Coined by theorist Sigmund Freud, the psychodynamic approach to therapy revolves around the interaction between the conscious and the unconscious. The mind is believed to be made up of three entities; the Id, the Ego and the Superego. The id is known for its pleasure-seeking and impulsiveness. Often referred to as the “devil on your shoulder,” the id shows very little self-control and is often linked to the unconscious mind. Driven by sex, violence, and impulsivity, the id is known to encourage risky behavior that would not normally occur. If the id were dominant, a person would behave in a devious and socially unacceptable manner. In contrast to the id, the superego acts as the “angel on the shoulder”. As stated in Day, 2008, “when the superego is in charge, we are perfectionistic and tense and expect too much of ourselves.” The superego acts as a conscience reflecting social standards learned through observation. When the superego is allowed to take control, it places such high expectations and demands that it is too difficult to achieve such high standards. The only way to prevent the pendulum of the psyche from swinging towards either extreme is the presence of the ego. The ego is the mediator between the superego and the id, providing moral reasoning and the reality principle. The reality principle recognizes that one should not act on the impulses of the id, but it also realizes that it is not possible to satisfy the demands of the superego (Day, 2008). The ego helps moderate these two extremes with the use of defense mechanisms. Defense mechanisms are a fundamental part of ego psychology. Used as a way to make reality a little less scary, the defense mechanism can be moderately adaptive or harmful (Day, 2008). So that… middle of the paper… what the client says may seem to the client as if he is drawing conclusions, is one way to understand the resistance a therapist may encounter from a client. Normally it is important for the therapist to limit the amount of verbal interpretation per session, but in this case I think Brianna would benefit from hearing a different point of view. Resistance can come in many forms, from arriving late to a session to skipping sessions entirely. Opposition is a way for the client to maintain control and avoid revisiting traumatic experiences that may have occurred in childhood. Since Brianna has not experienced any abuse and is a stickler for punctuality, it is unlikely that she will deliberately question the sanctity of therapy. During the initial phase of the therapeutic process, it is crucial to investigate past experiences because the past can continue into the future.