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Internalization

August 28th, 2025

I learned from my therapist that you don't have to internalize everything anyone says.

Sure, you can feel things when people tell you words, but there are a lot of separate components here:

  • What you feel
  • What you think
  • What they feel
  • What they think

And, while some may have a knee-jerk reaction, myself included, it doesn't mean we have to, well, believe anything about what other people say.

In fact, we don't even have to consider it.

Yeah, well, that's just, like, your opinion, man.

I am building a new habit for myself:

  1. Acknowledge how I feel. Accept it, don't try to deny it. It's just how it is and how I feel.
  2. Understand my thoughts. Let it sit.
  3. Understand the other person's thoughts. Let them sit.
  4. Just, figure out, if I, y'know, actually want to listen to that person.
  5. Drop what I shouldn't internalize.

And, you know, I should be careful what to internalize from my own thoughts too.