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THE DIARIST CONFESSIONS
Talking To Ourselves is Normal
Self-soothing isn’t crazy. It’s necessary.
An open letter to all self-talkers: February 24, 2024
Talking to yourself isn’t crazy or bad. It’s a way we love ourselves, comfort ourselves, and process or plan.
There was one foster home I grew up in where the dad spoke to himself regularly. He would review lists, process the things he experienced, or just mumble things to himself.
I used to think he was strange and weird.
Now I happily talk to myself. Even in front of my family or throughout my day. As a verbal processor, sometimes I need to get it out — or onto paper.
What matters the most about self-talk is how we talk to ourselves.
Talking to ourselves can have on our self-esteem, cognitive performance, and emotional regulation.
Sophie from the movieomes to mind, right after she was cursed by the Witch of the Waste. She aged fifty years in the blink of an eye and paced back and forth in front of a mirror, muttering to herself, “You need to calm down, Sophie. You need to stay calm.”
