How Does Repression Work in Our Unconscious Mind?

Suppression (often confused with repression) is a type of defence mechanism, where a person consciously tries to forget or not think of certain unwanted impulses or thoughts.

With repression, this activity happens automatically without any conscious effort or intention.

• Primary repression is when unwanted impulses are hidden even before it reaches consciousness, and happens entirely in the unconscious mind. There is almost no awareness of the repression activity on the individual.
• Repression proper is when a person becomes aware of the impulses and desires that are repressed, but still intentionally tries to remove it from awareness. This ‘selective forgetting’ is a way for people to block awareness of unwanted memories, especially the traumatic ones.

Our Personality, according to Sigmund Freud, has three components:

1. The Ego: The main conscious component of the brain that acts as an interface between reality and the other two aspects of our personality listed below.
2. The Id: The invisible, unconscious reservoir of our desires and urges that drive our basic behaviour.
3. The Superego: The idealistic and moralistic side of our personality that includes our conscience.

The ego strives to balance the two aspects of our personality, the hidden desires and the idealistic conscience.

The repressed desires and impulses can simmer inside and come out in the form of dysfunctional behaviour and phobias.

Repressed feelings can also pop up in our dreams, and the specific events that happen in the dream world. Analysing dreams, a speciality of Sigmund Freud, results in a lot of hidden impulses being revealed.

One can also find repressed content in fears, slips of the tongue and feelings towards our loved ones, something known as the Oedipus Complex.

Memories aren’t set in stone like we all believe and can be repressed, suppressed and even falsified. Imagination, dreams and past memory feel similar to the mind.

Memory repression, false memories, and amplified memories (vividly repeating a traumatic experience) can be a result of trauma, leading to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.