Experts dissect having solo monologues about your thoughts is healthy

If you have ever noticed people mumbling and talking to themselves on the local train or at office hunched over their desks donrsquot dismiss them as being a bit off Neither are they reciting a chant or a prayer They are in fact trying to make sense of all thatrsquos happening in their lives And they claim it helps them in many waysThe habit of talking out loud to yourself is called as ldquoselftalkrdquo According to the study The Effects of Positive or Negative Selftalk on the Alteration of Brain Functional Connectivity by Performing Cognitive Tasks published in naturecom in 2021 selftalk can improve cognitive performance Mental health professionals are now saying that as batty as it may seem it is surprisingly good for your mental healthldquoSince childhood this has become a coping mechanism for me I say things out loud and verbalise what Irsquom thinkingrdquo shares Kriti PriyadarshiniLitoria a Delhibased lawyer Talking to herself about irrational and angry thoughts made her realise that ldquothese are things I am not supposed to be thinkingrdquo For PriyadarshiniLitoria talking to herself is almost spiritual ldquoIt stems from the idea that I am not this body I am the soul By talking out loud I tell my brain to comprehend the situation as I would like tordquo She feels that this helps steer her brain in a direction that can make the situation manageable for her ldquoSometimes my brain needs to hear what I want to say out loudrdquo adds the 30yearold lawyerDharmishtha Dagia Shivangi Sagar Dr Austin Fernandes Kriti PriyadarshiniLitoriaThe results of a 2020 study titled The Role of SelfTalk in Predicting Death Anxiety ObsessiveCompulsive Disorder and Coping Strategies in the Face of Coronavirus Disease COVID19 revealed a positive relationship between selftalk and Premiumcentered coping styleKandivlibased Dharmishtha Dagia who runs a PR and celebmanagement agency is also a practitioner She claims that reading something out loud helps her register and understand things better ldquoInstead of making notes in my head and going through it mentally talking out loud helps me organise thoughts betterrdquo she adds Dagia is also a guest lecturer and says that practicing the lecture by reciting it loudly helps her register and gain an understanding of what she will be saying She falls into the kind of category that does not shy away from talking to herself loudly in public ldquoI often speak to myself in my office and people around ask me what I said but I respond by telling them the truth Mostly it is figuring out what I have to do or what is remaining on my listrdquo she saysPriyadarshiniLitoria is still cautious about doing it in public She is only comfortable when she is alone in a room She believes that these are personal thoughts that she wouldnrsquot want to discuss in front of anyone else ldquoBy putting thoughts into words I am able to put them in order and thus help myself get out of the situationrdquo She also shares how she has been able to overcome the loss of her grandmother couple of years ago by verbalising her grief which others would not have been able to understand ldquoThis has been my coping mechanism and has helped me deal with many difficult situationsrdquo PriyadarshiniLitoria addsAs an introvert Dagia says that it also has helped build confidence She started conversing with herself in 2017 when she first started conducting lectures ldquoI was very nervousrdquo she recalls ldquoBut it has helped me format my lectures better It has given me a sense of confidence and improve my speech as well The kind of words I use the way I explain now I donrsquot fumble as much as I used tordquo Dagia has now made this a ritual before meetings ldquoIf you keep thinking inside in your head it becomes chaotic so saying it out loud helps me calm myselfrdquoBut there is a thin line between batty and positive selftalk PriyadarshiniLitoria says that is aware that this may be perceived as a mental illness by some but she realises the difference between that and a positive coping mechanismDr Austin Fernandes Consultant Psychiatrist and DeAddiction Specialist at Dr LH Hiranandani Hospital Powai says that selftalk can be positive as well as negative It helps prepare one for a situation and reduce anxiety He believes it can help people with anxiety and depression ldquoSportsmen and their coaches use positive selftalk a lotrdquo he says However Fernandes believes that ldquoit is difficult to do this publically because there isnrsquot much acceptance Mental health is still a taboo so one should not expect people to accept selftalk immediatelyrdquoShivangi Sagar who is counselling psychologist and cofounder of HopeQure a mental health platform believes that selftalk is almost a survival mechanism as it motivates and encourages people when they feel isolated and donrsquot have enough people around to offer encouragement ldquoSince ancient times people have often considered talking to yourself as hallucinating But now we are aware of mental health issues and donrsquot form that association any more But people still judgerdquo She says that selftalk helps in making decisions as it structures the information in the brain in a more organised way but could be is dangerous if it is negative or if the person feels like they are talking to another person ldquoThere are instances of people hallucinating In such a situation it could signal to a deeper problemrdquo explains Sagar ldquoBut positive selftalk can boost your mental healthrdquo