Empty talk is a hollow activity of the throat and voice. People talk “nothing” talk or joke that they’re “talking out of their seats.” Empty talk rescues people from feeling anxiety because it’s a defense. Empty talk passes for “appropriate,” but it avoids the essential. A good therapist gets the patient to stop talking now and then. With silence, the therapist can pick up what the patient expresses biologically. This gets to deeper issues that patients tend to avoid.
Being Defensive
A patient speaking at random steers clear of the painful essence of their issues. Empty talk can go in all directions at once and get nowhere. Patients may need help to understand the root of their problem. Words can be defensive. Words conceal the central issue, whether people mean to or not. Empty talk hides problems, even though you’d think talking should reveal problems.
Facial Communication
People are living organisms. We come from ancient ancestors who lived with only primitive language and word concepts. Depth psychology understands communication that’s deeper than the shallower realm of words. It gets past empty talk. Experienced psychologists have mastered the language of biological expression. They can pick up biological communication directly without words. Facial and body communication is far deeper than so-called “body language.”
Organ Sensation
For someone grounded in their body, language expresses organ sensations from their insides. First, an individual feels a somatic response to a situation. This organ sensation might be expressed directly if one is with close, trusted friends. Someone could make a face or say, “Eww!” But in a business setting, the organ sensation is filtered through the brain so a person might say, “That might not be a good idea. Let’s rethink that.” It’s not empty talk if it comes from organ sensations connected with one’s core.