Negative self-talk isn’t proof that you’re broken—it’s often an old survival strategy that became an inner voice. In this episode, Jess explains how the inner critic forms, how the “too much / not enough” loop keeps people stuck, and a simple 3-step tool to interrupt the critic without shame.

In this episode, we cover:

• Why negative self-talk is often learned (not “just your personality”)
• The “too much / not enough” shame loop and how it shows up in daily life
• How inner-critic language fuels survival patterns (fawn, fight, freeze, flight)
• Why the goal isn’t to eliminate thoughts, but to stop letting them run your life
• A practical, repeatable tool: Name it → Normalize it → Replace it

Key takeaways:

• The inner critic often began as protection—against shame, rejection, or conflict.
• Survival patterns are behaviors; negative self-talk is the narration that fuels them.
• Healing starts when you create distance from the critic and practice one steady replacement line.