In this descriptive guide, we will investigate the behaviour and mannerisms of an unhealthy 9w8. At first, we will understand what it means to be an Enneagram Type 9 Wing 8. Then, we will describe different ways unhealthy 9w8s behave. Reading this blog will help you identify these weaknesses and be wary of them.
What are Unhealthy 9w8 Individuals Like?
An unhealthy 9w8 is someone with this personality type who is not functioning at their best levels. It could be because of some kind of illness or because of a lack of self care. Unhealthy 9w8s have the following characteristics:
- Pent up emotions
- Misplaced aggression
- Jealousy in relationships
- Minimisation of mental health
- Being stubborn
- Being blunt
- Impulsive decisions
- Self destructive behaviour
Traits of an Unhealthy 9w8
In this section, we are going to dive deep into the analysis of unhealthy 9w8 behaviour. A 9w8 personality type comes from the Enneagram model of personality. It is very similar to the MBTI model and 9w8s can be compared to INFP personality types. Let’s explore what it means to be an unhealthy 9w8.
What does 9w8 mean?
If you have a 9w8 personality, it means that your Enneagram core type is 9 with Wing influence of 8. This means that primarily, you prioritise peace and stability. You are able to trust and support others, which makes you a good team player.
Enneagram 9 personalities are good friends and they enjoy open and warm communication. Type 8 people are also called challengers as they question people and systems trying to control them.
A Wing 8 influence makes Enneagram Type 9s more assertive as they are able to stand up for themselves. When combined in the 9w8 form, the personality tends to be gentle but powerful, effective, and gracious.
When is a 9w8 unhealthy?
Health is not merely the absence of disease. Rather, it is a state of complete emotional and physical wellbeing. A 9w8, like everyone else, becomes unhealthy when their wellbeing is compromised.
This can be physiological in terms of sleep, diet, fitness, or stress. Emotionally, a person becomes unhealthy when self care is being neglected. The inability to regulate emotions and adjust to change can create challenging situations.
If we do not navigate our way through these challenges in a productive and constructive way, we become stressed. Moreover, when this stress starts spilling into other areas of life like relationships or work, we become more unhealthy.
Pent Up Emotions
The first sign of an unhealthy 9w8 is the feeling of pent up emotions. The person starts to notice a constant noise in their head. They might be handling a particular situation but with thoughts about a separate one in the back of their head.
Pent up emotions feel like generalised annoyance, irritation, and a sense of tiredness. This can be very uncomfortable for a 9w8 because the Nine in them needs to have inner peace.
The bottled up feelings become progressively more unbearable as they have a negative impact on the person’s consistency. When routine tasks lower in quality, they start feeling very uneasy.
Imbalance Between 9 and 8
The crux of what happens in an unhealthy 9w8 is that there is an imbalance between the two personality types. Type 9 and type 8 traits are completely contrasting in nature. Eights are extremely confrontational while Nines are people who avoid conflict and disputes.
If a 9w8’s health loses balance, so do these qualities. They might find themselves unable to speak about what’s bothering them even when given a chance.
On the other hand, they may have short periods of anger outbursts in situations that could have avoided it. Sometimes, they may even take out the frustration on themselves, something we’ll expand on later.
Jealousy in Relationships
Unhealthy 9w8 can become quite insecure in their interpersonal relationship. These personalities hate feeling like they are disappointing their loved ones. Since the lack of health reduces self-awareness, they may unwittingly project this uneasy feeling onto others.
Jealousy is a very common emotion in 9w8 individuals if they are unhealthy. This might reflect in passive aggression, social withdrawal, or even fight-picking behaviour.
They tend to fixate on their negative thoughts and make assumptions about their loved ones being less interested in them. Upset and overwhelmed, the unhealthy 9w8 may start acting distant with their partners or family members.
Minimising Mental Health
Another sign of an unhealthy 9w8 is the minimisation of their mental health. This in result exacerbates their condition, entering them into a vicious cycle of discomfort. Despite becoming cognisant of their pent up emotions, these individuals are unable to do much about it.
Instead, they are prone to going into denial. They find it much easier to just escape the tension mentally as they fantasise about distractions. Dissociation is one of their biggest coping mechanisms.
While these strategies can be momentarily helpful, they end up worsening their condition and wellbeing. Unhealthy 9w8s usually need some kind of intervention to bring them back to the reality of their circumstances.
Seen as Blunt or Stubborn
The imbalance we spoke of earlier causes 9w8 personalities to lose insight about socially appropriate responses. They are acting out of character when unhealthy and may end up being overly frank.
Even without the intention to offend, the Eight in them can take charge in interpersonal conflicts making them appear blunt. When this happens, they become less flexible and open-minded to the inputs of others.
Type Eights are extremely autonomous and resist all attempts to influence them. That’s why an unhealthy 9w8 also seems to be stubborn and rigid. What’s sad is that this behaviour is totally opposite to their authentic selves. In health, a 9w8 is all about harmony but that takes a back seat in times of duress.
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.
Impulsive or Reckless Behaviour
When we spoke of the imbalance between the Type 9 and Type 8 qualities, we also mentioned self-destructive tendencies. One of the most aggravating signs of an unhealthy 9w8 is their impulsive and risk-taking behaviour.
Since escaping the distress is how they cope, they tend to make some bad decisions of how to distract themselves. This can involve substances, procrastination, or some kind of release for all that pent up emotion.
All of the mentioned distractions give a temporary relief of calmness. While that end result matches their basic desire and core 9s, they often come with unpleasant consequences.
Conclusion
In this descriptive guide, we investigated the behaviour and mannerisms of an unhealthy 9w8. At first, we understood what it means to be an Enneagram Type 9 Wing 8. Then, we described different ways unhealthy 9w8s behave. Reading this blog helped you identify these weaknesses and be wary of them.
To sum up what we discussed, a 9w8 is someone who has a core Type 9 personality with certain elements of Enneagram Type 8. These people become unhealthy when their physiological or emotional health is compromised.
Unhealthy 9w8s tend to bottle up feelings, become jealous, and minimise their mental health. There is an imbalance between the opposing qualities of Type 9 and 8 making them stubborn, blunt, and impulsive.
FAQs (Unhealthy 9w8)
What does an unhealthy 9 look like?
An unhealthy 9 will find it hard to address their life challenges. They are unable to use their skills in conflict resolution. In fact, they usually go into denial or repress their feelings.
These people tend to become disoriented, catatonic even when in stress. They end up abandoning themselves or the difficult situation. Dissociative conditions and disorders are common in unhealthy people with an Enneagram Type 9 personality.
What is an unhealthy Enneagram 3?
When someone with an Enneagram Type 3 personality becomes unwell, they appear to be fixated on certain ideas. This may become an obsession and even a kind of revenge-seeking behaviour.
To protect themselves, unhealthy 3s lose their morality and are capable of hurting others. Such individuals are prone to exploiting other people for their own advantage.
What does an unhealthy Enneagram 5 look like?
According to the Enneagram Institute, unhealthy 5s become reclusive and isolated from reality. they are often eccentric and philosophically nihilistic. Under extreme circumstances, they can even develop serious mental health conditions like delirium, suicidality, and psychosis.