Leading Yourself Through the Inner Critic Spiral

If you’re anything like me, there are days when your own mind won’t give you a break.

That voice shows up when you’re:

•  Tired

•  Overwhelmed

•  Stressed

•  Making a mistake

•  Looking in the mirror

•  Catching your reflection walking past a window

•  Scrolling and comparing

•  Trying to hold it all together and feeling like you’re failing.

  
  

Here’s the thing about that voice.

It’s not random.

It’s old programming.

Your inner critic is one of those patterns.

It’s part of how your brain tries to keep you safe.

Because your brain’s number one job isn’t happiness, it’s survival.

And one way it tries to protect you is by keeping you in the familiar.

Even if the familiar is miserable.

Your subconscious patterns run most of your day.

Old patterns.

Old wiring.

Old stories.

And your inner critic?

It thinks that if it tears you down first, you won’t take risks.

That if it keeps you second-guessing, you won’t fail.

That if it makes you hate yourself, you won’t reach too far and get hurt.

It’s keeping you stuck.

It’s keeping you miserable.

It’s keeping you in a life that is smaller than the one you are here to live.

And if that feels familiar, you are not alone.

We all have that voice.

It’s human.

It’s old wiring.

The good news is:

You are not the voice in your head.

You simply hear it.

And you have the power to change it.

When it hits (and it will), here is what helps.

1. Catch it - “This is my inner critic talking.”

2. Talk back - “That is not true. I am human. I am doing my best.”

3. Choose a better voice - “What is a truer, kinder story I can tell myself right now?”

Here’s what this can sound like in real life.

• Inner critic: “I should have done more today. I’m so lazy.”

• Talk back: “That is not true. I did what I could with what I had today.”

• Choose a better voice: “Rest is part of being human. I do not have to earn my worth through constant doing.”

  
  

And here is something to remember.

The most important relationship you will ever have is the one you have with yourself.

You are with you:

24 hours a day

7 days a week

365 days a year

If that relationship is hostile, life feels hostile.

If that relationship is kind, life opens up.

You are moving through life.

And the better you get at this:

•  Hearing the critic

•  Developing a better voice

•  Leading yourself through it

The better life feels.

That is not fluff.

That is freedom.

If this resonated, save it.

And if it reminded you of someone else rising through this work, share it with them.

We are not meant to do this alone.

By Katherine Tatsuda

About the Author:

Katherine Tatsuda is a writer, speaker, and legacy builder who believes in turning heartbreak into art and ashes into gold. A former grocery store CEO turned community leader and creative force, she writes with emotional precision and luminous truth. Whether she’s hiking mountain trails, leading a school board, or unraveling the tangled threads of love and loss, Katherine shows up with clarity, courage, and a little bit of glitter. She lives in Southeast Alaska, where the rain never stops, but neither does her fire.