Bright and energetic people tend to think that they are free from stress. However, if it goes too far, a mental defense system called “manic defense” may be at work. We will explain the characteristics of manic defense and how to balance the mind.
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A person with a high level of tension… Maybe it’s a manic defense that intentionally behaves cheerfully
Because I have a lot of stress, I try my best to be 120% healthy. Even if it’s hard, I’ll force myself to smile and try to brighten up. Such “high tension” people are evaluated as “positive” or “positive” and tend to be viewed favorably. However, there may actually be a big risk lurking there.
In clinical psychology, there is a term called “ manic defense ”. It is an unconscious defensive behavior that tries to cover the depressed feelings by playing a cheerful or energetic self. It is often seen when trying to adapt to a tense life or stressful situation.
Every time stress increases, he makes noise with his friends and runs into binge eating and drinking. The busier you get, the more excited you get, and the more work you have. In these cases, the manic defense may be coping with the stress by forcing a high tension.
Risk of manic defensiveness …… If you try too hard to raise your mood, you will be physically and mentally overwhelmed
The manic defense is useful in dealing with short-term stress. However, if you use that method for a long time, your body and mind will be exhausted.
For example, every time there is a hole in your schedule, you become anxious and force yourself to do some errands to keep yourself busy. In order not to think about unpleasant things, the power of alcohol lifts your mood. To avoid isolation, make noise with your friends every day. Repetition of these behaviors can affect not only your mental health, but also your physical health and lifestyle.
Why Use Manic Defense? First, Know Yourself
“When do you run into manic defense?” – Reflect on yourselfSelf-knowledge is necessary to avoid resorting to manic defenses. “Why do you force yourself to be busy?” “Why do you always want to be busy?”
If the environment changes, people get nervous, and if they get hurt, they get depressed. It is natural to use short-term manic defenses against these temporary stresses.
However, if you’re trying to survive long-term stress with high tension, you need to think about why. One may be overreacting to “a certain stimulus.” Or maybe you’re not very good at dealing with stress.
Use self-understanding to expand your repertoire of coping with stress
For example, if someone who is not used to dating goes to a joint party, they may suddenly become very excited and make a lot of noise. In this way, if manic defense against “a certain stimulus” appears, try lowering the level of the stimulus.
In this example, instead of starting with a joint party, why not start by looking for opportunities to make friends? Activities such as study groups, volunteer activities, and sports are the best places to make friends. Getting along through common topics increases the chances of developing a relationship naturally.
Also, let’s stop “getting excited and trying hard” and adopt a long-term stress coping method. In that case, increasing the “coping” is helpful.
Over the course of our lives, we will encounter various types of stress many times. Therefore, let’s deal with stress well while trying the above coping methods.