Final answer:
Repression is a Freudian defense mechanism that involves pushing distressing thoughts and memories out of conscious awareness to protect the individual from anxiety.
Step-by-step explanation:
As the most basic way for the ego to defend against being overwhelmed, repression is the psychological process in Freud's theory that protects an individual from experiencing extreme anxiety or guilt by pushing ideas out of conscious awareness and into the unconscious.
Repression acts as a mechanism where anxiety-causing memories or thoughts are blocked from conscious awareness, akin to turning up the radio to drown out the noise of a problematic car engine. Over time, these repressed memories can affect a person's behavior without their conscious awareness, leading to various symptoms or verbal slips that hint at the underlying unresolved issues.