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I want to use a word that not only conveys the meaning of "thinking inwardly" but also is common, informal and normal in native English. I use the examples below and some synonyms for clarification, but please don't limit yourself to these ideas since I am not a native speaker, and inform me if you have opposite sentiments. Also, I'm looking for a "verb" as its equivalent.

In the modern world, in which we are snowed under with countless tasks, almost every adult feels worn out and experiences burnout, and forgets to care for his mental health. Therefore, I hold this contention that we must devote some time to think inwardly about our emotional and mental problems.

There are also some other terms that I've heard, but there are some problems with each of them.

For being "common": I searched https://www.ludwig.guru and https://www.english-corpora.org. For being "professional", I used my own knowledge since I study psychology, and have only seen this word in old psychological texts.

"think intrinsically" is not common and usual.

"introspect" is rather uncommon and is used in professional contexts, but I am looking for an ordinary word that we can utilize in informal speaking, and our addressee understands easily.

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    What do you think about 'reflect on'?
    – JMB
    Feb 8, 2021 at 21:35
  • Unless you are "thinking out loud", then thinking is always inward. You could just say "think about".
    – Canadian Yankee
    Feb 8, 2021 at 21:58
  • Consider "ponder". ("Snowed with" is not right. "Snowed in by" would be OK. I think both sentences are too wordy.)
    – Ethan Bolker
    Feb 8, 2021 at 22:08
  • @EthanBolker please check out this link: ldoceonline.com/dictionary/be-snowed-under
    – Ali Sirous
    Feb 9, 2021 at 5:45
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    @AliSirous I think we can say "reflect on our emotions and mental problems" but we can also reduce to "reflect on our mental health" or maybe more vaguely (but inside the context of your paragraph) "reflect on ourselves".
    – JMB
    Feb 9, 2021 at 10:44

2 Answers 2

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The first word that comes to my mind is "self-examination".

"Introspection" is not a word limited to professional psychologists. I've read it used by many real people :-). But yeah, it's rare enough that if you were writing something for the ordinary person off the street, many would not know what it means.

I think in general people use a phrase rather than a single word for this idea. They'll say things like, "You should examine your own feelings".

I don't recall hearing the phrase "think intrinsically" and my first impression wouldn't be that it is a synonym for introspection. How I'd interpret it would, I suppose, depend on context. Intrinsic to what?

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  • I'm not sure how you would fit "self-examination" into the given sentence. The OP is asking for a verb, not a noun, "I hold this contention that we must devote some time to think inwardly about our emotional and mental problems."
    – chasly - supports Monica
    Feb 8, 2021 at 22:35
  • How about, "I hold this contention that we must devote some time to self-examination about our emotional and mental problems."
    – Jay
    Feb 9, 2021 at 4:35
  • @Jay self-examination seems a good equivalent, yet chasly is right, I'm looking for a verb instead of it, and should have mentioned it in the question. I will refine my question now. Is there any other equivalent you can think of Jay?
    – Ali Sirous
    Feb 9, 2021 at 5:56
  • I can't think of a single word that's a verb that is in common use. Maybe there's a word that's just not coming to mind, but I think you'd have to use a phrase, like "examining yourself". There are a lot of questions on this forum in the form "what is one word in English that means ...", and often the answer is, there is no "one word" that means that, you have to use a phrase.
    – Jay
    Feb 9, 2021 at 14:20
  • @jay I see. I do agree with you. I myself don't look for words, and wait till something comes across me. Nonetheless, I use this meaning a lot and that is why I'm searching for the easiest way to convey it. Anyway, thank you very much, Jay.
    – Ali Sirous
    Feb 9, 2021 at 15:42
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Drawing from the comments

we must devote some time to reflect on our emotional and mental problems

we must devote some time to think about our emotional and mental problems

we must devote some time to ponder our emotional and mental problems

And some more

we must devote some time to contemplate our emotional and mental problems

we must devote some time to scrutinise our emotional and mental problems

we must devote some time to meditate on our emotional and mental problems

Recommendation

reflect on is very commonly used these days.

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