Continuing the previous Post, the period in which sexual energy arises is known as self-sexual stage. It is also an awakening time for bodies that still don’t know what it is like to have an active relation with sexual energy. Going through self-sexual stage works as a sort of filter that helps us to understand how psychological atmospheres were introjected during childhood. If children already know how to use masturbation as a discharge channel and feel comfortable exploring their bodies as a source of pleasure, they will probably undergo self-sexual stage successfully. If they had experienced inhibitory atmospheres, however, they may have developed blocks in different levels that will prevent idealization and projection stages from happening. And these are the necessary conditions for completing identity transition. For example, if children experience intense abandonment and rejection, such atmospheres may be introjected and turn into self-rejection (rejection for their own bodies). These are hard cases in which psychotherapeutic strategy must focus on developing interaction skills, whatsoever, to, then, start focusing on sexual relationships. “Blurred” Feminine and masculine infantile models (gossips, lies, disavowing behaviours/competition between parents/carers, scarce affective and material structure, among other inhibitory atmospheres), won’t prevent S.I development from happening. It is a species event genetically predicted that will happen anyway. But they may prevent idealization from happening, since both parents’ models (feminine and masculine) are blocked[1]. Retentions in self-sexual phase may have a deep impact in two levels of emotional development:
1) Pubers are not able to project idols’ admired traits in a real person (Great Friend). So, they are stuck in the first step, which is don’t go through once they don’t have social relationships. In fact, they avoid social contact (phobia). Hence, they don’t get over the first projecting stage. These are cases of severe blocks in S.I.
2) Pubers go through the first projecting stage, but not through fusion stage, since infantile models are blocked, which means they aren’t available to be merged with new identity references. Hence, they don’t conclude identity fusion stage. These are cases of mild blocks in S.I.
On the second level, which is mild, people feel sexually attracted by others. The difficulty is keeping eroticized situations with the desired person –the one who is the object of erotic fantasy. And this is the necessary condition for heating and reaching the top of erotic escalation.
To be continued in the next Post [1] For more details see Dias, in Post 3 – Self-sexual Identity blocks, Post 4-Consequences of Self-sexual Identity blocks, Post 5-Homosexual Phase- intimacy with specular bodies, in Sexual Identity blocks, in: www.ceciliapsicologa.com
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