Indirect Self-Destructive Behavior And Personality Disorders

Freud (1920) stated that no man is able to imagine his own death because he cannot integrate his non-existence through his fantasies of immortality. The emotional apparatus works under the principle of constancy; defined by Breuer and Freud in their Studies on Hysteria as: “The tendency to maintain constant intracerebral excitation” (Breuer, 1985 in Freud, 1920 p 15); This is the search for energy balance. The concept of the death instinct is introduced as a biological drive that pushes one to return to the inorganic, “…a drive derives from the need to reestablish a previous state” (Freud, 1920/1955 p. 56) or “the organism reacts to every disturbance with the attempt to recover the status quo” (Segal, 1984. in Widlöcher, 1991 p.35).

The repetition compulsion is the manifestation of the death drive , is an attempt to return to a previous state to maintain constancy. The death drive almost always operates silently, so it is difficult to observe its manifestations in their pure state; they can only be perceived when they merge with the libido. Segal (1984 in Widlöcher, 1991) proposes that the beginning of Nirvana is an idealization of death and the death drive, similar to that of a fusion with the object, as in the oceanic feeling.

Reckhardt (1984 in Widlöcher, 1991) states that the organism’s primary self-preservation equipment includes some withdrawal and displacement functions. Consequently, the first derivations of the death drive are manifested by indifference and destruction. The death instinct manifests itself in covert suicide and self-destructive behavior. Previously, a person was considered suicidal if they talked about suicide, attempted it, or succeeded, but later studies indicated that there were more interacting factors such as behavior, time, intention, and activity.

The concept of unconscious suicidal tendencies because the subject seemed to not realize or deny that his actions were intended to harm himself. Durkheim (1999) refers to suicide as any case of death that results, directly or indirectly, from an act, positive or negative, carried out by the victim himself, knowing that it must produce this result. In the previous definition, it is important to highlight that the suicidal person is aware of his act and its consequences.

Litman (1983; in Farberow, 1984) explains that the difference between direct and indirect self-destructive behavior It is the conscious goal of behavior. If the primary goal is to harm oneself, the term self-destructive behavior is correct and suicide is its extreme form. In indirect self-destructive behavior, harming oneself is not the primary goal, but rather an unwanted effect and includes relatively insignificant errors, self-punishment, and small risks that together increase the possibility of serious injury and death.

In this way, the reality test begins to fail and narcissistic action schemes are activated. CADI, is a way of life, a repetitive character trait, a habit. It occurs slowly, unconsciously, and the consequences manifest themselves in the long term. It is a way to avoid pain. It is an attempt to maintain control and prediction; internal versus external locus of control.

Individuals with little capacity for introspection would explain the consequences as products of luck, destiny, or victims of the environment. He damage occurs little by little every time the behavior occurs like:

• The consumption of tobacco, alcohol and drugs.
• Body alterations (tattoos, piercings, etc.).
• Eating disorders (obesity, anorexia and bulimia).
• High-risk sexual relations.

Harm is potential through repetition of the behavior and increased risk. It is presented in:

• Bets.
• Minor criminal acts.
• Accidents.
• High risk sports.

Farberow (1984) considers that those people who exhibit one or more of the behaviors described previously, repetitively, they have the following features in common:

• Reasoning tends to be hollow and superficial.
• Their self-destructive behavior does not occur under conditions of stress.
• Motivation is directed towards obtaining pleasure and actions are directed towards oneself.
• They can maintain their behavior because of their strong capacity for denial.
• They have little ability to visualize themselves in the long term.
• They are intolerant of delays and postponed commitments.
• They are unable to explain their behavior and it always seems to be impulsive and difficult to understand, but it is justified by the pleasure itself that the activity produces.
• They maintain unstable relationships since the main concern is the person themselves and not the other.

Casillas and Clark (2002) investigated individuals with high dependence and impulsivity and a tendency toward self-destructive behaviors and then correlated it with type “B” personality, which consists of a combination of antisocial, borderline, histrionic and narcissistic personality traits. The combination of the three coincides with the personality characteristics indicated by Farberow (1984). On the other hand, DSM IV (1994) points out some behaviors of type “B” personality that are similar to those proposed by Farberow.

Returning to the aforementioned authors, it can be said that people who present Indirect Self-Destructive Behaviors They have the following personality characteristics :

• Seeking immediate pleasure and low tolerance for frustration
• Tendency towards denial
• Object loss anxiety
• Omnipotence
• Lack of long-term planning
• Need for constant stimulation
• Superficial interpersonal relationships
• Strong feeling of individualism

The CADI is difficult to observe in a single behavior In addition to this, each person expresses it in a different way and that is why it is so complicated to measure. It is the accumulation of these and their tendency to repeat themselves, which makes it an important risk factor for the individual that can lead to death.

This article is merely informative, at PsychologyFor we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

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