Early traumatic experiences, according to various perspectives, influence the formation of stable patterns of behavior through profound unconscious processes in which repressed emotions and experiences continue to actively impact an individual's life.

Unconscious Struggles and the Legacy of Childhood Trauma

Early traumatic experiences, according to various perspectives, influence the formation of stable patterns of behavior through profound unconscious processes in which repressed emotions and experiences continue to actively impact an individual's life.

Thus, according to Freud, as noted in one of the sources, "traumatic events and the intense experiences associated with them do not completely vanish from the psyche, but are repressed into the realm of the unconscious, from where they actively influence the psyche, manifesting in a disguised (encrypted) form, notably as neurotic symptoms (for example, in obsessive hand-washing, unfounded fears, etc.)." It is precisely this mechanism of repression and its subsequent manifestation as neurotic symptoms that illustrates how repressed traumas continue to affect a person's behavior, causing constant internal conflicts and a struggle between repressed sensations and moral imperatives. (source: link txt)

Additionally, another perspective emphasizes that childhood experiences, when a child, upon feeling his autonomy, fights for the right to his own "self," form early patterns of internal conflict. It is emphasized here that the emergence of a sense of responsibility and a desire to defend one’s ideals can evolve into personality traits, including the need to continually control what occurs around and within oneself. This conflict, rooted in childhood, may subsequently lead to a persistently entrenched pattern of behavior where control becomes a means of compensating for early emotional traumas. (source: link txt)

Thus, the repression and suppression of traumatic experiences, as described by Freud, form the basis for the development of neurotic symptoms, while simultaneously sparking an internal struggle between repressed impulses and the demands of rational self-consciousness. In turn, the childhood battle for asserting one's "self" and gaining control over one's life becomes an adaptive, though often destructive, mechanism aimed at compensating for the deep internal conflicts arising in response to traumatic experiences.

Supporting citation(s):
"According to Freud, traumatic events and the intense experiences associated with them do not completely vanish from the psyche; instead, they are repressed into the unconscious sphere from which they actively affect the psyche, manifesting in a disguised (encrypted) form, particularly as neurotic symptoms (for example, in obsessive hand-washing, unfounded fears, etc.). In this case, neurotic symptoms are understood as compromise phenomena arising from the clash between the repressed intense emotions and drives and the demands of our conscience, aligning with generally accepted moral norms. Similar compromises, Freud believes, are expressed in dreams and erroneous actions (slips of the tongue, Freudian slips, etc.)." (source: link txt)

"When a child, having experienced his autonomy, fights for the freedom of his own 'self,' this clearly occurs due to an instinctive sense of responsibility: something in this world is exclusively mine, depends on me, I am obligated to act—do not interfere. And the audacity of adolescence can also be explained as a tense search for one's own: ideals, beliefs worth fighting and suffering for. We are all 'born out of childhood,' a too-familiar, even overused expression whose essence few truly grasp; but in reality, almost all problems begin with the emotional trauma experienced in childhood." (source: link txt)