Name:__________________________________ Course & Year_______________ Date________

1. – “I’m so sad, why bother anything?” :”I’m going to die soon so what’s the
point?” : “ I miss my loved one, why go on?

2. - “I feel fine” : “This can’t be happening to me.”

3. - “I’ll do anything for more years.” : I will give my life savings if…”

4. – “Why me? It’s not fair!” : “How can this happen to me?” : “Who is to
blame?”

5. – “It’s going to be okay,”: I can’t fight it, I may as well as prepare for
it.

DEFENSE/COPING MECHANISM DESCRIPTION EXAMPLE

pushing into the unconscious trying to forget something that
causes you anxiety

acting out unacceptable impulses in

a socially acceptable way

forgetting sexual abuse from your

childhood due to the trauma and
REPRESSION anxiety
returning to a previous stage of sitting in a corner and crying
development after hearing bad news; throwing a
temper tantrum when you don't get
your way.
taking the opposite belief because having a bias against a particular
the true belief causes anxiety race or culture and then embracing
that race or culture to the
extreme.
RATIONALIZATION supplying a logical or rational
reason as opposed to the real
reason
placing unacceptable impulses in when losing an argument, you state
yourself onto someone else "You're just Stupid;" homophobia
DISPLACEMENT slamming a door instead of hitting
as person, yelling at your spouse
after an argument with your boss
DENIAL arguing against an anxiety
provoking stimuli by stating it
doesn't exist
avoiding unacceptable emotions by focusing on the details of a
focusing on the intellectual funeral as opposed to the sadness
aspects and grief

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