Do you talk to yourself when nobody's around?

I do. I even have two-sided conversations with myself. Is this normal?

• I don't know how normal it is, but I do it.

• Perfectly normal!

  Norman%20Bates

• Yep. Especially when Im driving.

• In my head, but not normally out loud.

• All the time! I'm not the most socially adept person so I consider it practice.

• yes

• All the time! I practice exactly what I'll say when telling off people who have angered me.

• I'm a cubicle dweller and the woman I have to share it with talks to herself all goddamn day. And because I never know if she's actually directing a comment to me my train of thought is constantly interrupted. When she's really annoying I just put my iPod earbuds in just to block the yammering. It's like when you're trying to sleep behind closed doors and you can her the conversation in the living room just enough that it keeps you from falling asleep. I'm sick of the sound of her voice. She talks to herself as she walks down the hall. Management's supposed to move me but it hasn't happened yet.

• Much too often. .. Sometimes while walking down the street.

• Sugars!

• I love R5.

• [quote]In my head, but not normally out loud. Me too. Occasionally, I'll blurt out something or smile (to myself) while walking down the street.

• That's something like me r12, it's often something funny someone else said at work that I will repeat out loud and laugh. I also make faces at myself in the mirror, especially when getting ready in the morning as I've heard a good laugh in the morning is good for the endorphins in your brain and helps the immune system.

  anon

• On soaps they do it all the time.

• R2 sounds wise. No, he doesn't! Yes he does!!

  Gollum

• [quote]All the time! I'm not the most socially adept person so I consider it practice. I wonder if there are people who get social anxiety attacks talking to themselves?

• I frequently talk to my two cats when I'm at home alone with them. I suppose that counts as talking to myself - although it leaves me room to get off on a technicality should ever care to. And really, how many absolutely, entirely normal people do you suppose there are in the world?

• It is actually thought to be healthy to talk to yourself....you are releasing energy that otherwise would just go back into your body and cause stress.

• If you can't converse with yourself while would anyone else want to talk with you?

• R18, it is not normal at all. It is batshit crazy and looney. Mentally unbalanced people talk to themselves.

• I even laugh at the jokes I make up. Inner dialogue seeping out.

• I've always done it.

• Talking to myself is often how I figure out how I feel about something. When you say something out loud, it kind of coalesces a thought in a way that just thinking it doesn't.

• Me too, R11. Also, what R23 said. I live alone and am a bit introverted, so it can get to be a bit much sometimes and I freak myself out.

• People in this thread are batshit crazy. Talking out loud to yourself indicates a lack of mental balance and emotional disturbance.

• I don't talk to myself per se, but I have imaginary conversations with people all day long (though not out loud unless I know I'm alone). I say the things I wish I could say or could have said in real life, or I practice what I'm going to say next time I see them.

• I even do it in Spanish (and sometimes Italian and French) just to keep my skills honed.

• Occasionally, it's cathartic. Then I go through a quiet phase....usually then... long driving trips bring out the crazy. Good music helps.

• At least I know I am talking to someone intelligent.

• I have imaginary conversation with people I wish I could talk with, but never got a chance to. I agree it's not unhealthy to do these things, like as kids we have imaginary friends. As adults we still have these imaginations, but probably few do admit.

  Anonymous

• I'd be mortified if anyone ever secretly recorded the conversations I have out loud with myself, or if I ever thought I was alone and then suddenly realized I wasn't & that someone had overheard me talking to myself. Mortified!

• No, that is a sign of deep rooted psychosis. It is a manifestation of your alter ego, whereas you desire for acceptance of other but can't obtain it in real life, so you pretend. This pretending leads to delusions and can cause inner conflicts resulting in psychosis.

• You sound like a shrink from the 1920s

  anonymous

• I have entire conversations with my dog. I do both voices. He sounds like a schoolboy with mommy issues. I sound like me.

• I don't find anything reproachable talking with yourself when there aren't any people around. R34, by the way, talking to a dog can be more meaningful and positive and tender than talking with another man or woman. But to be honest, talking with yourself when there are other people around or near you, that can be very annoying. Talking with your dog or pet when there are people around is certainly not annoying though.

  http://curiousanimals.net/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/dog-drive.jpg

• R31,what are the general topics that you like to discuss? Perhaps the eavesdropper would empathize or be impressed by your level of honesty. If not, tell the eavesdropper to go get a life of his own and stop listening in on other people's conversations. I just went meta on this here thread.

• I talk to myself even when others are around

• [quote]Talking out loud to yourself indicates a lack of mental balance and emotional disturbance. cite your sources, bunky. Otherwise it's a lie

• I dont know if it really counts as talking to myself, it seems more like just thinking something out loud. Like when I'm driving: "oh shit, I missed my exit" or "Damn, I have to get gas."

• R27, I do the same thing. It helps in between trips to France and Switzerland...

• His wife isn't the only one that looks banged up.

  http://media.hollyscoop.com/sites/hollyscoop.com/files/styles/main_pic/public/story/mattha.jpg

  I%27m%20sure%20it%20was%20just%20bad%20lighting

• Woops! Wrong thread.

  sowwy...mutters%20to%20self%20while%20searching%20for%20right%20one

• I do talk to myself but usually not two sided conversations.

• Sometimes I talk to politicians and tell them how much I hate them. Of course they are not there but I long to tell them how much I hate them.

• Yessssssss Precious!

  G.