How Negative Self Talk Damages Emotional Health

Negative self talk damages emotional health. If you suffer from depression, chronic irritability and rage, anxiety, panic attacks or mood disorders, chances are, there's a lot of negative thinking at the bottom of it. Here's how negativity hurts individuals and relationships.

Negative self talk erodes emotional health. Those of us who suffer from emotional issues, depression and anxiety, have gotten very good at saying negative things to and about ourselves. We criticize, nag and harangue ourselves. We catalog our own faults. We "should" all over ourselves. Alcoholics Anonymous calls this behavior "stinkin thinkin". I call it "auto terrorism".

Negative self-talk is irrational and unreasonable. Generalization, exaggeration, unfair comparisons, all or nothing thinking and vague assertions are the stock and trade of negative self talk.

Negative self-talk is deceiving. Using these tools as a smoke screen, negative self talk is untruthful. It paints a distorted view of reality. It tricks us into unhealthy behavior patterns.

Negative self talk is reactive vs. proactive. People who think negatively react rather than respond. Instead of thinking situations through, we fly off half-cocked. We act foolishly because we do not consider the consequences of our actions. We make ourselves gullible and vulnerable.

Negative self talk reinforces itself. Like a broken record, people with low self esteem play the same negative song over and over again. We go to bed kicking ourselves for every failure. We wake up tired and depressed because we see only another day of failure.

Positive self talk combats negative self talk. Positive self-talk breaks that negative cycle. Using positive self talk we can change the channel, play a different tune. With practice, we got very good at saying negative things to ourselves. With practice, we can undo the damage and find recovery.

Here are some positive affirmations and self talk helps:

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Daily Strength

Daily Affirmations

For more on self talk, positive daily affirmations and emotional health, visit my linked blogs.