Ego is the driving force that pushes us to heal and transform into better, thriving individuals.
What is Ego?
Ego is defined as one’s sense of self-esteem or self-importance. It is the “I” of every individual and as such a central element in defining one’s feelings, attitude, will or determination, and identity as a whole. The ego is in the “middle child” between the Id and the superego. The Id is the primitive and instinctive component of an individual’s personality while the superego is the ethical component, responsible for thinking what is not right or morally accepted (ideas that we inherit from parents, society, etc). Therefore, it is the Ego is every person’s most important component and helps preserve the balance in each individual. That said, spiritual and psychological egos are key elements in helping an individual heal, improve, and preserve his identity and existence.
Our Sense of Self and Self –Preservation
Every species has a sense of self-preservation. It is present in all life forms, from thriving bacterias and micro-organisms to apex predators in the wild, and us, human beings. But humanity is complex, it has evolved into a multi-faceted species with many concerns and activities, and therefore their idea of self-preservation covers several aspects: physical, mental, social, and spiritual. The way humans identify themselves is also rather complex. Factors like age, gender, ethnicity, culture, language, social status, economic capacity, religion, and political orientation all contribute to a single individual’s identity. Each identity, therefore, reflects one’s spiritual and psychological egos. While each and everyone may display unique egos, they help contribute to our level of self-preservation and identity. Spiritual and psychological egos are essential in our journey towards life.
Ego: Healing and Transforming Individuals
“We can heal in all aspects of our lives. We can resolve the emotional wounds and traumas that keep us in separation and limitation. We can relinquish the spiritual ego and the psychological ego and just be guided by our inner wisdom and choose love to guide us in all our actions.
In the end, we must love our ego and understand that it is needed. With time, we will definitely embrace its duality as we begin to comprehend the aspect of its inner power which will replace our old perception with a more loving and broader view of life and all that is around us.” (Eric Alsterberg blog, 2017)
Because the ego is the central component of every individual’s personality, it will “try it very best” to preserve the individual’s identity as well as look after its well-being. The ego is the go-to guy especially if one is trying to heal from a loss, a failure, or an attack on one’s personality (emotional wounds and trauma). Spiritual ego is expected to guide us in looking deeply within ourselves and draw inspiration from our inner strength and resiliency. Psychological ego, on the other hand, can be counted on to assist us in rationalizing our current predicament. It is expected to help us find wisdom and examples for us to realize that things can be better, and we can always rise and try again, this time with valuable lessons in hand. Spiritual and psychological egos will work hand in hand in mapping out a new and better path for us to follow. Healing and transformation can be a daunting task and many will probably not get it unless they look into their spiritual and psychological egos. Perspective, disposition, and goal-setting are just some of the factors that are heavily guided by our deep spiritual connection and sense of mental toughness, and openness to new and better ideas.
To know more about spiritual and psychological egos and how they contribute to healing and transformation, grab a copy of Dr. Eric Alsterberg’s book Healing and Transformation: Moving from the Ordinary to the Extraordinary, or visit his website today.