Parapraxis and Freud

Over the last week or so I've had 3 parapraxi or Freudian slips.  A Freudian slip is when a word or action differs from what was intended because, as the theory goes, the subconscious is thinking about something else and momentarily overrides the conscious.  Confused yet?  Let me explain.  Have you ever been thinking about someone and then started talking to someone else but referred to them by the name of the original person you were thinking about?  That's a pretty common example.  A Parapraxis is similar but doesn't necessarily require that a mistake is made to reveal what is going on in the subconscious.  The theory behind Rorschach tests and word association is based on the idea of overriding the conscious and getting a peak at what's going on inside your mind.

My parapraxii were quite interesting.  I don't know if I just made a random mistake or if my mind really was on other things and somehow it just popped out.

At the last C&C DL asked me how my son was.  For the record, I don't have a son.  DL had seen a picture of me with a boy I used to babysit from my days in the North.  DL had thought he was my son.  After we cleared that up I told him I don't have a son but I wished I did.  Pause...  Did I actually say that?  Yep.  I heard myself say I wished I had a son.  Where did that come from?  I don't  know, but I do know I like kids and I have been feeling a pull in that direction lately.  Maybe the so called biological clock has found me out.  Anyway, it was interesting to hear myself say I wished I was a father.  I don't know where to go with that so I'll leave it there for now.

My second incident happened while talking to my brother.  We were talking about life and God and church and things of that nature.  I'm not ready to share what popped out during that talk, but once again I surprised myself.

And my third parapraxis happened during a C&C event last night which I also found quite interesting.  I'm not sure what to make of it right now so I may never share it.

Anyway it has been quite revealing to notice these things pop out of my brain over the last week.

I'm going to go and think about them now and see how my life wraps around them...