Imagine that outside the window you hear the annoying screams of hooligans, or the March cry of a cat, or the roar of a car. You will experience a lot of negative emotions, but think briefly: “cat”, “car”, “bullies”. Although if you say your thoughts out loud, they will sound differently. For example, like this: “Again these vile punks with their screams and alcohol, which are already in my throat.” This is how a person’s internal and external speech works. The inner voice is short, it does not express emotions, which is why they remain inside the person and continue to put pressure on him. But this is not all that you need to know about inner speech.
Inner speech: what is it?
Every person is endowed with an inner voice, only in psychology it is called inner speech. It arises in the process of thinking and helps to perform mental operations in the mind. Remember how you count or read something, listen to someone or remember something. I’m writing this article now, and every letter of the text, every word sounds in my head. This is how inner speech works.
Why do you need inner speech?
- logical processing of sensory data;
- awareness and understanding of received or reproduced information;
- briefing during the activity;
- self-esteem and self-analysis of actions, actions, experiences;
- selection, analysis, synthesis, memorization of information;
- better concentration on the problem, task.
Inner speech is a preparatory stage. Internal assessment allows you to understand whether it is worth translating internal speech into written or spoken language. Surely you have had similar “rehearsals” of speech. Before you said anything, you spoke it out, and sometimes played out your opponent’s different answers.
Inner speech develops gradually. Thus, it is difficult for preschoolers and primary schoolchildren to read “to themselves” (not out loud). They move on to inner speech gradually, and first read out loud or in a half-whisper. Inner speech begins to develop towards the end of the child's first year of life. It comes out of the self-centered speech that is characteristic of children during play.
Thinking out loud
Inner speech is different from spoken or written speech. It is more abstract, endowed with images, associations, ideas, but at the same time with concepts and definitions. The more complex the mental task, the louder the inner voice sounds. Studies have confirmed that during internal conversation the same muscles tense as during oral speech; the tongue, larynx, and lips work. Sometimes the inner voice even turns into a whisper, loud speech or scream.
This is necessary for a better representation of the problem and task. Full-fledged monologues and dialogues with oneself help to comprehensively analyze objects, grasp thoughts, control words and actions.
From this we can conclude that in a difficult life situation or at a time of stress, tense conditions, talking to oneself helps a person find a solution to the problem. This is not a pathology, but a completely normal phenomenon - thoughts, reasoning out loud.
Have you ever had words come out as if of their own accord (“Did I say that out loud?”)? I have yes. This is a consequence of fatigue and overwork or a signal of an overly difficult thought process. What else does the expression of inner speech depend on:
- the difficulty and novelty of the task (remember how you learn new instructions or responsibilities at work, you probably say your actions out loud at first);
- emotional arousal;
- degree of automation of thought processes (depends on mental development, level of intelligence);
- inclusion of images and associations;
- individual psychological characteristics of memory and thinking;
- an overabundance of memories, thoughts, experiences, ideas, questions, suspicions (you need to isolate one thought from a “swarm” of others, focus on it).
Inner speech is a person’s speech to himself. External speech is speech for others. Sometimes the boundary between them is blurred (“what he thinks is what he says”, “he accidentally blurted out”, “that’s not what I wanted to say”). This is fine. It is explained by human overwork and the involvement of the subconscious. However, there are times when self-talk becomes pathological.
When a person talks to himself: treatment
If a person talks to himself out loud and additionally shows signs of mental abnormalities, then self-medication in such a development of events is simply unacceptable. Only a doctor can understand the causes of the disease and prescribe treatment. So first go to a specialist, and then draw conclusions.
Any mental disorder should be treated under the supervision of a doctor who will prescribe the necessary medications. Each disease has its own treatment regimen, and the drugs also have many side effects.
Neuropsychic disorder. Why does it happen?
