What if your inner critic isn’t just a thought—but a nervous system response?
In this episode of the Building Resilience Podcast, Leah explores why self-criticism shows up in both the mind and body, and why trying to shame yourself into change often creates even more threat.
You’ll learn how to recognize your “mean girls,” create distance from the inner critic, regulate before responding, and use self-compassion without losing accountability.
Do you have a voice in your head that never seems to stop judging you? The one that tells you you're behind, too much, not enough, or that people are only being polite when they're kind to you?
In this episode of the Building Resilience Podcast, Leah Davidson revisits the inner critic, what she calls the "mean girls," through a nervous system lens. Years ago she talked about this voice as a thinking problem, something you argue back with in your head. Today she brings the body into the conversation. Your inner critic is not only what you think about yourself, it is what happens in your chest, your jaw, and your stomach the moment that thought shows up. Once you see it that way, you have far more options for working with it than trying to win an argument with your own mind.
Leah walks through why self-criticism lands in the body so fast, what the research says about naming the voice, and why regulating your nervous system has to come before you try to reason with anything. You will also learn why self-compassion turns out to be more motivating than fear, and what to do if kindness toward yourself feels foreign or fake at first.
We'll explore:
- The inner critic is a nervous system event, not just a thought pattern.
- Naming the voice creates measurable distance between you and the thought.
- Interoception reveals where the mean girls actually live in your body.
- The safety sequence regulates the body before you try to respond.
- Self-compassion motivates more sustainably than harshness or fear.
- Kindness can feel foreign at first, and a smaller bridge helps it land.
LINKS AND RESOURCES:
Advanced Training in Nervous System Resilience : https://leahdavidsonlifecoaching.com/coach-training-join
COMMUNITY
MIDLIFE NERVOUS SYSTEM REWIRE COMMUNITY 👑: A low pressure, fun community for “Queenagers” to regulate, not fix, their midlife nervous systems.
Join here: https://www.skool.com/midlife-nervous-system-rewire/about?ref=06e003b61b8148ebbafd3a067f3cc2e1
MENTAL HEALTH STATIONERY - RESILIENT BRILLIANCE PRODUCTS:
1) RESILIENCE JOURNAL: A guided journal for emotional well-being and nervous system care
Amazon US- https://a.co/d/7DpuyVj
2) MY SAFE SPACE : AFFIRMATION AND JOURNAL PROMPT SET
Amazon US - https://a.co/d/2mANQs4
3) WORRY TIME PAD :
Amazon US http://bit.ly/3QSvyv1
LET'S STAY CONNECTED
Subscribe to Midlife Recalibrated here: https://substack.com/@midliferecalibrated
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/leahdavidsonlifecoaching/
FACEBOOK:https://www.facebook.com/leahdavidsonlifecoaching
WEBSITE: wwww.leahdavidsonlifecoaching.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
