"The unconscious "you" is that vast, hidden, powerful force within you, as propounded originally by the father of psychiatry"

Dr. Sigmund Freud envisioned the unconscious as the repository of all dissatisfied urges and impulses, as the storehouse of all resentments, inhibitions, grievances and frustrations. He saw the primacy of sex as the motivating force in the unconscious, as the representative of repressed and ungratified amoral desires. He maintained that the unconscious never forgot and never forgive for those repressions and claimed that unless it was diverted, through sublimation or transference, into constructive channels, it always exacted a toll in mental derangements.

According to Freud's teachings those repressions grow into monsters within us. They lurk in the dim, dark recesses of our mind and are ever ready to pounce upon any opening or mental deviation. They prey constantly upon our thoughts, feelings and emotions, without us knowing it. Thus, they foster moods, build up resentments, engender frustrations and lead to complexes, fixations, neuroses and phobias. These promote psychosomatic ailments and when left unchecked lead to psychoses.

Freud maintained that our mental aspects were based upon the "id", the "ego" and the "super-ego".

He envisioned the "id" as the core of the unconscious, as the raw, primal, primitive, atavistic urges of man. To him, the "id" was a lusty, living thing within us, carnal, selfish, bestial and utterly relentless in its instinctual drives. He compared the "id" to an infant driven by basic powerful urges, by its need for ease and comfort, by its insatiable craving for love and attention, by fierce dominant jealousies, by the overwhelming desire to possess those it loved, by its refusal to share such love with others and by its want to dominate everything within reach or else destroy it so that others could not benefit.

Freud saw the "ego" as that part of our mental make-up which has to do with our thoughts, our actions and reactions. As he explained it, the ego has transference and sublimation at its disposal. It also has various escape and defense mechanisms to protect the individual from the selfish, sensual and often self-destructive demands of the "id".

He envisioned the "super-ego" as the moralistic part of our thought processes, as the fountainhead of our sense of duty, of loyalty, of fairness, of responsibility. The super-ego was, in his way of thinking, the seat of conscience and yet could not be tied in directly with the acquired sense of moral, social, ethical and religious taboos, obligations and restrictions.

Freud saw the "id", the ego and the super-ego in constant conflict, one with the other, each trying to get the upper hand and upset the delicate balance. Their imbalance always brought maladjustments and they, in turn, usually led to some form of neurosis or psychosis.

Freud's preoccupation with sex was not shared by his early disciples, Alfred Adler and Carl Jung. His theories were also challenged, in the 1920s, by Otto Rank, by Sandor Ferenczi and by Wilhelm Reich. Then, in the 1930s, Karen Horney, Eric Fromm and H. S. Sullivan challenged the others and began stressing the social and cultural factors in neurosis and the interpersonal aspect of the analyst-patient relationship. Freud's theories led to the system of psychoanalysis wherein the patient is encouraged to speak freely and openly of all the things which trouble him.

He is urged to recall his childhood days, his early fears, anxieties, animosities, resentments and especially the surcharged emotional experiences and disappointments. Such open recitals expose his repressions to the light of the older and more matured mind. This often strips them of their influence or importance and serves to nullify their effect.

However, when such recollections are not sufficient in themselves, the psychiatrist may utilize other means to get at the mental block. For such purposes he may resort to shock treatments, to gland therapy, to methanol, to sodium pentathlon or to carbon dioxide injections. Many new ideas in approach, in analysis, in treatment and in technique have been developed within recent years to cope with mental aberrations. Yet Freud's original concepts are basically sound and because of his teachings thousands of mentally disturbed persons have been helped.

The spiritual "you" is that inner drive for oneness with God. It is the spark of divinity implanted within you at birth. It is the stirrings of the soul, the seat of goodness, of kindliness and loftiness. It is the spiritual affinity that always strives for all that is pure, fine, noble and elevating in man.

Capitalize upon all of these "you" within you and above all listen to the promptings of your soul and hearken to its message of truth. Then you will surely gain in peace, in serenity and in happiness as you continue to climb upward on your stairway to success and happiness.

Find out more... "Fight Your Fears"