ENTJ Depression (Everything you need to know)

In this brief guide, we will discuss concepts related to ENTJ and Depression, and some features of the ENTJ personality.

Depression in ENTJ personality

According to the WHO, around 234 million people in the world suffer from depression, and ENTJ is not immune either. In an ENTJ, depression can take the form of an intense state that cripples them from carrying out their daily functions, and this may make them more depressed due to their attitude towards being useful and productive.

The ENTJ is one of he personality types in the MBTI that is high-functioning and has very high pressure on themselves, and when someone like this overworks themselves or has too high expectations that don’t come true, they may suffer a crisis in identity and this can lead to depression.

The ENTJ is high on the extroverted thinking ability that is the source of their action-oriented approaches to things, and therefore when in depression, the ENTJ may not have trouble thinking of things they could accomplish but they might not be able to find the appropriate emotional resonance inside them for many of their decisions, and feeling this disconnect can be detrimental to their mental health.

The ENTJ in depression may also take things in deeply enough to decide response from but they may feel like they are living in the present in a bad way, which does not accomplish as much as they would like, and they will not like not knowing what they will do next and where they will go.

The ENTJ experiencing depression may also feel a general lack of passion, which is something they have in abundance, in their daily life to pursuing something with the intensity they usually show, which can feel very disconcerting to the regular ENTJ because it is such a huge part of their identity.

Sometimes it may also be the other way around, and the ENTJ may find that the lack of passion they feel leads to depression, because they feel that they have lost the belief that they are capable of things, which can be a huge problem for this action-focused personality type.

Of course, one of the main symptoms of depression is a lack of enjoyment in life, and this may be very evident in the ENTJ.

What makes the ENTJ feel Depressed?

There are always individuals factors to consider for depression, but when we talk about depression in ENTJ, we may consider a few key things that are very bad for the ENTJ’s mental health in general, let us look at these below.

Feeling dependant or tied down

The ENTJ hates more than anything to be tied down or bogged down by rules and conventions they do not understand, and the feeling of being stuck under middle managers or other authority figures that make arbitrary guidelines, and being told what to do, rather than being allowed to take the initiative and lead, can make the ENTJ feel quite depressed if it carries on for too long.

Not Progressing

The ENTJ truly believes that if they stop progressing, there is no point because they are not fulfilling their potential, which may create grounds for depression. Even not being able to progress in the time they have allotted to themselves for a task can make them feel like they are not doing nearly enough, and this feeling can quickly turn into the feeling of worthlessness, which according to Beck is a classic symptom of depression.

Lack of Achievement

The ENTJ hates feeling like they have not achieved much or that they will not achieve what they have set out to, and this can also cause a great degree of depression, as these people’s sense of self-worth is deeply tied to achievements they can see and feel, and tangible results to things.

No Potential 

Going along the same vein as achievement, the success and accomplishment-oriented ENTJ may also get depressed if they feel like they have hit their ceiling and there is no possibility for them anymore to go and accomplish something else.

A lack of potential or feeling like they won’t do anything else now can make the ENTJ feel untethered and this feeling can quickly give way to depression if left unchecked.

ENTJs need to work hard, and know that they’re making progress toward a future achievement, if not they can be at high risk for depression.

Feeling Unimportant

ENTJs don’t like being only a small part of the bigger machine, and they always have big goals and high aspirations, so feeling unimportant can quickly damage their self-esteem and make the ENTJ depressed. 

The typical ENTJ harbors fantasies of having a large impact, especially on the world, and feeling like they won’t or feeling like they are inconsequential can make them feel very depressed.

Inefficiency

The worst thing for an ENTJ, something they absolutely can not stand, is inefficiency, whether it is their own or someone else’s, and when it’s someone else’s it won’t affect thor mental health obviously, but when they feel like they are being inefficient, the ENTJ can quickly spiral into depression.

Feeling inefficient will not just make the ENTJ depressed, they may also lash out, become angry with the world at large, snap at everyone around them, which may also mask the depression and people may not even know what the real problem is.

Lack of a Partner

Whether it is a life partner, a close friend, or just a business partner, the ENTJ may feel like they can go it alone but the truth is, these personality types need someone to be around and mellow them out, otherwise, they can just work themselves to the bone for no good reason.

An ENTJ in depression may be unrecognizable, and for this reason, they need a partner that understands them and can help them be okay even as they try to overachieve.

If you’re facing this, it may be a good idea to seek the help of a therapist or other mental health professional. You can find a therapist at BetterHelp who can help you learn how to cope and address it.

