The defense mechanisms of the human psyche serve to minimize negative and painful experiences. They often manifest themselves on an unconscious level, but sometimes they take on such hypertrophied forms that they can develop mania in an individual.
The term "defense mechanisms of the psyche" in 1894 was introduced into scientific use by the Austrian psychologist, psychiatrist, neurologist and founder of psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud. The task of psychological protection is to weaken the inner tension and anxiety of a person, arising from the collision of instinctive impulses of the unconscious and the learned requirements of the external environment, in the process of social interaction.
Unconscious mental processes (described in her book "Psychology of the Self and Defense Mechanisms" by the British psychologist and psychoanalyst Anna Freud - the youngest daughter of a famous doctor) help us to minimize negative experiences. But these same processes can affect the personality and destructively: cause neurotic and manic reactions. Consider these defense mechanisms.
Reactive education
This defensive reaction leads to the fact that a person unconsciously transforms one mental state into another, most often the opposite.
For example, anger is nothing more than an unconscious attempt to veil interest and good nature, and vice versa.
Many have come across this in life: a boy at school gives a girl a lot of problems - pulls her pigtails and even tries to hurt her physically. Why is he doing this? The boy is disturbed by a previously unknown feeling of sympathy for his peer, he does not understand the meaning of these emotions, but subconsciously feels that this is bad, for this he will not be praised and may even be laughed at. And then sympathy is replaced by aggression. In an adult man, such a protective mechanism can develop into a manic desire for the pursuer of the girl he likes, to impose himself on her, and in case of refusal, to try to use physical force, often acting in line with his sexual fantasies. And all this is only because the protective mechanism of the individual's psyche protects his consciousness from uncomfortable and painful acceptance of the factthat a fall in love with this person was formed. The phrase: "From love to hate, one step" - describes this particular defense mechanism.
Promotional video:
Negation
Mania can also develop during the action of the "denial" defense mechanism. In this state, a person unconsciously denies not something that does not exist in reality, but something important, but for a number of reasons known to him, completely unacceptable for him.
For example, a person does not believe his soul mate that she wants to leave him, declares that she just declares it and does everything to prevent this from happening. That is, a person does not believe in the betrayal of his wife and her desire to leave, not because she is actually honest and good, but because of her own understanding that he is so wonderful and no one has the right to leave him. Against this background, a woman may be subjected to violent detention, abduction and even physical harm in retaliation for the "lie."
The presence of a psychiatric illness under the action of the "denial" defense mechanism leads to manic consequences of a terrifying scale. A striking example is the American television thriller Bates Motel, based on the 1960 cult film Psycho by Alfred Hitchcock. The protagonist, suffering from multiple personality disorder, cannot believe that his mother really died, digs up her body and places it in the house, continuing to talk and act on her behalf.
Projection
Another mechanism of psychological defense - "projection" is able to develop manicity in a person. In this case, the individual ascribes to those around him various negative qualities and actions that are actually inherent in him. In some cases, it can look very commonplace: "You never turn off the light in the toilet, and only I remember about it." Sometimes there is a manic delirium of persecution: “Why is the gas still burning in the kitchen? Someone wants to kill me?"
The projection of one's own negativity onto an innocent person always has sad consequences, only their level depends on the psychotype of the person and whether she has any mental disorders. Then close people, family members or neighbors are without any reason accused of unworthy behavior, betrayal, and sometimes of the desire to inflict death on a person whose psyche, defending itself, projects its own problems and dark desires onto others. Without the help of specialists, a person cannot get out of such a vicious circle.
Svetlana Koroleva