Post by @Zumbador@mefi.social

2026-09-25 19:01 UTC

This is quite a sensible and measured article about using using self talk to regulate difficult emotions. "In other words, the simple act of naming an emotion, rather than trying to think your way around it or push it away, appears to be associated with a calmer amygdala response." "... how people frame their internal dialogue, specifically, whether they use first-person language (“I feel anxious”) or shift to using their own name or “you” (“Kate, you’re feeling anxious right now”). This shift is known as distanced self-talk, " " distanced self-talk appears to support emotion regulation through a different pathway than effortful cognitive control, which may be part of why it can feel easier to access under stress than trying to consciously reason yourself out of a feeling." https://www.katebartlett.com.au/articles/self-talk-nervous-system #ActuallyAutistic #Anxiety

Replies (3)

@joriki@infosec.exchange 2026-09-26 02:10

@Zumbador@mefi.social see also: cognitive de-fusion in ACT therapy third-person self-talk and... “Is Batman working hard?” https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20200817-the-batman-effect-how-having-an-alter-ego-empowers-you

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@eestileib@tech.lgbt 2026-09-25 19:52

@Zumbador@mefi.social I call this "letting your feelings in and giving them a cup of tea"

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@murdoc@autistics.life 2026-09-25 21:39

@Zumbador@mefi.social How timely. I just this morning finished and put online the Intermediate level lessons for the Emotion Management topic of my Techne System project. In the previous Bare Essentials level, there is a technique called "Name It to Tame It", where identifying an emotion is the first step in regulating it. In this more recent Intermediate level lesson, there is a technique called Defusion, which helps you put some distance between your thoughts and the emotion in order to give you more space to be able to work with it, basically like is described in this article. For example, instead of “I am angry,” or "I'm a failure," you try “I notice I’m feeling anger” or “I’m having the thought that I’ve failed.” It sounds small, but the shift in framing is real. If anyone would like to see more on this technique or other tools for emotion regulation, you can find them at the following link. Included are techniques for any emotion, like these ones, as well as emotion specific strategies, such as for anger, fear, anxiety, or grief. There's even a supplement for neurodivergent people on how to adapt these tools to better work with common ND types. And it's all completely free and without any subscription or registration. https://techne-system.neocities.org/program/level-2/topic-3/l2t3-i-em

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