During psychology's history, what are the ups and downs of "consciousness"

During psychology's history, the ups and downs of "consciousness" are two fold. First, an up, is that consciousness provides the "moral" fence needed to keep society behaving in a civilized manner. Second a down is that "consciousness" or the pressure associated with conforming to society's ideal "consciousness" can cause individuals to feel unworthy and useless leading to suicidal thoughts and actions.