Drives and Instincts.

Drives and Instincts.

When I sit down to write this article it is Tuesday March 9, 2020. Late afternoon. I will be continuing with a psychoanalytic Freudian approach.

You can listen to this post on my podcast.

In the Previous Post, I was talking about Ego, Id and Superego. Now I want to say a bit more about our psychoanalytic mind and introduce the Drives and Instincts of our mind.

A publication of Freud’s book “Beyond the Pleasure Principle” in 1920, gives the reader explanations how the drives and instincts which consists of the mixture of both Eros and Thanatos which create our mental existences.

Eros is the drive of life, creation, love and sexual gratification. His driving energy is libido. On the other hand is Thanatos, who is the drive of death, destruction and aggression. Automatically it crossed my mind of Brahma & Shiva from Hindu Trimurti, where Brahma has responsibility for the creation of life and Shiva is the one who takes the charge of the end of all existence. However, we should not confuse Psychoanalytic Freud’s approach and some religious beliefs. Although they have some similarity, this will be discussed at another time, perhaps in Carl Jung’s manifestations.

However, there is a conflict between Thanatos and Eros in all existence but both of these drives have a tendency to melt together with the environment rather than avoiding the isolation from one to another.

The concept of death instinct was first described, in which Freud proposed that “the goal of all lives is death.” Freud believed that people usually direct their instincts of death outside as aggression, as a result of the instinct of death.

Sometimes these instincts towards destruction can be directed inwards, which can lead to self-harm or suicide. Thanatos is the drive to die – in his destructive nature and personifies the subconscious desire for death; the self-destructive drive attempts to accomplish Thanatos’s goals and self-destruction.

Freud saw in a sexual instinct the result of chemically induced tension in the body that causes the pain and desires to be discharged. The purpose of sexual desire is to remove this extreme tension. During sexual acts that the libido is satisfied and accompanied by pleasure.

In the end, Freud claims that the full and unhampered satisfaction of all instinctual desires would lead to mental health and happiness.

Personally, I can not wait to find out more about that complicated topic which is love and desire in the psychoanalytic approach.

“The horse is the Id, and the rider is like an ego which controls the movement.” 

Thank you for listening and see you soon. Your host Marcin Bogucki on Private Psychotherapy Practice with Remote Counselling.