3554: Positive Self-Talk: How Talking to Yourself Is a Good Thing by Kimberly Holland with Healthline

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[00:00:51] Welcome back to your Sunday bonus episode where I share an article with you from a different podcast in our network that can add some extra value to your day. Today's episode comes from Optimal Health Daily. You can find that show wherever you're listening to this. So with that, here's Dr. Neil with the post and commentary as we optimize your life.

[00:01:17] Positive Self-Talk. How Talking to Yourself Is a Good Thing by Kimberly Holland with Healthline.com What is Positive Self-Talk? Self-Talk is your internal dialogue. It's influenced by your subconscious mind and it reveals your thoughts, beliefs, questions, and ideas. Self-Talk can be both negative and positive. It can be encouraging and it can be distressing. Much of your self-talk depends on your personality.

[00:01:45] If you're an optimist, your self-talk may be more hopeful and positive. The opposite is generally true if you tend to be a pessimist. Positive thinking and optimism can be effective stress management tools. Indeed, having a more positive outlook on life can provide you with some health benefits. For example, one 2010 study shows optimists have a better quality of life.

[00:02:08] If you believe your self-talk is too negative or if you want to emphasize positive self-talk, you can learn to shift that inner dialogue. It can help you be a more positive person and it may improve your health. Why is it good for you? Self-talk can enhance your performance and general well-being. For example, research shows self-talk can help athletes with performance. It may help them with endurance or to power through a set of heavy weights.

[00:02:35] Furthermore, positive self-talk and a more optimistic outlook can have other health benefits, including increased vitality, greater life satisfaction, improved immune function, reduced pain, better cardiovascular health, better physical well-being, reduced risk for death, and less stress and distress. It's not clear why optimists and individuals with more positive self-talk experience these benefits.

[00:03:02] However, research suggests people with positive self-talk may have mental skills that allow them to solve problems, think differently, and be more efficient at coping with hardships or challenges. This can reduce the harmful effects of stress and anxiety. How does it work? Before you can learn to practice more self-talk, you must first identify negative thinking. This type of thinking and self-talk generally falls into four categories. 1. Personalizing.

[00:03:31] You blame yourself for everything. 2. Magnifying. You focus on the negative aspects of a situation, ignoring any and all of the positive. 3. Catastrophizing. You expect the worst, and you rarely let logic or reason persuade you otherwise. And 4. Polarizing. You see the world in black and white, or good and bad. There's nothing in between, and no middle ground for processing and categorizing life events.

[00:04:00] When you begin to recognize your types of negative thinking, you can work to turn them into positive thinking. This task requires practice and time, and doesn't develop overnight. The good news is that it can be done. A 2012 study shows even small children can learn to correct negative self-talk. What are some examples? These scenarios are examples of when and how you can turn negative self-talk into positive self-talk. Again, it takes practice.

[00:04:28] Recognizing some of your own negative self-talk in these scenarios may help you develop skills to flip the thought when it occurs. For example, Negative. I'll disappoint everyone if I change my mind. Positive. I have the power to change my mind. Others will understand. Negative. I failed and embarrassed myself. Positive. I'm proud of myself for even trying. That took courage. Negative. I'm overweight and out of shape.

[00:04:58] I might as well not bother. Positive. I am capable and strong, and I want to get healthier for me. Negative. I let everyone on my team down when I didn't score. Positive. Sports are a team event. We win and lose together. Negative. I've never done this before, and I'll be bad at it. Positive. This is a wonderful opportunity for me to learn from others and grow. Negative.

[00:05:27] There's just no way this will work. Positive. I can and will give it my all to make it work. How do I use this on a daily basis? Positive self-talk takes practice if it's not your natural instinct. If you're generally more pessimistic, you can learn to shift your inner dialogue to be more encouraging and uplifting. However, forming a new habit takes time and effort. Over time, your thoughts can shift. Positive self-talk can become your norm.

[00:05:56] These tips can help. Tip number one. Identify negative self-talk traps. Certain scenarios may increase your self-doubt and lead to more negative self-talk. Work events, for example, may be particularly hard. Pinpointing when you experience the most negative self-talk can help you anticipate and prepare. Tip number two. Check in with your feelings. Stop during events or bad days and evaluate your self-talk. Is it becoming negative?

[00:06:26] If so, how can you turn it around? Tip number three. Find the humor. Laughter can help relieve stress and tension. When you need a boost for positive self-talk, find ways to laugh, such as watching funny animal videos or a comedian. Tip number four. Surround yourself with positive people. Whether or not you notice it, you can absorb the outlook and emotions of people around you. This includes negative and positive, so choose positive people when you can.

[00:06:55] And tip number five. Give yourself positive affirmations. Sometimes, seeing positive words or inspiring images can be enough to redirect your thoughts. Post small reminders in your office, in your home, and anywhere you spend a significant amount of time. When should I seek support? Positive self-talk can help you improve your outlook on life. It can also have lasting, positive health benefits, including improved well-being and a better quality of life.

[00:07:24] However, self-talk is a habit made over a lifetime. If you tend to have negative self-talk and err on the side of pessimism, you can learn to change it. It takes time and practice, but you can develop uplifting positive self-talk. If you find you're not successful on your own, talk with a therapist. Mental health experts can help you pinpoint sources of negative self-talk and learn to flip the switch.

[00:07:49] Ask your healthcare provider for a referral to a therapist, or ask a friend or family member for a suggestion. You just listened to the post titled, Positive Self-Talk. How Talking to Yourself is a Good Thing. By Kimberly Holland, with Healthline.com. Summer's almost here, and honestly, I want to be planning a vacation, not stressing about whether I can actually afford it.

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[00:09:37] This is a job for Indeed Sponsored Jobs. Dr. Neil here for my commentary. Positive self-talk sounds relatively easy to do, right? Well, psychologists have discovered that for most of us, even those of us who are a little bit more optimistic, the majority of the thoughts we have on a daily basis are still negative. And usually these negative thoughts are directed at ourselves. It's been estimated that anywhere from 60 to 75% of our daily thoughts are negative and or self-critical.

[00:10:06] So, say we only have 100 thoughts each day. 60 to 75 of them would be negative or self-critical. Now, you might be thinking, well, they only studied those with a history of depression. That's why the percentage of negative thoughts are so high. Or they only looked at those who are pessimistic. Nope. They have studied individuals without a history of depression or other psychiatric disorders and found this to still be the case. It's as if our default setting is to be overly negative and critical.

[00:10:35] But the good news is, knowing this information can help us act. We can make the conscious effort to think more positively. Now, we don't have to be positive 100% of the time or even 60 to 75% of the time. Even just a bit more positivity can make a huge difference. And luckily, as today's author Kimberly said, we can train our brains to think more positively. We can change the lens with which we see the world. How?

[00:11:03] Well, Kimberly in her post provided a number of tips. And when we look at the research, like the research from psychologist Dr. Sean Acor, things like writing down five things for which you are grateful each day can help. Make it a habit to express gratitude to someone in your life. It can be as simple as sending a quick text or email. Perform acts of kindness for others. We find that when we do something positive for someone else, it makes us feel good too.

[00:11:31] Incorporating one or more of these regularly can start to change the way you see the world, which in turn may change how you think about the world. And likely, you'll start to see things in a more positive light, which may then change your self-talk and make it more positive. All right, that'll do it for today. I hope you have a great weekend if you're listening in real time. And I'll see you back here tomorrow for the Sunday show where your optimal life awaits.