This is the simple habit that improves memory after the age of fifty, according to science

There are billions of customs that Spaniards share among us, and they are more common than we think. Eating a late dinner, meeting for an aperitif, taking a nap, having long conversations after eating, greeting with a kiss… are a series of factors that distinguish different people living in a country. Among all these customs, there are some that are universal, and no one is exempt from doing them, even indirectly, such as celebrating birthdays or… We talk to ourselves.

Everyone, at least once in their life, talked to themselvesWhen we are bored, we want to vent our energy, when we want to plan or if we want to motivate ourselves. We even cheer up in moments of depression and force ourselves to laugh at any comment or nonsense we tend to believe in how funny we are.

However, when we discover that we are talking to ourselves, especially if we are using our name in the conversation, it is one of the most embarrassing situations we can encounter. And it is not surprising: we seem to be hallucinating. This is because the only purpose of speaking out loud is to communicate with others. But, since almost all of us do, Could it be natural after all or maybe even healthy?

[Adiós a las discusiones de pareja: la poderosa frase que resuelve cualquier conflicto y que casi nunca usamos]

The truth is, we talk to ourselves all the time. Even when we don't want to. We are no longer just commenting out loud, we are doing it silently every second. In fact, on many occasions, we only have our thoughts to continue the conversation. While there are times when this can cause problems or be a sign of mental illness, in most cases talking to ourselves is nothing more than a common habit and, in fact, a helpful practice.

The internal dialogue is very repetitive. Experts believe that talking to ourselves out loud can help us process our thoughts in a healthy and productive way. but also, It plays an essential role in maintaining the health of our minds. It exercises one of the most important parts of our brain and improves memory.

Why do people talk to themselves?

Although self-talk is relatively common, not much research has been done into why some people talk to themselves out loud and others don't. Article published in the magazine in 2019 Frontiers in psychology Discover There are two factors that can be decisive.

One theory supported by researchers is this People who spend more time alone are more likely to talk to themselves. Through fewer interactions with others, they are looking for a way to socialize and connect with someone, which in this case is themselves. In fact, this same study showed that adults who were only children are more likely to engage in external self-talk.

In this case, the dialogues are more to satisfy the social relationships that they do not establish at that moment. They behave to themselves as they would to a conversation with a friend, and, in general, tend to think, support and encourage themselves in search of this satisfaction. Even people with large groups of friends tend to prefer this.

But experts suggest so too People talk to themselves when they experience events that tend to cause stress, anxiety, or similar feelings. How to speak in front of an audience. Feelings of anxiety or obsessive-compulsive tendencies can trigger disturbances associated with increased internal dialogue.

Benefits of talking to yourself

We can say that talking to ourselves is a habit that we have maintained for thousands of years, and even primates do it. They don't talk to themselves like we do, however Found Which They control their actions by activating goals in a kind of memory It is a specific task. So, not only do we as humans have this little inner voice, but different species have been shown to have it.

Although we seem to have this habit once we grow up and develop clear thoughts, when we are young we also maintain a kind of internal conversation. To warn us or control us. Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget I noticed that children begin to control their actions as soon as they begin to develop language, so they become attached to the activities and actions they do.

Dialogue with ourselves helps us organize our thoughts, plan actions, enhance memory and modulate emotions. Talking to ourselves is The most useful way to focus and think about the things happening in our lives. In addition, our thoughts are able to motivate us, bring them out and repeat them often.

But in addition to everything we already know, talking to ourselves can activate one of the most important parts of our brain and improve our memory. In the study Self-directed speech affects visual search performance, The researchers tested a group of participants, who had to search for items in the store without saying anything. They searched for common objects and were sometimes asked to say the target's name out loud. Speaking facilitates the search process, especially when there is a strong connection between the name and the visual target.

According to the results shared, constantly hearing the word “chair” compared to simply thinking about the chair can make the visual system a better “chair detector.” Participants when talking to themselves Improve their memory They created a stronger association between the words they said and the visual goals they pursued.

Memory loss is very common over time, Therefore, experts suggest that we talk to ourselves from a certain age onwards, without fear of what they might think. It is not necessary to shout or in front of everyone necessarily, but we can do it silently or very quietly, to help us in our tasks, remember the basic aspects and improve in many areas.

Despite all its advantages, it is true that there are many situations in which our internal dialogue is complicated It could become a problem. When we talk to ourselves at 3 a.m., we're usually trying to stop thinking so we can go back to sleep. In fact, those who do it excessively and have harmful consequences should turn to specialists to rule out a possible disease.