Have you ever called your partner by your ex’s name? This could explain why.

While giving a speech about the Russian invasion of Ukraine in May 2022, George W. Bush mistakenly said “the brutal invasion of Iraq” instead of “Ukraine”, then quickly corrected himself and added “Iraq too”. 

Was this a simple “whoopsie”? Or something else? 

This could be seen as a classic case of the ol’ ‘Freudian slip’ – where your unconscious mind briefly overrides the conscious mind and reveals something hidden beneath the surface. 

In this case, we could interpret his mix up as a subtle revelation into what he actually thinks about the American invasion of Iraq in 2003. 

Unfortunately, Freudian slips aren’t reserved for former presidents. We all experience them. 

Ever called your partner by an ex’s name? 

Ever called your teacher “mom” or “dad”? 

Or ‘unintentionally’ broken a gift you got from someone you secretly dislike? 

Freudian slips happen so quickly and suddenly that it’s often not possible for us to stop ourselves. 

So why do they happen? 

The Slippery Unconscious

According to Sigmund Freud (from whence the term ‘Freudian’ slip came), the founder of psychoanalysis, these slips are “faulty actions” where the unconscious mind leaks out despite the conscious mind’s efforts to keep them under the hood. 

Factors that contribute to Freudian slips: 

• Repressed or suppressed thoughts: Some secret thoughts are like the moles in ‘whack-a-mole’. The more you try to hide them, the more they keep popping up 

• Cognitive overload and fatigue: When the brain is tired, and the prefrontal cortex is overloaded, the defenses of the conscious mind are loosened 

• Stress and emotional conflict: High stress situations like heated verbal arguments can cause the unconscious to influence speech more strongly 

• Language processing errors: Speech production and language is complex. Sometimes things ‘just slip out’ 

Can we do anything to avoid Freudian slips? 

Some psychologists say ‘hell yeah’ –-no, sorry--they meant a very sombre and professional ‘Yes, of course’. 

You can lessen the likelihood of a slip by avoiding multitasking, practicing mindfulness, managing stress, and gradually familiarising yourself with uncomfortable thoughts instead of suppressing them. 

While these techniques might help, they’re no foolproof guarantees against a slip. 

So what do we do when it happens? 

Best approach is to apologise, own up to the slip, and then carefully examine why it happened. 

Or – you could pretend it never happened and suppress the memory 💀