anticathexis
noun
an·ti·ca·thex·is
| \ -kə-ˈthek-səs, -ka-
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\
plural anticathexes\ -ˌsēz
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Medical Definition of anticathexis
: diversion of mental energy by the ego to block undesirable or objectionable impulses of the id from entering the consciousness : suppression of cathexis by the ego
Anticathexis causes a displacement from a guilt- or anxiety-provoking object or event to one that does not cause guilt or anxiety.— B. R. Hergerhahn, An Introduction to the History of Psyschology, 2009
— called also countercathexis