INTP Live

I saw some post on reddit the other day that around half of people don't have an internal monologue in their heads, while around half of people do. And that it's hard for one half of humanity to understand how the other half thinks. Do you have an internal monologue?

I guess there's the question of what, precisely, an "internal monologue" is, but I remember being surprised that some people don't have such a monologue.

Utisz wrote: ↑

Mon Dec 05, 2022 12:15 am

I saw some post on reddit the other day that around half of people don't have an internal monologue in their heads, while around half of people do. And that it's hard for one half of humanity to understand how the other half thinks. Do you have an internal monologue?

I guess there's the question of what, precisely, an "internal monologue" is, but I remember being surprised that some people don't have such a monologue.

Not all the time, but quite often. I tell myself jokes, make up songs, grouse, reason things out, etc. In fact I do this so much and talk to other people so little, other than my mate, I have to check myself from just letting them in on my inner monologue (usually in the form of stupid jokes). If I'm 'blank' for too long, I find it worrying.

For the half that don't have an internal monologue, I wonder how they validate what is true and what isn't? Do they just go with their gut and never reason things out? That would explain some baffling shit people believe.

I had so much of one when I was a kid that I knew it was abnormal. I think. It's possible that I was talking to myself out loud and knew the out loud part was abnormal. The nature of the thoughts too. That Wikipedia article is too long for me but I noticed it has a lot of theory. Not sure where the 50% comes from but I think some people are really bad at figuring stuff out and wouldn't know where to begin intra or interpersonally. They think of past events and music.

I used to say some words to myself every now and then I read books about being happy 100% of the time which said to:
"...continually calming the restless scanning of my rational mind in order to perceive the finer energies that enable me to unitively merge with everything around me..."
I incorrectly interpreted that to mean to just have a blank mind and so my mind was pretty blank for quite a few days. On the other hand I ended up acting very impulsive and I had a manic episode - rather than thinking through what I should do.
I think I've got some different "personalities" and sometimes have arguments with myself... e.g. a responsible one and one that wants to relax and take it easy.

I can't imagine not having one. I think I know some people who don't. Though it might be unfair to assign that to some vapid people I've met over the years. Most of the time it's a rambling monologue, then some volleying of ideas and scenarios, and on occasion, I feel like there's a 3rd party lobing in ideas or concerns out of nowhere, like a pet store owner dropping in anesthetized baby mice into a snake tank. Only half the time, the snakes in my head have no idea what they are and treat it with great suspicion. Not the best analogy as I don't think I have snakes for brains, but they're not able to climb out and do a good job of swallowing their own tail.

I dunno. I figured I have an internal monologue, but now seeing that many people don't, maybe I don't? It can turn into words at time, and can disappear verbally just as quickly. Maybe those who say that they don't have an internal monologue don't think all that differently, just don't identify in the same way. How do you objectively say whether or not you have an "internal monologue".

Thou whoreson zed! Thou unnecessary letter!

Interesting topic, Utisz. Typically I have a standard inner monologue. I sometimes like to calibrate it by doing three exercises: rapidly identifying object names, the correct spelling of words, and the typical opinions people may hold about a topic, all using inner vocalization. If I don't do this my inner mischief will likely take over and act the contrarion by feeding me erroneous stimulus appraisals. Probably to make me smirk or have spontaneous giggle fits.

Relatedly, in the past when grappling with not gaining traction on a particularly difficult problem I'd resign myself to an intense emotion of frustration and almost like clockwork a kind of vocal assistant emerged. That is, my inner monologue took on an autonomous persona where it dredged up info not easily accessible offering me novel insights and/or opinions serviceable for immediate problem resolution. His appearance coincides with my three year old spontaneous development of hyperacute hearing and just generally heightened sensorial awareness. Like I've stated before it's kinda useless to have such ability without the lifelong experiential scaffolding to make proper use of it.

Also, I once lost a job at a 7/11 training after experimenting with auditory pareidoilia as a means to express clandestine phrases. That is, while I watched videos on a PC monitor I nefariously began rubbing my fingernails on the nylon shell of my Columbia wind breaker and my finger pads on my paperwork creating phrases I was curious if detectable by the anxious/hypervigilant female secretary around the hall in hearing distance. After my training session she walked me up to do get my final signatures and I kid you not. Her hands were seriously trembling. I admit that it wouldn't have turned out so effective if I'd not also tossed in craftily syncopated gum chewing, and foot stepping to and from the restroom. At one point she accused the office of being occupied by a demonic presence as overheard from a exchange with her visiting coworker delivering lunch. I still feel guilty about that. Superstitious people used to be fun for me to mess with. These days I'm a responsible person.

BTW, in an attempt to reinvent typically trite presentations of sexual abuse training more famous actors are being commissioned for small voice-only and on screen roles. After I was intentionally kept off the work schedule my only consolation was being witness to Alex Daddario's uncredited narration of some bit of video about sexual misconduct. I still believe that when she started talking to me in her vlogs of '20 we had something special.

I wonder if there's more advanced ways to intrude on other people's intrapersonal life? Supposedly there is or so the targeted individuals group says...

I almost forgot about the time I was followed by a bunch of "Luciferin occultists" into a Greyhound bus station and I began praying and they intruded on my inner monologue so I could hear them. They said things like, "Is that him?", "Oh he's good.", "We can't touch him, nope.", "But we almost had him!" I was high on a questionably manufactured street peddled stimulant.

Lol good times

P.S. I've forgotten to make repeat uses of 'qua' in there, for nostalgia.

Just came across this (seems to be trending, even though it's been known about for some time now.)
https://funnyjunk.com/Little+illustriou ... n/yqkBRld/



Their are times when I wish people had an internal monologue, as it's evident they can only think having other people think for them, as anything that comes out of their mouths is practically diahrea, but then I realize that I sometimes will read something and verbalize as though responding (since any effort to make a direct response is rather pointless,) and I like to expound on the ideas, which in turn might look crazy.

Utisz wrote: ↑

Sat Dec 10, 2022 4:12 am

I dunno. I figured I have an internal monologue, but now seeing that many people don't, maybe I don't? It can turn into words at time, and can disappear verbally just as quickly. Maybe those who say that they don't have an internal monologue don't think all that differently, just don't identify in the same way. How do you objectively say whether or not you have an "internal monologue".

Thou whoreson zed! Thou unnecessary letter!

To hell with it, useless. Exactly! It's all subjective in the absence of brain imaging.

I don't know if I have one. I don't have a voice that narrates every thing I do or anything like that. I don't even think in words all the time. I mean I do sometimes, like now when I'm trying to write something or if I'm having a conversation in my head, but that's usually not a monologue. It's usually a conversation with someone else. I practice in my head before I say things IRL a lot of the time.

There's stuff in my head. I don't know how to describe it. It's not images. I found out that I have aphantasia earlier this year. I don't have a mind's eye. I can't visualize stuff in my head. I know what stuff is, but I can't form an image of it. The best way I can think of describing it is that I have like concepts of stuff in my head or something. Like information about stuff that's not words and not images and then this stuff kind of interacts in my head.

I mean there are voices in there too. Not just one and I don't actually hear them or anything. I'm not crazy. It's just like different versions of myself. Ones that think negative things about myself. Ones that think I'm alright. One that tells me what I think my mom or other people would say. Childish ones, more mature ones. There just all kind of in there making all this noise all the time and it's hard to pick one out from the other, but sometimes I'm more tuned into certain ones than others. Also, they don't always say things in words, sometimes it's emotions and stuff.

There's just a lot of noise and clutter in my head. It's kind of a mess.