What is the voice I hear in my mind? Is it me or something else?

Sometimes, she is kind and judicious. Other times, she stands as my worst judge, as that presence that devalues ​​me in everything I do. However: What is the voice I hear in my mind? Is it the product of an auditory hallucination? Is it part of what we call “consciousness”? Even more, are there people who lack that presence that never ceases in their dialogue?

The psychological phenomenon of the inner voice began to be studied in the late 1990s and, today, we have interesting data. This mental process favors psychological objectives, such as planning, problem solving, reflection or self-knowledge.. However, sometimes, other less healthy phenomena may be experienced, which we will also analyze below.

The inner voice allows us to have conversations with ourselves.

What is the voice I hear in my mind?

The attempt to understand and define the voice we hear in our minds was for a long time in the hands of philosophy. It was not until 1993 when the topic was addressed, thanks to a study by psychologist Hubert Hermans, from the Radboud University of Nijmegen, in the Netherlands. We can define this brain phenomenon as the internal speech that shapes the human being.

This psychological reality is given different names, such as: “internal dialogue”, “inner voice”, “covert speech”, “auditory imprints”, etc. So, psychologist Lev Vygotsky indicated that this capacity begins around 3 years of age.. It is that moment in which the development of speech matures and the child begins to separate what language is from thought. Let’s see more data.

What does the voice I hear in my mind produce and how does it manifest?

The inner voice is a mechanism that the brain produces when you talk to yourself in your head. It can come with a single word or vocalize a strong phrase to yourself like “don’t forget to take your keys before leaving the house.”. It is a type of intrapersonal communication that usually manifests itself in three different ways.

The University of Grenoble, in France, carried out work in which they analyzed these typologies. They are the following:

Dialogue: allows us to talk to ourselves.Condensation: the inner voice that you hear in your mind can emerge in the form of an image, single words or long phrases.Intentionality: that internal presence appears for a specific purpose (helping us solve a problem) or it arises randomly and without much meaning.

What is the purpose of the inner voice?

The voice I hear in my mind promotes clearer thinking. That is the first objective, to serve as a mental instrument to reason and reflect on the reality that surrounds us. Likewise, it contributes positively to social relationships. What’s more, there is a direct link between self-talk and empathy.

Covert speech is a form of introspection that helps us understand and connect with what is around us. In addition, If that inner voice gives rise to good conversations with ourselves, self-awareness improves and psychological health benefits.

People who don’t have internal conversations

At this point, we can ask ourselves if there are people who lack that voice. The truth is that we all, to a greater degree, listen to this mental presence, but there are those who do not carry out conversations or dialogues with themselves. The condition in which one does not make use of intrapersonal conversation is called aphantasia or blindness of the mind’s eye..

This consists of the impossibility of imagining, carrying out visualizations and interacting with oneself mentally, drawing up plans, dreaming. Lack of inner speech makes it difficult to carry out complex reasoning and planning.

Another type of inner voices: auditory hallucinations

What if the voice I hear in my mind was very disruptive and told me negative or threatening things? What if, instead of one, there were more? The experience of hearing voices can sometimes be related to auditory hallucinations.. It should be noted that it is a frequent phenomenon and that between 5% and 15% of the population will suffer from it at some point.

Thus, although we link the experience with schizophrenia, it may be due to many more factors. And not all of them fall within the clinical scope. Let’s get to know, therefore, those situations that tend to trigger this less common and, above all, disturbing process.

Hearing problems. Using alcohol or drugs. Loneliness or isolation. Suffering psychological trauma. When we are falling asleep, we can hear voices pronouncing words that seem very vivid to us. They are a type of hallucination typical of certain phases of sleep.

We must learn to take care of our inner voice, it is an essential part of our being.

Hearing voices in the mind: will it always be there? What happens if it disappears?

The inner voice is an inherent part of each person and our mission will always be to take care of it.. We must keep it in mind so that what it tells us is always beneficial for our well-being. Often, this inner presence acts on autopilot and suddenly becomes critical and dominated by a very negative and draining approach.

Also, it may sometimes disappear. When we go through times of stress we let our mind wander and then we disengage from it. What does this mean? It means that The voice I hear in my head can suddenly become silent, because I focus more on what is happening outside than on what is happening inside.

This can be negative, because we stop reflecting and attending to our emotions and needs; Furthermore, thoughts become rigid and negative. We no longer reason, we only react. It is up to us to continue listening to that internal voice and take care of it as the best ally to accompany us on the journey of life, allowing us to be more aware of what surrounds us and what we feel.

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