Small children often speak about themselves in the third person. A child who wants a sweet may say:  Paul wants a sweet”. Studies in adults might explain this behavior. Psychologists believe that speaking softly to oneself in the third person helps overcome stressful situations. If Luca is distraught because his girlfriend left him, his emotional response, as measured with sophisticated magnetic resonance techniques, is less if Luca says “But why was Luca left by his girlfriend?” than if he says “But why was I left by my girlfriend?”. Thinking about oneself in the third person creates an emotional distance that in a way suggests the events concern another person. Studies show that the emotional response of say Gianni, who is shown a photo of someone pointing a gun to his (Gianni’s) head, is less if the photo is accompanied by a statement that says: ”We are going to show you a photo of someone who wants to kill Gianni” than if the statement says: ”We are going to show you the photo of someone who wants to kill you”. Same thing for one’s memories. The emotional response one has thinking back over sad episodes of the past, is less if one uses one’s name: Tom was injured in an accident last year instead of I was injured in an accident last year. It is believed that using one’s name instead of “I” is so unusual that brain circuits referred to others are triggered. The strategy appears to let us gain control of thoughts, emotions and behavior. It is possible that the sophisticated instruments used to perform these studies will also help identify people who might be in greater need of using the third person because prone to being too inward looking when in difficulty.