Nowadays people are in a state of stress and anxiety almost all the time. Their thoughts are constantly busy resolving problems, as a result of which sleep and rest are disrupted. If a person is constantly under tension, this can lead to a weakening of the nervous system and neurotic reactions. Prolonged depression, mental wounds, and tragic events can be the cause of a neuropsychic disorder. With such ailments, a person often talks to himself. However, it should be noted that women, due to their emotionality and anxiety, are more often susceptible to neuroses.
Is it normal to talk to yourself?
Talking to yourself can have several benefits. It does not cause significant health risks unless the person has other symptoms of a mental disorder, such as hallucinations. When performing a task with a set of instructions, self-talk can improve task control, concentration, and performance. It can also improve problem solving skills.
A 2012 study examined how self-talk affects visual search tasks. The findings suggest that talking to yourself when searching for a specific item, such as a lost item of clothing or a set of keys, can help you find it faster. Research also shows that self-talk while exercising can be beneficial, depending on how the person talks to themselves and what they say. For example, self-talk in a motivational or educational way can improve performance. However, while negative self-talk can increase motivation in sports, it cannot improve performance.
Symptoms and clinical picture
The standard and most normal manifestation is talking to yourself or fictitious interlocutors. But this can be considered the norm only in some cases:
- the patient has no behavioral disorders, a calm, balanced character;
- there are no productive symptoms: delusions, hallucinations, etc.;
- there are also no negative symptoms: thinking disorders, problems with orientation in space, lack of will;
- the person does not show aggression.
In this case, we are talking about a variant of the clinical norm. If at least one of the signs mentioned above is present, you need to urgently go to a psychiatrist.
Diagnostics
It is very difficult for a non-specialist to suspect Asperger's syndrome, so it is not diagnosed in all cases - people simply do not turn to doctors for this. But the earlier the pathology is identified and the diagnosis , the more opportunities there are for correcting the condition, the less painfully people tolerate their otherness, and the family gains knowledge on how to build comfortable interaction.
Diagnosis of Asperger's syndrome is carried out by a psychiatrist whose main area of work is autism spectrum disorders.
The doctor carefully observes the patient’s behavior and reactions, assesses his psychological characteristics and cognitive abilities.
When diagnosing the syndrome, the following are assessed:
- social skills;
- ability to adapt;
- speech development;
- life story.
Often the disease is diagnosed in children aged 4-11 years, but often adults apply for examination.
Split personality
Split personality is a disease that can manifest itself as a result of mental trauma received in childhood. Physical or sexual stress affects the behavior of an already matured person. It begins to seem to him that two entities live in him, and different ones. By the way, there may be more than two. In this state, he not only feels depressed, but may also attempt to harm himself.
How to stop talking to yourself
If self-talk is interfering with your life, there are ways to change the behavior. Journaling your self-talk can help you put your thoughts on paper, organize your thought processes, and cope with stress and anxiety. Keeping a journal can help you identify everyday situations that cause people to talk to themselves and better understand what might trigger it in the future. The practice of changing self-talk to internal thoughts when they arise can reduce self-talk.
Maintains concentration
When you say a word out loud, you automatically evoke an image in your memory and consciousness. This helps you stay focused and not be distracted from the task at hand. In the case of searching for an item in a supermarket, this works flawlessly.
Of course, it helps if you know what the object you're looking for looks like. For example, say the word “banana” and the brain recreates a picture of a bright yellow oblong object. But, let’s say, if you say “cherimoya” without having any idea what Mark Twain’s favorite fruit looks like, it will be of little use.
Periods of growing up
During childhood and adolescence, speech, verbal and thinking abilities develop gradually. In their formation they go through 3 large stages.
Early childhood - up to 7 years
During this period, almost all children talk to themselves. Especially at 4-5 years old. It's not bad, on the contrary. So the young man tries and develops his speech apparatus. Imitates adults, listens to his own voice. Usually, in this simple way, children try to compensate for the lack of attention. Although it also happens that attention is enough. At 6-7 years old, talking to yourself is quite normal. You need to be wary if there are symptoms of psychopathology. Like voices, hallucinations, delusional constructs. But this happens extremely rarely.
