How do I quieten down my internal monologue?

Answer 1

Listen to the chatter without becoming emotionally involved or interested in the content. Let the babble just wash over you. Do this for several minutes at several times a day (whenever it's convenient or whenever the babble gets annoying).

Another technique which I found quietened my internal dialogue was to listen to external sounds in detail, hearing the quality of the sounds, their directions, pitch, loudness, the harmony between them, and so on. I found that the internal chatter and listening to external sounds was incompatible. For me it seemed that the two things couldn't happen at the same time and my internal dialogue quietened down a lot.

Answer 2

Become aware of it, without judgment, as much as possible. You could meditate, you could try self hypnosis, however you feel comfortable becoming aware of what is mind chatter and what is true communication. You could try gazing at a plant, or object of some kind and just noticing all the detail you normally wouldn't. That's a good way to become more aware. I think meditation is over rated. It is a discipline that leads to awareness, but usually leads to an expectation of what should happen while it's being done. Which, in my opinion, leads to more active and noisy mind chatter. Like you have to sneak up on it and watch it while it doesn't know you're there. I think you should just use any method you feel particularly drawn to, I find that pacing helps me to quiet my mind, and focus on my questions or ideas. Music helps too. It should be an activity that relaxes, yet energizes you. Don't forget that mind chatter is a part of you. Be easy with yourself. Kicking yourself in the a*s for an active thought process is counter productive.

Answer 3

Its not a monologue, its a dyad between you and a generalised other. The watcher who watches the watcher. The only way to quieten this is retreat from interaction with others into meditation. As soon as you stop meditating the exchange will begin again.

Answer 4

The highest form of known meditations gives out this as a side-benefit (like those side-effects of modern drugs!).
In eastern country, India, it is still taught.
Though simplest, it is not at all easy !
The difficulty is about its being too subtle.
All we have to do is just sit with eyes closed, relaxed, for about 15 minutes !
We cannot stop this internal monologue. So allow its chatter to happen without any 'tampering' from our side consciously. Over a period of time, we would have fairly achieved this.
The clue is to minimise "our" reaction to any of these monologues! Just maintain a mute-witnessing-aspect.
Best wishes.

Answer 5

Don't hold on to the thoughts as they arise. Ignore them and let them pass so they don't become a sub-vocalised liguisised train of thought. Your mind will quieten and your thoughts will become purer without you developing them into your own ego. If you quieten your body in meditation your mind will quieten.

Answer 6

Internal monologue is there to be used. If you wish to become a good conversationalist it is the best tool available and for free.
If this monologue is continuing long after you had your conversation - and you can not come back to it - it is still good for you will be better prepared the next time.
The question is: is it really necessary to stop your internal monologue which is given to us for personal improvement?

Answer 7

I practice being an observer. I step back in my head, so to speak. Most of the time we are just out there reacting to everyone, & everything jerks our attention. When I step back it feels like I am more centered, I'm not going out to meet everything going on & reacting to it. I am able to not only observe others, but I observe myself & my thoughts also. You will know you have begun to be successful when you feel a little detacted & oddly invigorated. I am & feel different doing this, I see everything without the emotional attachments & my point of view is clearer. It does take consistant practice. Another technique I use is directed thought. If I told you not to think about elephants today it would be all you would think of. But if I want to stay focused on a particular concept or idea, I decide to think of it. when your mind slips back to elephants & you notice it just say to yourself "wait, I decided to think about ____ today & start again. This too will take practice. I wear a watch with a countdown timer set for every hour. When that alarm goes off I use it as a reminder of what I have decided to think about today or that I am practicing being an observer.

Answer 8

There are certain thoughts known as ‘intrusive thoughts’. They catch you unawares. They come especially when you do not like them to come. The harder you try to stop them the stronger the grow. You cannot reason with them, because they are the produce of the very mind that you would bring forth to challenge them. These thoughts are in fact amplified aspects of your own mind that you lent out to the hectic matters of the world at some disagreement that you are. These thoughts flow with a fuller capacity of your mind as there is no conscious checks upon them as there normally are upon thoughts that you deliberate with. Our conscious mind that is our tool is always checked and marred by concerns of various type, as Shakespeare says in his famous monologue ‘a thus conscious does make cowards of us all.

The level of consciousness, however, where thoughts of intrusive and involuntary nature occur is normally very visible, and this high presence or visibility in fact becomes problem when you cannot get rid of it in order to think more leisurely and natural. You can experience a level deeper than this in your consciousness, a level of wordless thoughts made up of sensations and subtle feelings that if you try to think or analyse would disperse. This is a level acquired by deep meditations or near sleep like relaxations. Matters here can be resolved for their pressing affect upon the mind.

Answer 9

Meditate often. This helps quieten the mind and chills you out at the same time - the more you do it the easier it will be!

Answer 10

Meditation: focus on a word or a candle burning. When you start thinking, bring your mind back to whatever you're focusing on.
It's a good discipline for many reasons. You can also just follow your breath and notice it. Just do a few minutes at first. Move up to more gradually.