One of my boys favorite pastimes when they are bored and together is to pick on each other. They won’t admit it, but I can tell they thoroughly enjoy thinking of ridiculous things to say to drive the other one off the deep end. Even though the stuff they say to each other is clearly not true, it frustrates me to no end because I’m afraid that one of them might actually believe the mean things the other is saying! As a parent, we try so hard to nurture our kids’ self esteem and then their brother turns around and says exactly the opposite! Ahhh! I don’t think their obnoxious bantering will scar either of them for life and I am banking on them growing out of it, so hopefully that will be the case!

But it has made me stop and think–As adults do we stop saying untrue, mean things to others but transfer some those negative thoughts and words to ourselves at times instead? When we are “bored” at work or waiting in line at the grocery store or whenever— do we let our minds wander and start saying or worrying about things that are not even true? Are we participating in the same type of obnoxious banter as kids do except the unlucky recipient of the mean thoughts is ourself? Maybe the thoughts sound like this:
“Taking care of my health is too much work and I can’t do it.”
“I will never lose this weight because I don’t have enough self control”
“I hate being fat and it is unfair that it is my destiny.”
“Why do I have to deal with this when others can eat whatever they want?”
“Why is this so much harder for me than most others?”

Not a single one of those statements is true unless you believe them to be true, so stop saying them. If we hear or say something about ourselves over and over again, without realizing it, we too, could start to think it’s true. As hard as I try, I can’t control every word my boys say to each other but I can control what I say to myself and so can you. NO ONE CAN CONTROL OUR THOUGHTS/WORDS BUT US and that is empowering! Take control of your thoughts and shut the door to all the false stories your “Evil Twin” might try to tell you. It is as easy as saying NO when the negative self talk starts to arise and moving on with your day. End the obnoxious banter in your head and watch how much more enjoyable and productive your day will be!