By Repression is a double-edged sword. While it may protect us from emotional distress in a superficial and temporary sense, it harms us in the long run. Let’s delve into this issue.
Repression is a defense mechanism that expels from consciousness what is considered unacceptable and stores it in the unconscious, where it seems it cannot harm us.
While this process may provide temporary relief, overuse causes more problems than it solves. It’s like sweeping dirt under the rug: even if we don’t see it, it’s still there.
Operation of the repression defense mechanism
According to Freud, a defense mechanism is a strategy that our mind uses, almost always involuntarily, to protect us from discomfort; repression is one of them. It consists of keeping thoughts, desires or impulses that could be painful or conflicting out of our consciousness.
Imagine that a person suffered sexual abuse in childhood. Instead of facing the painful memory of that traumatic event, their mind blocks it out to protect themselves from suffering. It seems like they have solved the problem, but in reality it remains covered up and perhaps surfaces in unexpected ways, such as nightmares or anxiety.
At first glance, repression allows a person to move on without feeling overwhelmed by the event. However, by keeping the pain hidden, it can become stronger and affect people at deeper levels.
What examples serve to explain repression?
Depending on the individual coping style, some people resort to this method more often than others to deal with emotionally intense situations. Let’s look at some other examples that illustrate the defense mechanism of repression.
Sexual desires
Taboos or social beliefs surrounding sexuality often cause people to repress their sexual desires or fantasies for fear of rejection. Examples include being attracted to someone considered “inappropriate” according to cultural norms or wanting to adopt gender expressions that challenge traditional expectations.
Traumatic memories
It is common for someone to reject the memory of a traumatic event experienced, such as a serious accident, a situation of violence, participation in a war or natural disaster, as it is a way of evading emotional suffering .
Aggressive impulses
Aggressive impulses are usually automatically repressed to avoid harming others or to comply with social norms. In this way, people inhibit their feelings of intense anger, desires to cause physical or emotional harm to others, or their inclination toward confrontation.
Unpleasant emotions
It is very common to repress negative emotions . For example, someone blocks the pain of losing a loved one to avoid sadness, without realizing that this mechanism would have long-term repercussions. It is a fact that unresolved grief often finds alternative – and less healthy – ways to manifest itself.
Are there consequences for repression?
It should be noted that repression can play an ambivalent role in our lives, like any defense mechanism. It is essential to consider that we resort to this strategy when we feel overwhelmed or unable to cope with a particular situation or emotion. This is because we believe that we lack resources.
This is a technique that, in certain circumstances, can benefit us by giving us time to gradually process what we are experiencing, at a tolerable pace.
However, if we rely too much on this resource and do not seek other coping tools, it can harm us in the long term.
How does repression help in psychotherapy?
Through this method, psychotherapy helps to understand why some patients are reluctant to talk about particular topics or confront certain feelings. This mechanism can be an important cause of resistance .
In this way, the therapist recognizes that it is not a form of evasion or disinterest, but rather an unconscious strategy that the person uses to avoid emotional discomfort.
We are faced with one of the main mechanisms that operate in the unconscious . It helps us to understand how certain thoughts, emotions or events remain outside of consciousness, but, even when hidden, they impact on a behavioral and emotional level in the following ways:
- Slips of the tongue: Sometimes mistakes in speech reveal repressed thoughts or emotions.
- Dreams: They say that dreams are a window to the unconscious , showing repressed content.
- Intense or inappropriate emotional reactions: These may be a sign that there are suppressed emotions trying to come to the surface.
- Repetitive behavior patterns: For example, a person who constantly seeks out dysfunctional relationships would be expressing a repressed internal conflict.
- Physical or psychosomatic symptoms : headaches, gastrointestinal problems, muscle tension or skin disorders. Repressing emotions can make you sick .
Other types of defense mechanisms
In addition to repression, Sigmund Freud proposed other defense mechanisms. All of them seek to distort reality in order to avoid or reduce discomfort. They are classified as primary and secondary, according to their level of adaptation and psychological maturity.
Primary defense mechanisms are the most basic and universal. They are usually present from early childhood. They include denial, projection and regression.
Secondary emotions, on the other hand, develop later in life, because they involve mature strategies for coping with emotional distress and preserving psychological balance. We speak of sublimation or channeling of conflicting emotions or desires, displaced emotion , rationalization and reactive formation .
This resource should not be abused
During the reading we emphasized that excessive repression brings negative consequences for our health, since every emotion has its reason for being. Therefore, it is crucial to allow them to be expressed freely in order to grow and adapt in a healthier way.
It is undeniable that doing so is a challenge. In this context, psychotherapy stands out as one of the most significant and safe spaces to reveal and address repressed aspects. The therapist guides the patient, with the purpose of identifying and facing hidden thoughts or situations, which facilitates the process of personal healing.