Stories of ENTJ Depression from Reddit

It can help to know that other people you have a personality in common with are also feeling the same way you are or have felt the same way that you do, at some point, which is why reading the many ENTJ depression stories on Reddit can be so helpful.

There are many people who have discussed what it is like to be a depressed ENTJ on Reddit, and here are some of their stories, without the username, for privacy.

One user who has struggled with depression and has an ENTJ personality says this about their experience:

“Been a very long time of ups and downs with depression. Typically I have spurts of good times countered by bad. Here are a few things that I tend to be like and feel a a response to your question:

Worthless and my skills and knowledge feel like they are useful to no one.

I tend to look down and avoid eye contact assuming they can just tell I’m a failure or in a bad mood.

I tend to dress a lot more neutral and conservative to get less attention than normal.

Even though I’m an E, I tend to fall back into my self and only look for social validation through something safe like the phone or computer.

I have a lot more trouble getting up and would much rather spend time in bed. Normally I would be up and out of bed to get stuff done, as sleeping is a waste of my time.

My confidence takes a huge hit and I tend to only hope I can at least do half as good.”

Another user talks about their depression and ENTJ traits and talks about something that was discussed earlier, which is the tendency to lash out rather than crawl inwards when the ENTJ is depressed.

“Speaking only for myself when I have been depressed, though I’m sure some of this applies more generally:

More emotionally fragile/reactive. I’m easier to offend and more likely to respond aggressively when it happens.

More likely to hate being alone and seek company for its own sake (Seeking company is probably healthy in this circumstance so this is probably a good impulse) (This is also when EFP types are great because talking about your feels when you’re depressed is like their thing)

Less motivated and more inclined to be OK with being bored. As a consequence of not being engaged with anything, my energy level drops hard.

More likely to drink or smoke the good stuff (though not generally to the extremes some people do; I might go from drinking occasionally to 3 beers a night)

More likely to “phone it in” at work. I have very high standards, so my version of “phoning it in” is usually not noticed by anyone but myself.”

This last story from a Reddit user is about an ENTJ individual they know, and who was depressed at some point, and it talks about how the ENTJ may not even know they are depressed.

This is something common with ENTJ and depression, due to their high thinking function and their focused attention on work and doing things added to their tendency to externalize problematic things, which can lead to not realizing they are having mental health issues at all.

“I heard from an ENTJ from somewhere that ENTJs have a tendency to not know that they’re depressed when they are. One ENTJ said that his feelings manifested themselves in very strange ways. One time while in school, he suddenly felt uncomfortable. So he went out into the hall and saw a picture of the volleyball team. He made small holes in the picture so he could see and taped it on his forehead. It apparently helped the feeling of discomfort.

That’s some weird stuff, but I imagine that’s how feelings can manifest themselves to ENTJs. I think if you get an emotional urge to do something that doesn’t correspond with what you normally do in that circumstance, then you should explore that feeling.”

Helping a Depressed ENTJ

Here is how you can help a depressed ENTJ:

The ENTJ may feel extremely useless and like a failure when they are depressed, so sit down with them, and help them figure out some short term goals that make them feel better.

Learn to recognize the signs of Depression in an ENTJ if they tend to get depressed often, like in recurrent depressive disorder, and when you feel like they are down in the dumps again, you can get ahead.

Depression does not always come in the same form, and they might not necessarily be blue and have the same exact symptoms as others, so learning to recognize it will go a long way.

A depressed ENTJ may be more agitated, aggressive, or may lash out when they are depressed, rather than retreat and sulk.

You might also want to talk to a professional about how best to help them, and you might want to also convince the ENTJ in your life that they need to talk to someone; bear in mind though, they can be very stubborn and they may resist you greatly, but you need to try to keep the topic afloat anyway.

When they start lashing out or being generally unpleasant, just let them, and once they have calmed a little, ask them to help you out in some way, feeling productive may help them feel a little better, at least for the moment.

The ENTJ likes to learn things and figure out new stuff, and explore new ideas, so try introducing new things to them when they are depressed.

Conclusion

In this brief guide, we discussed concepts related to ENTJ and Depression and some features of the ENTJ personality. Please feel free to reach out with any questions or comments you may have.

If you’ve enjoyed the ”ENTJ Depression” mentioned above, I would recommend you to take a look at ”5 Amazing ENTJ secrets” too.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): ENTJ Depression

Citations

ENTJ Depression & Struggles: How the ENTJ Handles Depressed Feelings

https://www.truity.com/blog/10-unforgivable-sins-entjs

https://www.16personalities.com/entj-personality