Self Talk

Ever wonder if dogs have self talk like humans do? You, know self talk - the voices you hear in your head. C'mon. I know we all do it. Those little nagging voices that tell you not so positive things. I hope, and pray, even the healthiest of us have them. Otherwise I've gone out on a limb and pretty much declared myself certifiable here.

Does Sophie say "the world is a scary place and I'm a scared little girl". Oh wait, maybe she does. Does Mick say "uh huh, I'm such a dufus, uh huh". Does Hank say "I'm an idiot"?

It's that shameful I blew it feeling. Guess it depends on the lessons you got growing up. One lesson plan would be of the "I made a mistake, I'm human" variety. Other times the lesson gets skewed into "I made a mistake I must be bad variety". Maybe some of you can relate to this, maybe the rest are looking up facility phone numbers for me.

The key is learning to be gentle with our self. In the moment and over it. Much like dogs do. When they are bad they don't pack up the guilt and carry it forever. Dog chews sofa, end of story. Dog eats shoe, game over. Dogs don't beat themselves up like people do. Plus they are way more forgiving than we are. Which of course is one of the reasons why I have dogs.

Dogs are cheaper than psychiatrists. Dogs are almost as forgiving as God. Dogs are completely sympathetic. Dogs don't stress over things like we do.

A dogs self talk, if they have self talk, is probably all about positive things - treats, sniffing butts and napping. So I give myself permission to embrace their method of self talk, although I will draw the line at sniffing butts.