8-10 years
At this age, conversations in monologue or dialogue with fictional creatures occur less frequently. School life begins, communication with peers and teachers. Therefore, the need for compensation for verbal communication becomes lower. On the other hand, nothing changes when a child’s communication fails. Moreover, if he is an outcast, he will be ostracized. At 9-10 years old this is especially noticeable, because early puberty begins.
During my teenage years
The problem usually goes away. At 11-12 years old, the habit of talking to oneself still occurs. Then everything depends on your character and personality. Some accentuations, whether hysterical or schizoid, prefer to pronounce actions out loud. But if the former do it for show, and even with theatrical notes, then the latter do it for the sake of their own convenience. At 13 years of age, the risk of impairment remains. Especially if the patient has no friends. Puberty ends at the age of 15-16. Talking to yourself is not a practice. Unless we are talking about personality type. At 13-16 years of age, the manifestation of schizophrenia is most likely. Therefore, you need to carefully monitor your teenager. All possible deviations should be checked by a psychiatrist. Because it is better to treat mental pathologies at the first stage, when the chances of recovery are still high.
Talking out loud without psychopathological symptoms is almost always a variant of the clinical norm. Features of character, personality, socialization and approaches to adaptation.
Life expectancy with dementia
It is impossible to give an accurate forecast of how long a person with dementia will live. Dementia comes in different types and can be slow and gradual, or it can progress and be fatal very quickly. Much depends on age, health status, care and adequate therapy.
Life expectancy with vascular dementia
Vascular dementia is a severe form of the disease. Dementia is caused by vascular disease, often develops after an ischemic cerebral infarction or hemorrhagic stroke, with atherosclerosis or hypertension; factors in the development of this form of the disease can be heart defects, high lipid levels and other disorders. Vascular dementia affects men more often.
In dementia accompanied by Parkinson's or Huntington's disease, the prognosis depends on adequate treatment of these diseases. Most often, dementia with such concomitant diseases is not characterized by rapid progression; the life expectancy prognosis is several years, with Huntington's disease - up to 10-15 years. Dementia with Lewy bodies is a rapidly progressive disease with a life expectancy of about 7 years.
Life expectancy for other types of dementia
Dementia can be caused by various diseases. Very often, senile dementia is associated with Alzheimer's disease. In this case, the patient’s age plays an important role: the older the patient, the slower the disease progresses; The younger the patient, the more the disease progresses. The average life expectancy of a patient with Alzheimer's disease is about 6-10 years from the time of diagnosis. Much depends on the age and stage of the disease, the individual characteristics of the body.
Adequate treatment prescribed at an early stage of the disease can significantly prolong life and alleviate the condition. Specialists from the neurology department of the Yusupov Hospital have extensive experience in treating dementia and many other related diseases. Modern diagnostic equipment makes it possible to determine the areas of brain damage and the degree of development of dementia. The use of innovative world-class techniques at the Yusupov Hospital can improve the quality of life for patients with dementia.
Life expectancy in early dementia
Life expectancy at an early stage of the disease largely depends on the age of the patient. The younger the patient, the more complex and faster the disease progresses. In older people, the disease does not develop as quickly. Detected dementia at an early stage allows you to remain in adequate condition for a long time and take care of yourself. Manifestations of dementia at an early stage are:
- forgetfulness,
- slight mood swings,
- slight decrease in intelligence.
Life expectancy of bedridden patients with dementia
Bedridden patients with dementia are most often people who are at an advanced stage of the disease. Bedridden patients with dementia often die from pneumonia and sepsis, concomitant diseases already at a severe stage of dementia. The prognosis for dementia in bedridden patients is unfavorable, the condition is complicated by physical inactivity, impaired mental activity, and circulatory disorders.
Patients in serious condition are completely dependent on outside care; dementia is complicated by other diseases due to the patient’s immobility. At the Yusupov Hospital, relatives of the patient are trained. Caring for bedridden patients is complex and requires patience and knowledge about the characteristics of the disease.
