Are you constantly criticizing yourself? Do you catastrophize every mistake? Do you have sleepless nights listening to your inner-critic? Let’s stop it.
No one is meaner to us than we are to ouselves. We easily find fault with most everything we say or do. We forgot we were supposed to have lunch with a friend and say to ourselves “You idiot.” Or we said something to the boss and wondered if it was a mistake, so we said to ourselves “Stupid, stupid, stupid! I’m going to get myself fired!” Then we catastrophize over it for a week.
Where did this self-criticism come from? Adults. As children we may have heard “You are so stupid! Can’t you do anything right!” Or “You are so fat I can’t stand to look at you!” Or “You’re such a sissy. I wanted a real son who’ll play football.”
We internalized the criticism and turned it against ourselves—repeating it over and over again in our heads. If we made a mistake, we immediately thought “You are so stupid! Why can’t I get it right?” Or “You’re so ugly no one will ever want to date you.”
As adults we have continued to replay the old tapes in our heads every time we make a mistake, or look in the mirror and loathe what we see, or think we’ve said or done the wrong thing.
This retreat will help participants to understand their behavior and to begin the healing process toward positive self-talk.
Talk to Yourself Like You’re Someone You Love
Fr. Charlie Wehrley, C.Ss.R., Retreat Director
Oct. 3, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
$55 per person
Includes lunch and handouts
Redemptorist Renewal Center
7101 W. Picture Rocks Rd
Tucson, AZ 85743
Call 520-744-3400 for reservations.