During a walk and talk with a nurse we talked about critical voices that are in our heads, which protected us in our childhood but are less helpful when we become adults. The nurse shared that he developed a “pleaser” voice in his childhood. Why? Because when his father came home from work, his father would often have quarrels with his mother. To help promote harmony, be accepted and liked, the nurse started – when he was a child – to act as a a pleaser. The nurse shared that this voice still appears now and then in his mind – in particular when he feels stress in work situations.
What can we do to manage critical voices in our heads? Among strategies the nurse and I talked about was going into a dialogue with the critical voices in our heads, for example by asking the critical voice / critical voices questions.
Later during the walk and talk we used the method “Forest bathing” in order to use senses such as hearing and smelling to feel present. In this regard, the nurse explained that he found it helpful to close his eyes to, for example, better hear sounds in the environment. We also worked on breathing to help calm / relax the mind and feel present.
Particularly helpful for the nurse was the mutual singing and playing guitar, which followed the walk and talk. We played and sang a few popular songs. I noticed that the nurse enjoyed refining some of the songs, for example by adding chords as well as breaks in the songs and creating different versions of how to finish songs. This all helped to feel calm, focused and joyful.
Impressions from the walk and talk:
Inspiration to create 