Life expectancy of patients with dementia with optimal treatment
Life expectancy with dementia depends on the adequacy of treatment and care. At the first stage, the doctor prescribes diagnostic tests to differentiate dementia from other diseases. Treatment of senile dementia is based on eliminating the symptoms of the disease and reducing the risk of dementia progression.
Dementia is an incurable disease, the course of which depends on many factors - age, gender, type of dementia, concomitant diseases, adequate treatment and care. A calm environment and lack of stress help reduce the risk of progression of senile dementia.
Doctors recommend a special diet, vitamin therapy, music therapy, aromatherapy, acupuncture and other methods that improve brain activity. The average life expectancy of a young patient with dementia can be about 7 years; older people with dementia live on average from 7 to 15 years.
Types of self-talk
There are three categories of self-talk that differ depending on the tone of voice. These include:
- Positive self-talk
: Encourages and strengthens a person's positive beliefs. Positive self-talk can reduce anxiety and improve concentration and focus. - Negative self-talk
: Typically involves critical and discouraging dialogue. - Neutral self-talk
: This type of self-talk is neither positive nor negative. People may use it to instruct themselves rather than to reinforce or encourage certain beliefs or emotions.
Self-talk can be open or hidden. Open conversation is independent speech that can be heard by other people. Covert conversation is internal speech that no one can hear.
Building a dialogue: stop talking without an interlocutor
Conversations in the presence of others are unlikely to impress other strangers. For this reason, let's talk about how to get rid of them.
- Communicate more in real life, don’t be afraid to answer people’s questions, invite friends, visit public places and don’t be embarrassed about yourself.
- Get animals as a companion option. You can talk to a cat or dog. After all, they hear and react to human speech, show reciprocal emotions, and respond to affection.
- Find a hobby, join a gym. You can start attending yoga classes, a swimming pool, and an embroidery class. This will help you make friends with whom you will have something to talk about.
A psychiatrist is not always required and not for everyone. It is worth making a number of changes to your usual way of life in order to establish contact with the outside world.
Do not become isolated, do not close yourself off, reducing communication to a monologue. “Open up to the world,” let other people into your life, you will see that it will “sparkle with new colors.”
Reasons for formation
Scientists do not know exactly why Asperger's syndrome occurs. Most researchers adhere to the hypothesis of biological and genetic disorders that can trigger the development of pathology. The hereditary theory is most likely, since there are cases where several family members suffer from Asperger syndrome of varying severity.
It is known that people with Asperger's syndrome have a different brain structure than people without the disorder. About 20% of cases of the syndrome are caused by genetic mutations.
- During pregnancy, the woman’s body was affected by harmful substances;
- the child was born premature;
- if parents are over 40 years old;
- parents have genetic diseases.
There is also an unproven theory linking the occurrence of Asperger's syndrome with the negative influence of environmental factors on the child in the first months of life.
Playing out fictional scenarios
There are individuals who like to dream. Of course, their real life may not be bad, but such people are not fully satisfied with it. In their conversation, they embody dreams that did not come true and wishful thinking. The situation may be real, something that happened in the past, or completely fictitious. According to psychiatrists, naive and easily suggestible people do this under the impression of feature films with unrealistic heroism and bizarre characters. It is the world's media that shapes this behavior in some individuals.
When to see a doctor
Consultation with a specialist will be required in the following cases:
- Aggressive behavior. Possibly the result of personality changes due to a mental disorder. Not necessarily schizophrenia. Attacks of rage and increased irritability are typical of personality disorders, for example, paranoid.
- Tearfulness, touchiness. In inappropriate manifestations. Also usually in a system with other symptoms.
- If a child talks to himself, shows cruelty to toys, imaginary people, you need to carefully observe further. Aggression is a typical sign of at least psychological problems. Much more often - psychiatric. From affective disorders to psychoses. Personality disorders and psychopathy are also possible.
- Lethargy, lethargy, impaired intellectual abilities. Symptoms most often appear in older people. For example, from 12 to 18. And this period manifests one of the most destructive forms of schizophrenia - malignant.
