Episode 4: Untangling The Inner Critic
That voice in your head after you leave the meeting. After you send the email. After the presentation ends and you finally sit down.
It has already started its debrief:
“You didn't prepare enough.”
“Your ideas were unclear.”
“People could tell.”
That voice has a name. It's called the inner critic. And in this episode, we untangle where it actually comes from, why it triggers a physical response before your conscious mind has even caught up, and what it is actually trying to do.
Because here's what I've found, both in my practice and in my own experience: the instinct is to push it away. To silence it. But that's not what shifts it. What shifts it is something more counterintuitive and honestly a little harder. Turning toward it.
In this episode, we explore:
Why the inner critic is a protection system, not a personality flaw
The neuroscience of social rejection and why it registers as physical pain
What shame-based self-criticism costs us that we often can't see
A sequence you can try the next time that voice starts its debrief
Why the voice sometimes gets louder before it gets quieter, and why that is not failure
Nothing about this is a quick fix. But there is a real difference between being inside that voice and watching it run. This episode is about learning to tell them apart.
LISTEN
Do you have something you’d like untangled?
If there’s something your mind keeps returning to, you’re welcome to share—in the comments! We will do our best to include it.
Warmly,
Victoria
Want to go deeper after listening? The Self-Compassion Care Kit is a short, guided five-day journey that picks up exactly where this episode leaves off. It is available free for a limited time with the code on the banner at mindgazing.com.
Self-Compassion Care Kit (free for a limited time):
