Are You Hearing Voices in Your Head
If you are hearing voices in your head, you will be pleased to know that you are not alone. That little voice that chatters away at the back of your mind all day – who or what is it and where does it come from? But, does it mean you’re crazy, or is it normal?
Everyone has some kind of internal dialogue going on most of the time. You may find that it is at its most loud when you are attempting something new, when you are about to take an exam or go for an interview, or about to go on a first date. This is when it becomes self critical or judgmental. But even if we recognize it as something we can do without, it seems very difficult to switch it off.
Most of us, though, carry on our daily lives in the belief that this inner voice is real, and everything it says is true. We may not even notice it at all. ‘What little voice?’ you might be asking. Well, it’s that little voice that just said, ‘What little voice?’
Once you have recognized that there is a voice, this is the first step in actually doing something about it. You will never get rid of it, but you can learn to not be affected by its judgments, and in time you can even get it to say a few nice things.
So where does this voice come from? Scientists and psychologists believe that it develops as a child when our memories and reasoning begins. Until that moment we are capable of living completely in the present moment, but one day, when we are about to throw our breakfast onto the floor, we remember that mom wasn’t very happy the last time we did that. We remember the words, ‘No! That’s naughty’’, and we stop ourselves. The little voice has begun.
The little voice is therefore here to help us. It protects us from doing something socially unacceptable, and therefore from disapproval and isolation.
The trouble is, at that age we have no idea how to filter the things we learned. The little voice begins to make all kinds of judgments and assumptions from the things that happen to us. While its initial intent is to keep us safe, as we grow older, it becomes an inner voice that scolds us for stepping out of line – or even thinking about it.
The voice becomes full of ‘shoulds’ and ‘shouldn’ts’, ‘bads’ and ‘wrongs’. As we grow into adulthood, far from being the guardian angel that keeps us safe, it becomes a restraining force, a little demon that prevents us from being free. We may wonder why, when we follow the little voice, it does not bring us the happiness that it initially was designed for.
The first step in releasing yourself from the voice in your head is in recognizing that it is there, and the second step is to realize that it carries no intrinsic truth. You can then choose not to believe its rules any more. The voice will not go away, but it will lose its power.
Hearing voices in your head is a part of being human. Taming that voice and not being ruled by its judgments and rules is the road to being an enlightened human being who achieves their dreams.
Written by: Emma Fredericks, author of “How to Tame That Voice in Your Head” – http://answersabouthearingvoices.com
on June 20, 2009 on 6:12 am
wow, great stuff, thankyou…. think i’ll make very good friends with that funny lil inner voice and have it working FOR me instead of against me as it was originally told to do…. bless ya ros on creating this great distinction.
on September 4, 2009 on 5:04 pm
Until I read your interesting article, I had assumed that my use of the term “hearing voices” was universal in its meaning. Wrong. Hearing voices as part of my delusion of grandeur in my psychotic break was about ESP between me and my friends (both real and imaginary). In my blog crazymer1.wordpress.com, (Hearing Voices: What It’s Like) I discuss what it’s like to hear those kinds of voices. Anyway, I enjoyed your article. It provided a less scary meaning to those words “hearing voices”. Thank you.
on September 12, 2009 on 7:04 pm
Glad you liked it ‘Mermaid’. I did a course a few years back that said human beings are ‘meaning making machines’ and as I looked at myself back then (and now to a lesser extent), I definitely fitted that comment. I listened to everything ‘the voice/s’ in my head said (and they can get LOUD and insistent and acted on what was said as if it were ‘THE truth’. I didn’t know any better. We aren’t educated about this ‘fundamental to being human’ stuff. No wonder hearing them becomes so fearful. Do you notice they’re mostly about negative, fearful, be careful, stuff. Everything changed for me when I actually started communicating with people and asking, “do you mean ….?” and found out I was way off track, 97% of the time. Anyway, thanks for your comments. There are a world of perspectives available.