- Complaints of psychotic symptoms. For example, voices that speak arbitrarily, also derealization, depersonalization, delusional constructions. Be sure to visit a treating psychiatrist.
The appearance of hallucinations and speech before sleep are relatively harmless phenomena. False imagery is defined as hypnagogia. It also occurs in healthy people. Accompanied by audible speech and visual images. Sleep talk occurs in everyone. But it is also not considered a pathology. Therefore, no special treatment is needed. On the other hand, both abnormal phenomena are associated with overwork and excessive activity. These are indicators of fatigue. We need to work out an acceptable schedule. For children - at least 8 hours of sleep, plus a fortified diet, etc.
Without pathologies: why is it observed in healthy people
A healthy person may talk to himself for several reasons. And all of them are not associated with any disorders. Rather, they are due to the state of the psyche.
Do you want to know why this happens?
Let's look at the reasons in the table:
| Severe stress | The experienced situation can affect the state of the psyche in this way. But this “influence” is temporary and everything will pass after some time. But only when the body recovers and copes with the consequences of a stressful situation. |
| Low concentration | If you have problems with memory and attention, then you can speak out loud all the time. In this way, the human brain better assimilates information, remembers data, and analyzes it. |
| Feature of thinking | A woman is a special creature, it’s hard to disagree with that, right? A woman's thinking is like a force of nature. It is not linear, it resembles a puzzle that is put together into one picture from many disparate parts. The reasons for this behavior lie in the peculiarities of thinking. In women it does not differ in consistency. In order to “put all the pieces of the puzzle” together, sometimes you have to speak out loud, in the absence of your interlocutor. |
| Loneliness | Every person has a need for communication, and it is irresistible, no matter how hard a person tries to avoid other people, nature cannot be deceived. Lack of communication gives rise to self-doubt, isolation, and irritation. Coping with internal loneliness is difficult, and it can “develop” into depression. |
| The situation | If a person speaks out loud, then the situation in which he finds himself is to blame. When keys or important documents are lost, a monologue begins, it helps to restore the chronology of events. The person begins to speak, pronounces certain points and remembers actions that he performed several hours or days ago. |
| Event Analysis | Imaginary conversations help the psyche analyze the situation that happened, consider it “from several sides” and draw conclusions. This is a normal reaction of the body and you should not attach sacred meanings to such behavior. |
It is difficult to change the current circumstances, but if a person wants to get rid of this habit, considering it indecent or “bad,” then he should consult a psychologist.
Paranoid schizophrenia, treatment
schizophrenia
- Active therapy is used during exacerbations of the disease, its main goal is to relieve the productive symptoms of the disease. Treatment in this phase usually takes about a month. Depending on the prevalence of symptoms (hallucinations or delusions) and their severity, antipsychotic drugs are usually prescribed, which quickly relieve symptoms. In the course of active treatment of psychopathic schizophrenia, specialists also use atypical neuroleptics, which effectively combat the productive symptoms of the disease and, in addition, slow down the development of the schizophrenic defect, and the release of drugs in various dosages makes it possible to select an individual, therapeutic dose.
- Stabilizing therapy is used after the acute manifestations of the disease have resolved. At this stage, the treatment regimen is revised. The dosage of the drugs used is reduced. The duration of treatment with stabilizing therapy is up to six months.
- Maintenance therapy is aimed at maximizing remission and consolidating the achieved result, as well as preventing relapse.
Among the mentally ill
Since the mentally ill are normal people like you and me, they want to communicate with living people who would listen to them. When a psycho talks to himself, he is actually usually talking to imaginary friends.
Like a PC hare! Yeah. Well, there are still options: for example, they turn to the crowd, and they don’t give a damn whether they listen to them. Like Sasha Rotor. Damn, I couldn’t give a more famous example. The rotor is the most striking example I know of. Yes Yes. Saltovsky cattle are such Saltovsky cattle. Okay, here we are... We? Wait..OH SHI~~
| [ + ] Self-dialogue is an official discipline of the Special Olympics. For more information, visit the Special Olympics portal | |||||||||||||||||
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