Conquering a Freudian Philosophy
“So… do you enjoy doing this?” A friend questioned whether I liked managing social gatherings that connect people within the church. “Yes and no,” was my honest reply. “I’m an introvert, but I don’t let that stop me.”
I do enjoy socializing. Nothing is better than laughing with girlfriends or meeting someone new and learning about them. However, social settings do cause me some anxiety. If the conversation lulls, my brain panics with all neurons firing to think of something to continue the friendly banter. I can also be drained after long social events. My husband, the extrovert, gets energized by people and is fired up to take on the world, while I need to take a nap or retreat to a quiet room for a bit until my batteries recharge.
For my master’s degree, I had to take a class on Sigmund Freud and his counseling techniques. While he was an interesting man and the inventor of psychoanalysis, I found a lot of his theories and techniques disturbing. (I spent most of the class trying to psychoanalyze Freud.) It can be helpful to revisit our childhood and identify why we act or react in a certain way, and recognize the defense mechanisms we’ve developed. However, we must be cautious not to fall into a state of learned helplessness. Learned helplessness is a phenomenon in which a person feels powerless to change their situation due to repeated negative experiences. They no longer try to improve their circumstances even when the opportunity arises because they feel powerless to change.
Experiencing some anxiety in social situations has been a past repeated negative situation for me. I still go through it, but by not shying away from these situations, I’m figuring out techniques to adapt and enjoy myself. Knowing that I’m an introvert helps me organize my schedule with recharge periods, but I had to choose not to let being an introvert limit me. It would be easier to stay in my comfort zone, stay home, and avoid all social engagements and therefore any anxiety, but then my life would be very small.
While I’m all for learning about our past and our different personalities so that we can walk effectively in God’s purpose for our lives, I’m opposed to letting our past hold us hostage. I realize there are people who have undergone serious trauma, and this may seem simplified or insensitive, but I don’t mean it to come across that way. We must be wary of letting our past define us and allow God to reveal who we are. We are:
Loved (Romans 8:38-39)
Chosen (Ephesians 1:5)
Forgiven (1 John 2:12)
Free (John 8:36)
Redeemed (Isaiah 43:1)
A new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Made in God’s image (Genesis 1:27)
Salt and light of the earth (Matthew 5:13-16)
Friends not servants (John 15:15)
Created for good works (Ephesians 2:10)
Worthy (John 3:16)
Perhaps we need to look beyond our childhood and focus further back, 2000 years ago, to what Jesus did for us on the cross. Don’t let traumatic childhood experiences define you when God says you are beloved and uniquely and wonderfully made. He has already given you what you need for this moment and the next.