Positive Self-Talk

The Mayo Clinic defines self-talk as “the endless stream of unspoken thoughts that run through your head… [that] can be positive or negative.” Furthermore, “[i]f your thoughts are mostly positive, you’re likely an optimist — someone who practices positive thinking.”

Positive thinking, therefore, is the result of positive self-talk, and those can offer multiple health benefits, such as increased life span and increased immunity. 

It is easy to fall into a habit of only speaking negatively to yourself and then that just becomes the normal without even realizing it. The first step is to become more aware of how you are speaking to yourself. Try to catch yourself throughout practice or throughout the day. Once you are more aware of it, then you can transition to altering the negative statements into more realistic and positive statements.

Toxic Positivity - The pressure to maintain a consistently positive outlook, even in the face of difficult emotions or situations, often invalidating or dismissing negative feelings. It can manifest as phrases like "look on the bright side" or "everything happens for a reason," and can be harmful by preventing genuine emotional processing and hindering healthy coping mechanisms.