Is Talking to Yourself Normal?

Talking to yourself is completely normal. Even though talking to yourself is usually only associated with those going insane, it’s completely and absolutely normal because everybody does it. And everybody does it without even trying or realizing it.

If you look closely, you can see for yourself how common talking to yourself is and that it can come in many forms. For example, think back to the last time you might have seen children playing at a school or at a park. How many of those children were off playing with a doll or a truck and narrating a story to themselves? Or think back to the last time you lost your keys and you ran around muttering “where did I put those...where did I put those...” to yourself? And think back to a time when you or someone you know was trying to problem solve or trying to get something done. Did they stay silent? Or did they narrate the steps to themselves as they went along? The point is that talking to yourself is much more than the stereotypical image of muttering to yourself in a corner. In fact, you may talk to yourself hourly and might not even notice it. When you’re speaking directions out loud as you’re trying to find some place, monologuing your ideas to organize them, or reassuring yourself before a job interview, you’re talking to yourself. And since talking to yourself is something that everybody does all the time, by definition it’s normal. And besides being normal, it is believed today that talking to yourself may actually have several noticeable benefits.