What is sublimation?

Contents:

• What is sublimation
• What examples of sublimation look like in life
• Why is sublimation useful?
• Why is sublimation dangerous?

What is sublimation

Sublimation is "investing" sexual energy (libido) in something more creative and practical. For example, in a hobby, work, research or sports. The term was coined by Sigmund Freud, so it's important to clarify what the father of psychoanalysis meant by "libido."
Freud believed that libido is not only sexual desire, but any instinct for life and self-preservation in general. The desire to eat something tasty, go to a concert, learn to play the guitar, not to go close to the abyss - all these, according to Freud, are impulses that grow out of the libido.

The problem is that not every such instinct is encouraged by society. For example, the desire to yell at a colleague who clarifies the same thing for the hundredth time and interferes with your work is unlikely to find support in the team. In such cases, sublimation is needed.
Freud developed the theory of sublimation after reading Heinrich Heine's story "The Harz Journey." The story's hero cruelly abused dogs as a child, but when he grew up, he became not a sadist, but a successful surgeon. In other words, he sublimated his cruel passion for anatomy into a socially approved profession.
So, sublimation is activated when a person is unable to realize their desires in a socially acceptable way. This is how a defense mechanism works, helping to relieve the tension from an unrealizable desire and channel its energy into an accessible channel.

What do examples of sublimation look like in life?

Freud believed that sublimation is most often needed in two scenarios: when you need to throw out primitive, unwanted aggression or sexual desire. So, in the first case, instead of yelling at the office "clarifier", we choose to tidy up our desk, draw, play solitaire, or throw ourselves into work with redoubled energy.
Inappropriate or unresolved sexual desire is often invested in creativity. For example, when your partner is on a business trip or vacation, you can occupy yourself on a lonely evening with painting by numbers, assembling puzzles, blogging, or remodeling the balcony. Or finally find out why cuckoos actually abandon their chicks to the care of other birds.
Studying and learning are also ways of sublimation. For example, according to Freud, humanity owes the achievements of Leonardo da Vinci precisely to the mechanism of energy redirection.
The great Italian, the "universal man," was never seen in a relationship, had no children, and never proposed to anyone. Freud believed that this rejection of any attempts at self-reproduction charged da Vinci with the necessary energy for great achievements.
Sublimation is also often associated with sports: so, if you are bursting with the desire to yell at your partner after an argument, go to the gym and use the energy of anger to give your best result on the exercise machine.

In general, sport, especially competitive sport, is an excellent way to realize inner energy. People who have difficulty coping with emotions (not only negative ones) may well find themselves in athletics, hockey, volleyball, or dancing. Active movement requires energy, and if your impulses provoke excess energy, why not channel it into something useful?
The Sexological Encyclopedia indicates that jokes and witticisms can be used as a form of sublimation. Let's say Matvey has fallen in love with Olya, his friend Pasha's girlfriend. Unable to express his feelings, Matvey often performs stand-up routines at social gatherings about how Olya will leave Pasha in ten years and marry Matvey himself. The friends laugh, and Matvey sublimates his love for Olya with humor and the title of chief joker.

Why is sublimation useful?

In general, sublimation is our friend. The authors of the "Dictionary of a Practical Psychologist" even call sublimation "the only adequate defense mechanism." This is a bold (and controversial) statement, but in general, psychologists agree on one thing: sublimation really does help the psyche unwind, and helps a person maintain status and face in society.
The mechanism for switching "base" impulses to more elevated ones protects us from spontaneous calls to exes, quarrels with colleagues and friends, committing various forms of violence, and dwelling on unproductive thoughts. It also helps us overcome the pain of loss or disappointment due to betrayal. But this benefit also has a “dark” side.

The dangers of sublimation

Let's say that the hero of our previous example, Matvey, was so good at sublimation through jokes that he really made Olya fall in love with him. It would seem like a happy ending (we all feel sorry for that kindhearted Pasha). But Matvey's habit of sublimating emotions with humor has become so ingrained that he only laughs off any conflicts with his long-awaited Olya. For example, noticing that Olya has started chatting with an old acquaintance at a party, Matvey laughingly asks on the way home, "So, are you going to run away from me to Leshka now?" In this joke, Matvey sublimates his anxiety and fear of losing Olya. And probably also his feelings of guilt towards Pasha. But the girl doesn't appreciate such witticisms at all: "Am I some kind of flighty empty shell?" In response, Matvey jokes again, and the conflict dies down in tense laughter, but the roots of the argument don't evaporate.
In such scenarios, sublimation can become an unhealthy mechanism. The fact is that escaping your feelings into sports, work, or humor is only worthwhile if these feelings have flared up in the moment and cannot find a healthy outlet.
And in the case of Matvey and Olya, there is such a way out: discuss your anxieties with your partner, work through your complexes and self-doubt with a psychologist, and share your fears with each other. And most importantly, admit to yourself that these fears exist and understand their causes.

So, by solving difficulties and misunderstandings in relationships with delays at work and a new hobby, we actually ruin these relationships. It turns out that sublimation, like everything else in this world, is good in moderation—relying on it to overcome all of life's difficulties is definitely not a good idea, as this defense mechanism will then turn into a destructive habit of running away from problems. Conclusion: before throwing yourself into creativity, sports, activism, or work, you need to take a breath, pause, and reflect on your feelings. Where exactly is that fountain of energy coming from that you urgently want to expel? What drives sublimation—anger, anxiety, fear? You'll still have to work through and experience these feelings, whether it's about relationships or psychological trauma. But afterward, residual impulses can be consciously sublimated into good and useful deeds.