Some common signs:. In addition to these signs, you might find yourself feeling hopeless or helpless. On some level, you know there is a problem that needs to be addressed, but you feel that nothing you do or say will make a difference.
When other people try to offer advice or help, you might brush off their concern by pretending to agree or telling them to mind their own business.
Like other defense mechanisms, denial functions as a way to protect you from experiencing anxiety. In some cases, it might be a way to avoid dealing with stress or painful emotions. By refusing to deal with or even admit that there is something wrong, you are trying to prevent facing stress, conflict, threats, fears, and anxieties.
Denial serves a few different purposes. First, using this defense mechanism means you don't have to acknowledge the problem. Second, it also allows you to minimize the potential consequences that might result.
Denial is sometimes seen more often with certain types of mental health conditions. People who have substance abuse disorder , alcohol use disorder , and narcissistic personality disorder , for example, may use this defense mechanism more often to avoid facing the reality of their condition.
Denying a problem exists allows the individual to continue engaging in destructive behavior without addressing the problem. Denial is a common way for people to avoid dealing with troubling feelings. Some examples:. Denial isn't always a bad thing.
When dealing with something shocking or distressing, being in denial can give you a little time and space to gradually, often unconsciously , come to grips with the change. For example, you might stay in denial to some degree about a health concern because you don't want to face the possibility of being seriously ill. Rather than needlessly worrying, being in denial can give you a little time to come to terms and remain calm while you seek the advice of a health professional.
In other cases, however, denial can be problematic and even harmful. For example, if you stay in denial about a health condition and never see a doctor about it, the problem might worsen. Likewise, if you are in denial about symptoms of a mental illness such as anxiety or depression , you might delay seeking help from your doctor or mental health professional.
Overcoming denial often depends on the nature of the problem. People often come to terms with the reality of a situation on their own given time and support.
Psychotherapy or support groups can also be helpful. In psychodynamic therapy , learning to recognize and identify defense mechanisms such as denial helps improve an individual's self-awareness to understand their own behavior.
If you suspect that denial might be a coping mechanism that is preventing you from facing a problem, there are some things that you can do to help overcome it. Denial is a common way for people to deal with anxiety-provoking situations.
Developing coping skills will allow you to face your fears in healthy and productive ways. If denial is causing problems or preventing you from dealing with a physical or mental health condition, consider talking to a professional or joining a support group. Every evening is booked — and then some… But is the sole purpose of all this partying to keep you from thinking about your thoughts and feelings?
Having a brimming social calendar is not the answer — not if it is just a way to avoid the truth…. In our culture, drinking alcohol is the most common way that we self-medicate away our emotional pain.
The feeling of helplessness brought on by increasing depression can often result in people deciding to assert themselves — or looking to blame others.
So if you suddenly find yourself getting into arguments with other drivers or losing your temper in the supermarket checkout queue, or even deciding that you absolutely have to get divorced as soon as possible. Is it really them? Some people cope with depression by acting in the opposite way to how they really feel. So you suddenly decide to start up a new and previously completely unconsidered and unlikely project — or quit your job to write a book or launch your career as a singer — and you feel absolutely invincible and capable of anything.
One major effect of depression is feeling that you have no control, so taking control, even if it is an illusion and actually about you losing control, is a sign of what is to come…. Rather than accept your depression, you seem to give up feeling altogether. So you end up getting stuck in some sort zombie state, denying the pain by dismissing it — and everything and everyone else.
People try to help, and you ignore or reject them — or, worse, snap at them for asking how you are — or dismiss the attempt to engage with you by praising you as insincere.
One of the worst effects of this sort of denial is that it alienates those who care for you so that when it does all come tumbling down they are no longer there to help….. Instead of acknowledging and seeking help for a problem that cannot be controlled alone, stigma drives some people to suffer in silence.
Denial is an attempt to cope, rationalize, or excuse behaviors in one way or another. It refers to failing to acknowledge an unacceptable emotion or truth.
Denial can sometimes seem irrational, but it is used as a defense mechanism against situations or circumstances that are painful and overwhelming. While it can be difficult for a person suffering from addiction to recognize that they are in denial, family members and loved ones can usually detect denial from a mile away. Some signs that an addicted loved one is in denial include:.
As a defense mechanism, denial is a normal reaction to stressful situations. After all, denial gives the mind time to unconsciously take in shocking or distressful information without sending people into shock.
If denial persists, it can prevent a person from taking action to deal with his or her problems. Addiction is a particularly dangerous concept for someone to be in denial about. A person who denies that they have a problem will be reluctant to seek help. As a result, this can prolong his or her addiction until he or she faces serious consequences.
Unfortunately, addiction kills and refusing to get help can turn into a death sentence. Denial also hurts the family and loved ones of an addict in denial. The family may obsessively try to make the addict find help, then become hurt when their loved one becomes defensive. Like an addiction, the act of being in denial hurts not only the person suffering but the entire family as well.
Helping a loved one move past denial is a difficult task. It can be extremely frustrating to watch a loved one continue to harm themselves without realizing the severity of their addiction.
However, there are ways to intervene and help a loved one recognize the truth. When confronting a loved one, it is important to focus on expressing your concern in an honest and caring manner. If you know someone who has achieved sobriety, it may be ideal to invite them to help you speak with your loved one.
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