One of these phenomena was the repetition of trauma. In his clinical practice, Freud encountered problems, and he observed behavior that was not congruent with this principle. We still seek pleasure, but pleasure which is assured taking account of reality, even though the pleasure is postponed and sometimes diminished. Your ego becomes reasonable and is not governed by the pleasure principle. Maturity is learning to endure the pain of deferred gratification. When adult, we only seek immediate gratification for cravings as hunger and thirst, and sex. The id rules immediate gratification and controls us in infancy and childhood. The reality principle describes the capacity to postpone gratification of a desire if reality disallows its immediate gratification. The counterpart of the pleasure principle is the reality principle. This driving force is not in touch with reality, logic, or social norms. Freud described the pleasure principle as the program of what decides the purpose of life.
![reality principle reality principle](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/G3sMXFD5dcs/hqdefault.jpg)
The id, our unconscious psychic energy, thrives on pleasure and is linked to libido.
![reality principle reality principle](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/principlesofvirtualrealityinsurgicaltraining-090228012830-phpapp01/95/principles-of-virtual-reality-in-surgical-training-review-by-sanjoy-sanyal-2-728.jpg)
According to Freud, we instinctively search for pleasure to satisfy our biological and psychological needs.