People who have unusual, or non-existent, inner voices • Hacker News Board

Re: People who have unusual, or non-existent, inner voices

#191

Post by davidgrenier » Wed, Nov 03, 2021, 10:41 AM UTC

josephg wrote: post #15

I started doing improv comedy classes a few years ago. It’s terrifying. My friends would share stories of what their inner critics were saying about their performances. “You were rubbish and everyone was knows it!”. It was weird for me - my mind doesn’t have a voice like that. “Hah maybe I don’t have an inner critic” I thought. But I still felt crippling shame after bad scenes in class. In quiet moments my mind is fu…

> “Hah maybe I don’t have an inner critic” I thought.

If you've thought "Hah maybe I don't have an inner critic", how did this come about if not through an inner voice?

Re: People who have unusual, or non-existent, inner voices

#192

Post by ypcx » Wed, Nov 03, 2021, 10:44 AM UTC

checkyoursudo wrote: post #24

A couple of years ago, I learned that other people see images in their minds. Now I learn that people hear voices in their minds in a way that is dramatically different to mine. When I am thinking, there is pure silence and blank-ness in my mind. I don't see anything in my blind mind's eye, and I don't hear anything in my deaf mind's ear. It seems that I can create a monologue in my mind, but I have to be consciously…

What happens (or what would happen) if you sit still in silence and darkness and try to observe these "feeling symbols" as they come and go?

You could be better equipped for deep meditation and deep thinking than most of us, but maybe you just need to do some practice.

Re: People who have unusual, or non-existent, inner voices

#193

Post by Cthulhu_ » Wed, Nov 03, 2021, 10:49 AM UTC

johnchristopher wrote: post #186

Wait a minute... I thought I had internal monologue because I can hear myself speaking thoughts and myself talking to myself (it's like talking out loud but in your head) but reading some of the comments here it seems like people have multiple inner voices and that's what they mean by internal monologue ? I don't have inner voices, there's only me up there (and I do a lot of self pitying and most of the monologue is…

I don't, but I can imagine another voice if needs be; I can imagine some people crafted their internal monologue to be like that. I mean at some point my inner monologue was entirely in English (not my native language), and I spent a lot of time thinking in the style of writing a post on the forum I was active on at the time. I think it's a helpful tool to think outside of your own self (that's the best phrasing I can come up with at the moment).

I think that's where a lot of blogging, livejournaling, tweeting etc comes from as well - it's a way to channel an internal monologue.

Re: People who have unusual, or non-existent, inner voices

#194

Post by gala8y » Wed, Nov 03, 2021, 10:51 AM UTC

johnchristopher wrote: post #186

Wait a minute... I thought I had internal monologue because I can hear myself speaking thoughts and myself talking to myself (it's like talking out loud but in your head) but reading some of the comments here it seems like people have multiple inner voices and that's what they mean by internal monologue ? I don't have inner voices, there's only me up there (and I do a lot of self pitying and most of the monologue is…

> Do most people mean "multiple voices" when they say "inner monologue" ?

You will find different conceptualizations of this phenomena, but generally speaking it is very prolific to treat mind (term used imprecisely) as comprised of many sub-parts (sub-personalities/voices/selves/states). You can treat them as separate, functional patterns of behavior with their own agendas, feelings, beliefs, etc. The fun part is that you can engage them and talk to them, eg. you can talk to your Inner Child (you will feel it as separate and feel its child like nature) or your Lazy part or any part you recognize as a bigger pattern. You can even talk to your Sorrow, Silence, Energy of Being (as opposed to doing), etc. You can talk to parts of yourself which were dormant or disowned/repressed (eg. Anger, Romantic Self,...). You can talk to your demonized, aggressive Inner Critic.

The changes which occur due to shift in perspective which results from such dialogues are... beyond the scope of this comment. ;)

edit: Seems I am late for the party, but definitely for a treat here (including the article). (I do Voice Dialogue for a living, which is a practical method of meeting those different parts of ourselves.)

Re: People who have unusual, or non-existent, inner voices

#195

Post by geocar » Wed, Nov 03, 2021, 11:01 AM UTC

gala8y wrote: post #194

johnchristopher wrote: post #186

Wait a minute... I thought I had internal monologue because I can hear myself speaking thoughts and myself talking to myself (it's like talking out loud but in your head) but reading some of the comments here it seems like people have multiple inner voices and that's what they mean by internal monologue ? I don't have inner voices, there's only me up there (and I do a lot of self pitying and most of the monologue is…

> Do most people mean "multiple voices" when they say "inner monologue" ? You will find different conceptualizations of this phenomena, but generally speaking it is very prolific to treat mind (term used imprecisely) as comprised of many sub-parts (sub-personalities/voices/selves/states). You can treat them as separate, functional patterns of behavior with their own agendas, feelings, beliefs, etc. The fun part is th…

> You can treat them as separate, functional patterns of behavior with their own agendas, feelings, beliefs, etc.

