Maybe you have ever heard the term 'egosyntonic' and 'egodystonic', so, at first, They may seem like two very difficult terms to understand but in reality they are terms that must be understood to know how ourselves or others, They connect with the world around them (or they don't connect). The name itself tells us what each thing means and what it can refer to in people.
When we talk about an ego-syntonic person it means that they are fine with themselves, that they are in tune with their ego (ego-tune). They may have a disorder but that does not cause them suffering towards themselves, since people who have an egosyntonic disorder usually harm the people around them.
Then At the other extreme we find egodystonic people or people who suffer from an egodystonic disorder. These people are not in tune with themselves, which means that their pathology generates internal suffering, but they do not generate as much damage to their environment. This person may be more aware that they have a problem than their opposite peers, people with egosyntonic disorders.
Egosyntonic disorder vs egodystonic disorder
As you have seen by reading the previous paragraphs, these two terms are used above all to describe how a person perceives themselves (thoughts, behaviors, circumstances in life, etc.). But they are not only disorders, a person who has an egosyntonic personality characteristic is when this person does not feel discomfort when facing situations or problems. Instead, A person with an egodystonic personality characteristic lives life in constant discomfort.
People who suffer from a disorder are not always aware that their behavior or attitude when facing various situations can cause problems such as conflicts, anxiety, depression and even breakdowns in interpersonal relationships.
When to ask for psychological help
A person with this type of disorder only ventures to ask for psychological help. When they begin to notice how the symptoms of their disorder cause them discomfort. Normally, egosyntonic people do not seek to change because they do not believe they need it, however, egodystonic people usually end up asking for help because they realize that there is something that is not going quite right with them.
Before treating this type of person, psychologists will take into account a multitude of factors, such as the social support they have, social skills, whether or not they have anxiety, whether they are aware of what is happening to them, what that person's ego is like. , etc. Each person is a totally different world and the same treatment cannot be given to everyone equally, you have to look for the person's own characteristics and then (only then), assess what would be the best therapy for these people.
For the process of change the person needs to feel the discomfort, if you don't it is very difficult for them to have the real will to do things differently. Although the discomfort should be moderate since if the person feels too distressed they can become emotionally blocked and the changes may occur too slowly or may not occur at all due to their internal blockage. If there are no internal discomforts or they are too mild, then the person will adapt to their situation. and you will not believe that you really need a change to improve your quality of life and your emotional well-being.
Lived experiences make a difference
Depending on the person's experiences, the symptoms of the disorder can be perceived as egosyntonic or egodystonic. Homosexuality, personal or work conflicts... everything can cause experiences to be perceived in different ways depending on the context or the feelings that the person has, as well as their particular behavior.
Maybe a person wants to live calmly and with emotional well-being and that is their only goal, but perhaps the changes you want to make in your life to achieve this are the real focus of your discomfort (for example, a person who lives well off in a city with a demanding job but which gives him money to live well, wants to leave work to go to live in a quiet place without always having to deal with work stress).
Sometimes, when people are not fully aware of how to manage some situations, egosyntonic behaviors or attitudes occur almost without realizing it, which do not allow them to see changes in other directions or see opportunities when they are in front of them.
What is egosyntonic homosexuality or egosyntonic homosexuality?
When a person Living an egosyntonic homosexuality means that the person feels happy and in harmony with their homosexual sexual identity. He really feels that he is in tune with his self and it is a choice that he has made because that is how he feels.
Instead, when we talk about an egodystonic homosexuality, we do it when a person feels that his sexual identification is not in tune with himself and rejects his own homosexuality. He does not accept his sexual identity and internal confusion is generated that can cause great anguish and discomfort.
But egosyntonic or egodystonic characteristics do not only focus on whether a person is homosexual or not, they can occur in any circumstance of a person's life. If a person feels fulfilled or in accordance with their thoughts, behaviors and values, they will have egosyntonic characteristics. On the contrary, if a person feels that his feelings or behaviors are not in accordance with his inner self, Then you will feel some internal confusion that will generate discomfort, anxiety and even depression.
Key features
People who are egosyntonic usually feel good about themselves and their surroundings, so we are interested in identifying more the characteristics of egodystonic people since they are the ones who most often ask for help to work through their discomfort.
These people often feel discomfort when facing new situations. They are also not aware that they may have this personality disorder and that because of it others may arise that harm them emotionally and even affect their interpersonal relationships.. Egodystonic people feel the need to change to feel better but they don't know how to do it. They may feel blocked even though they have the opportunity for change in front of them. You need to find emotional stability and general well-being as soon as possible.