Negative Self Talk

 

Negative Self Talk is probably something that a lot of us do on a regular basis and I am guilty as charged. Whenever some overwhelming situation hits me, what I usually used to do was feed myself so much garbage that I ended up not taking the baton and losing out on a great opportunity. I would often undermine or underestimate my potential and constantly talk in a pessimistic way to myself.

Until recently, I didn't even realise I did it but when my best friend started noticing how my mental health was deteriorating because of this and he gave me a few tips on how I should combat it and honestly, its worked wonders. 

At first I stayed in a bubble of denial for a while until one day it popped and made me realise about the toxic negativity  I was filling my brain with. I came to a conclusion that I had to do something about it.

A couple of months in, I have learned how to overpower those cynical thoughts of mine which is why I wanted to share a few tips that helped me with y'all.

Disclaimer: It might not work for everyone but it has helped me drastically so I hope it does for you too :)

Okay but before we start we first need to clear out what exactly IS 

"Negative Self Talk"

In simple terms, its basically trash-talking to demean yourself. Negative self-talk isn’t constructive, and it rarely motivates us to make any changes. It makes us doubt ourselves to the very point that we feel like either giving up or not taking up an opportunity.

While we’ve all got a conversation happening in our heads, it carries on so constantly that our minds have learned to disregard it for the maximum part. We won't be consciously aware of this inner voice, however it has a powerful impact at the manner we view the world and the way we decide to act.

“I’m an idiot.”

“I’m such a loser, and I always will be.”

“Well, I failed at this exam, this means I'll never pass one again.”

“No one will ever love me.”

“I'm not capable enough to do this”

“You're gonna mess up. You know it. Just don't take a chance”

All these are examples of Negative Self Talk and influence how we carry out our day to day jobs which need to be replaced with something positive for your own good.

So now that you have perceived this voice, the question arises, 

How do I combat it? 

Here are a few of the steps I took that has helped me:

Okay I thought this was dumb at first but it has drastically changed the way I view situations. Talking back to the voice is an critical part of eliminating its power. Simply telling the voice you don’t need to listen what it has to say starts to give you a sense of choice in the matter. When you hear the inner critic start to speak, tell it to move away but don't shun it. There might be a reason why that thought has stricken your mind.

Now that you have more or less eliminated the voice, it is important for you to replace that with a more pragmatic one. A voice that will make you more progressive-that will motivate you to be a better person-to push yourself and step out of your comfort zone and take risks. You can also check out my poem-The Voice In My Head which is basically a conversation between he negative and positive parts of my mind.

Maybe your examination didn’t go as well as you’d hoped, however that single shortcoming doesn’t define you. Remind yourself of the whole lot else you’ve accomplished and that unhappiness won’t look like such a massive deal anymore. There is not one person on this earth who didn’t accomplish something. It might be saying ‘hi’ to someone, smiling at someone, assisting a friend in need, or listening. Reminding yourself frequently of those little wins can change your mind-set and assist you embrace the brilliant aspect of your failures.

Okay! That was it for today. Hope y'all enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it :) This was more of a "what" rather than the effects, causes, etc, type post. Don't worry, I'll write about them soon enough! Please share and subscribe for more content, every friday!

Signing off,

Kuhu :)