Don't believe everything you think. Talk back to yourself!
I'm often amused when people say that they are afraid to admit to a psychologist that they talk to themselves.Then they invariably quip: "But it's OK as long as you don't answer yourself, right?" I then inform them that the healthiest people do answer themselves.
Sometimes our thoughts are just negative habits, and they may have nothing to do with the facts. Some have the habit of self-criticism, while another may be habited to criticizing others. One person may jump to conclusions about people trying to harm them. Another may easily interpret that someone is about to leave or abandon them. All of these come from our experiences and our interpretations of them (which can be wrong) and the attitudes we've seen modeled by others in our lives.
Learning to challenge your own thinking rather than simply assuming it is correct is a critical life skill! Ask yourself:
- What evidence do I have that this is true?
- What evidence is there that it might not be true?
- If a good friend told me this, what would I say to him/her?
- Is my interpretation of this situation helping me to be effective?
Many years ago, wise King Solomon reminded us of the importance of our thoughts in determining the quality of our lives: "As a person thinks in his heart, so is he." (Or she!)
