CELIBATE GENITALITY:

DEFENSE MECHANISM

 PROCESS BY WHICH WE PROTECT OURSELVES AGAINST

UNPLEASANT OR ANXIOUS FEELINGS THAT TEND TO
EXPOSE AN UNACCEPTABLE PART OF OURSELVES. IT CAN
BE NORMAL OR MAD. THE YCLOSE US TO EXPERIENCES
AND THEREBY DECREASE OUR FREEDOM AND CREATIVE
CONTROL OF LIFE, AND THEY IMPEDE PERSONAL AND
INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION SO THAT WE ARE APT
NOT TO UNDERSTAND OURSELVES AND OTHERS AS WELL
AS WE SHOULD.
DEFENSE TEND TO BE SELF-REINFORCING. THE MORE WE
USE THEM, THE EASIER IT GETS AND THE MORE DIFFICULT
IT IS TO CHANGE.
DEFENSES EXACT A PRICE. WE WASTE TIME AND ENERGY
TO NON-PRODUCTIVE AND REPETITIOUS BEHAVIOR IN
TRYING TO WHAT AND WHO WE REALLY ARE NOT

 DEFENSES ARE NOT ONLY PAINFUL TO US, BUT ARE

FREQUENTLY IRRITATING AND HARMFUL TO OTHERS. THE
USE OF THEM MAKES US LIKELKY TO MANIPULATE
OTHERS TO SATISFY OUR NEEDS AND LESS LIKELY TO BE
SUFFICIENTLY FLEXIBLE AND OPEN TO UNDERSTAND AND
CARE FOR OTHERS.
A PRIMARY REASON IS TO WARD OFF ANXIETY THAT IS THE
RESULT OF UNACCEPTABLE EXPERIENCES. Example: We
defend ourselves against genital feelings because we
become anxious, ashamed, depressed or guilty when we feel
sexual. It is self-defeating.

KINDS OF DEFENSES
REPRESSION:
To ward off anxiety that is evoked by unacceptable sexuality
2 ways: Not being conscious of certain experiences and in not being
consciously aware of being aware
A world of pretense or make-believe.
Being a good person included being non-sexual. Restrict life and
impede opportunities for growth
Repressed sexual energy are not in service to health becoming
frustrated, irritated and angry
Absolute repression of sexuality is unchaste because it is impure and
disrespectful to self and others a denial of human embodiment.

DENIAL
A refusal to admit that certain facts or actions exist
A rejection of obvious evidence

RATIONALIZATION
Irrational way of using rationality
To try to abstain from confronting the real issue and attempt to explain and
justify the way we feel or behave with impersonal and socially acceptable
reasons
Try to minimize the possible or real effects of genitality In service of
love or an expression of true friendship
Example: A minister counseled a lonely sexually frustrated woman. During
the initial session, he was understanding and touched her shoulder;
during the second session, he embraced tha woman asa demonstration of
his care. During the third session, he held her longer and had her sit on his
lap..

FANTASY
Becomes more important that reality or replaces reality
Example: A man who has many genital fantasies, seldom approaches people in
reality, and rarely makes healthy sense of his/her genitality
Fantasies offer the illusion of intimate fulfilment without risk, responsibility
and limits elements of real intimacy

INSULATION
When we protect ourselves against hurt and disappointment by not allowing
ourselves to care very much.
To be uninvolved instead of being warm and approachable, we remain cold and
detached to protect ourselves from emotional involvement especially sexual
involvement ( a cold and lifeless person)
In attempt to defend against genitality, we may lose our spirituality. Because
caring might activate some genital feelings, we insulate ourselves and
therefore violate spirituality LOVE. Thus both spirituality and genitality are
numbed and life becomes flat, pathetic, less challenging and lacking in
enthusiam

ISOLATION
To cut ourselves off from sexual situations that produce stress
To withdraw freely from a situation can be healthy, but to be compelled
to isolate ourselves from any sexually stimulating situation is not
healthy
May involve removing ourselves physically from areas of sexual
discomfort by withdrawing or refusing to continue an activity that
evokes anxiety
Example: Not to be involved with the other sex because it evokes
sexual feelings. Seldom if ever have heterosocial contact because of
fears of being sexually stimulated.
To dissociate equally important but mutually exclusive values: An
isolation of values from activities/reality

REGRESSION
A reversion to activities that were more appropriate at
earlier stages of development
When a situation becomes too threatening or
overwhelming, we may regress to a level where we feel we
have little or no responsibility or to a time when we felt
more secure
Example: Adolescent manner in sexual area like constant
giggling, sophomoric kidding and crude joking

PROJECTION
An attempt to maintain self-esteem and adequacy by blaming others for
our mistakes or by imputing to other our own unacceptable feelings
and impulses.

