanted inner monologues.
5. Does everyone have an inner monologue?
Yes, everybody has an internal monologue. It is like zoning out and thinking and talking to yourself in your head.
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