Episode 019 – 7 Defense Mechanisms We All Use

Summary: In this episode, Joseph explains the defense mechanisms
that are built into us as human beings. Though they are intended
to protect our ego and state of mind, they often end up damaging
our relationships and pulling us further into blame and anger.
Tune-in as Joseph uncovers the 7 most common defense mechanisms
we all use to protect ourselves. His greatest hope in opening
this discussion is that we become aware of our defenses and
understand our ability to develop healthier ways to respond or
deal with emotions, especially when involved with difficult
interactions. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:01 – Introduction to
Mind Your Mind Podcast 00:22 – Today’s episode is about the 7
defense mechanisms we all use 00:45 – Defense mechanisms are
ways to protect our ego 01:00 - “Defense mechanisms protect us
but also blind us at the same time” – Joseph Tropper 01:11 –
Defense mechanisms tend to blind us from our own parts 01:51 –
The 7 defense mechanisms we all use: o 02:05 – Denial or
“cognitive dissonance”—we deny negative things said about
ourselves to protect our ego o 02:57 – Regression: an adult could
have a 5-year old temper tantrum; they regress to an earlier
stage of behavior instead of dealing with a problem the adult way
o 04:21 – Disassociation: we zone out from things we don’t want
to focus on because those events or situations hurt—how much am I
present in the moment, and how much am I disassociating from the
moment? o 05:33 – Compartmentalization: we ignore one piece of
information that doesn’t relate to rest (ex. compartmentalize one
bad action of parents that doesn’t fit into our perfect view of
them) o 06:49 – Projection: we project past experiences with
people into our new relationships and then try to protect
ourselves from perceived threat o 08:12 – Reaction formation:
when you oppose something that you actually endorse o 09:00 –
Intellectualization: “don’t feel, just think”—this is when you
blame other people for our problems or the situation that we
contributed to 09:39 – “We are complex human beings”—they are
mechanisms that are built-in to protect us, but they often blind
us 10:02 – Therapy, or any outside perspective, can help guide
us to better be aware of our blind spots 10:44 – Please leave
us a comment on Mind Your Mind and a review on iTunes 10:55 –
End of this week’s podcast!


3 Key Points:
Defense mechanisms are built-in ways we try to protect our
ego—the problem with these mechanisms is that they often blind us
from our behavior. Speak to an outside party who can call out our
blind spots and help us to become aware of them. There are harmful
ways designed to protect ourselves, but often fail us; our defense
mechanisms have a way of hurting our relationships.