Wow.

I have seen television shows and art that treat humans as the amalgam of a faceted personality where each facet is depicted by a separate character (representing, I assumed, the embodiment of that fact), but I had never considered this might be demonstrative of the way people might actually think (or think they think).

Re: People who have unusual, or non-existent, inner voices

#196

Post by throw0101a » Wed, Nov 03, 2021, 11:03 AM UTC

johnchristopher wrote: post #186

Wait a minute... I thought I had internal monologue because I can hear myself speaking thoughts and myself talking to myself (it's like talking out loud but in your head) but reading some of the comments here it seems like people have multiple inner voices and that's what they mean by internal monologue ? I don't have inner voices, there's only me up there (and I do a lot of self pitying and most of the monologue is…

> I don't have inner voices, there's only me up there

I don't have "me" up there most of the time. Usually only when (a) I'm reading to myself or (b) if I'm practicing/going over a conversation or 'debate' on a concept. Otherwise my mind is usually quiet.

Re: People who have unusual, or non-existent, inner voices

#197

Post by gala8y » Wed, Nov 03, 2021, 11:06 AM UTC

geocar wrote: post #195

gala8y wrote: post #194

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Do most people mean "multiple voices" when they say "inner monologue" ? You will find different conceptualizations of this phenomena, but generally speaking it is very prolific to treat mind (term used imprecisely) as comprised of many sub-parts (sub-personalities/voices/selves/states). You can treat them as separate, functional patterns of behavior with their own agendas, feelings, beliefs, etc. The fun part is th…

> You can treat them as separate, functional patterns of behavior with their own agendas, feelings, beliefs, etc. Wow. I have seen television shows and art that treat humans as the amalgam of a faceted personality where each facet is depicted by a separate character (representing, I assumed, the embodiment of that fact), but I had never considered this might be demonstrative of the way people might actually think (or…

It is a very good mapping of the state of affairs in our minds to assume this multitude of selves and experiencing them as they show up is very intimate and deep. A sudden shift in perspective when you realize it works like this blows people's minds away and is enormously freeing (I try not to exaggerate).

I am myself partial (with multiple reasons) to Voice Dialogue perspective as presented by Sidra and Hal Stone in their work, but you will find this perspective of multitude in many places, reaching back to antiquity - theoretical, practical, with neuroscience following.

Re: People who have unusual, or non-existent, inner voices

#198

Post by throw0101a » Wed, Nov 03, 2021, 11:06 AM UTC

shele wrote: post #146

“He can easily while away an hour without having a single thought.” No! It is “not a single _verbalized_ thought”! To write such an article one should have some understanding that thoughts exists outside mental verbalization

> “He can easily while away an hour without having a single thought.” No! It is “not a single _verbalized_ thought”!

I can have stretches of time where I don't have images (or words) in my head. My mind is blank.

Re: People who have unusual, or non-existent, inner voices

#199

Post by lookACamel » Wed, Nov 03, 2021, 11:10 AM UTC

micromacrofoot wrote: post #81

There’s a lack of this inner thought which is an actual condition people have, but I’ve discussed with people before who thought they lacked it… and really it was a misunderstanding based on how it’s described. I have an inner voice and can picture things… but it’s important to note this is “mind’s eye” stuff… it’s not literally equivalent to seeing or hearing something. When I picture something in my mind and close…

To people that are confused, I offer the mind bleach test.

Have you ever imagined something that disgusted you so much that you wished you could "bleach" the image out of your head?

E.g. if you read a detailed description of the kinds of things a facebook content moderator might have to look at, is it possible for those words to generate an image and for you to regret reading the description?

Re: People who have unusual, or non-existent, inner voices

#200

Post by shele » Wed, Nov 03, 2021, 11:20 AM UTC

throw0101a wrote: post #198

shele wrote: post #146

“He can easily while away an hour without having a single thought.” No! It is “not a single _verbalized_ thought”! To write such an article one should have some understanding that thoughts exists outside mental verbalization

> “He can easily while away an hour without having a single thought.” No! It is “not a single _verbalized_ thought”! I can have stretches of time where I don't have images (or words) in my head. My mind is blank.

Yes, but that’s a different discussion.