DISPLACEMENT
Switching the expression of feelings from the eliciting person to some
other less risky person or object
Turning to prostitutes fro sexual gratification, displace feelings for a
person in masturbatory activities, overeating or oversleeping
Instead of facing sexuality, they displace the sexual energy on other
activities that do not promote healthy growth

COMPENSATION
Over-reacting to make up of for real or imagined inadequacy
Not to marry because they feel sexually; become semi-celibates
who frequently engage in genital behavior
Genital conquests are over-compensations for their feelings of
sexual inferiority
Can be deceptive because on the surface they may look like
sexually active or open to people, but actually they feel very
inferior and too afraid to surrender in loving genitality
Middle-aged men regress to playboy activities to compensate for
lack of mature sexual identity.

REACTION FORMATION
To replace unacceptable urges with completely opposite behavior and
oftentimes correspondingly intolerant attitudes.
People who go to one extreme often feel the opposite way within
themselves
Sexual prudes are often highly sexual. People who are too willing to
condemn sexual activities and who eagerly volunteer to be community
sex censors may get vicarious and often direct satisfaction from their
censoring.
To lead celibate lives because they are afraid to face their own genitality.
Celibacy to them is non-genital way of coping.
Control unacceptable sexual feelings toward the other sex by becoming
over involved with the same sex. Since their involvement may include
genital feelings and transitory genital behavior such persons identify
themselves toward the other sex.

UNDOING
Tend to be perfectionist, scrupulous and prone to guilt
Example: Feel compelled to confess or do penance by means of perfect ritual.
Atonement is inauthentic because it tries to maintain a sexual stand that is not
healthy

SYMPATHISM
Trying to get others feel sorry for them and to support them
Try to run from sexual awareness by always complaining about his/her problems

ACTING OUT
A gratification of needs
A process of dispelling and reducing pressure by acting in a disapproved manner
Example: go on sprees of sexual fantasy, pornographic reading and masturbation
to lessen genital tension

POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGICAL WAYS OF

COPING
SUPPRESSION
Conscious or free awareness of an experience that is kept
from overt expression
Mortification: A no that is based on a fundamental yes
A free and often conscious decision
A self-affirmation and free choice that promotes healthy living
Painful, but it is death that can promote life of love. A call for
discipline on the basis of freedom. Movement from
repression to suppression

 During this transitional time, a person may express almost

the opposite of the past repressive behavior. Help needed
from others: patience, understanding, just and without
being permissive, available to help him during this
transition period.
Self-Help: suppress impulses as much as possible, to
mortify, integrate and sublimate them.

SUBLIMATION
Literally.. To raise or elevate
Redirecting energy from one activity to another that is judged to be
culturally, socially, physically, functionally, aesthetically or spiritually
higher or better.
An acceptance of feelings that we do not want to express in certain
behavior because of the conflict in values re-channel the energy into
activity that is congruent with our values (promote healthy and good
living)
Example: academic or administrative work, aesthetic and creative
activity like sports, concern for others
Pseudo/Not Healthy: Overeat, overly paternal or maternal with persons
such as children or patients, irritable and angry
Pseudo-sublimation - a way of release feelings such as frustration and
irritability that can come from repressed sexuality eg. Overeat can
militate against healthy growth

RESPECTFUL INTEGRATION
A direct way of integrating genitality and sexuality
Genitality has a more direct and positive influence on our
psychological and spiritual life. It can evoke and promote
authentic integration

AMPLIFICATION
Creative control, creative listening and creative seeing
Healthy amplification an extension of the possible
consequences of the fantasy and links it with reality.

THANK YOU AND GOD BLESS!!!!