This article will take a look at the type 7 enneagram and how they become when they experience stress. Furthermore, the article will also talk about the dark side of this enneagram and introduce it in detail to the audience. The article will then attempt to provide suggestions as to how it can improve and reach a healthier version of themselves.
What Happens When An Enneagram 7 Goes Into Stress?
When in stress, the type 7 enneagram disintegrates into an inflexible type 1 enneagram which is intolerant and holds people to extremely high standards. The type 7 enneagram under stress will behave in a similar manner and also lose the ability to see other’s perspectives and only view the world from an ethnocentric one where what they do or believe in is only right!
This enneagram becomes offensive towards others in the sense that they say what they feel like saying without taking into account the other person’s feelings because they know what is best. Furthermore, they believe that they know what is best and hence have the right to tell people what to do and how. The stress really gets to their head and this is one of the ways they deal with it – they think they know what is best and hence have the responsibility of ensuring good things happen in the world.
Here are some of the traits or behaviours they exhibit when they go into stress:
- Demeaning
- Depressed or anxious
- Quiet or Talkative
- Perfectionistic
- Inflexible
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.
Before we take a look at these behaviours in detail, let us introduce the type 7 enneagram to the audience!
Enneagram Type 7: The Enthusiast
These individuals are versatile and spontaneous! They have a lot of energy in them and they like to be in high spirits! However, by continuously working themselves out, they can get tired and become exhausted and hence lose focus. They will become distracted and lose track of the goal they had in mind. It is obvious then that they have problems with impulsiveness and impatience.
Overall, these individuals are joyful and cheerful and that is what they emanate when they are around others. At their best, they want to focus on worthy goals that use their talents and strengths.
These enneagrams have been called enthusiasts because of the energy with which they approach the things in life that catch their eyes! They are like children who have a lot of energy, optimism and curiosity about the things that seem interesting to them. Furthermore, they are intelligent not in the sense of academics but in a way that they can process a lot of information and hence brainstorm in an effective manner.
However, their ability to read and process much information and hence learn new skills can sometimes confuse them about what they are actually meant to do in life!
People with this personality type are hence energetic and always looking to have some fun in life. They are the ones who will grab you by the arm and engage you in fun activities. They are that friend who is always looking forward to trying something new! They have a form of energy that is rare to find but uplifting. People who are type 7s are always trying to pull their friends into their adventures because they believe the more the merrier!
Basic Fear
The basic fear of this enneagram type is to be in pain. They absolutely hate pain and they do not want to be deprived in any manner. They will avoid situations where they might get hurt emotionally or physically because they do not want to deal with the experience or feeling of pain. However, because of this fear, they often miss out on worthwhile experiences.
However their fear of missing out does encourage them to take up routines that are not too structured and allow for last minute plans. They may even be unable to focus much on the task at hand because they are looking for a more interesting experience – one that will make them let go of what they are doing and scramble outside for some fun!
Hence, people with this personality type will always grab the opportunities they come across and will fit it into their timetable somehow because like said, they are scared of missing out!
Basic Desire
To be satisfied and fulfilled or content is the desire of this enneagram type 7. They want to feel complete and whole so that they do not have to rely on anyone else for their needs. It is also linked to their fear of being in pain and deprived. Hence, they strive to fulfill their needs in an independent manner and wish to be in a state that renders them safe.
At the same time, they do not want to miss out on joyful, stimulating and awesome experiences from life! They want to be part of the fun and seek excitement and joy from what they are doing. They want to feel happy and this leads them to oftentime justify or rationalize their negative feelings in a way that they are responsible for how they feel – even if it isn’t their own fault!
So if you have a friend with this personality type, you can count on them to make sure the both of you never miss an awesome party!
Type 7s & Stress
In this section, we will take a look at the more frequent behaviours this enneagram exhibits when they are in stress!
- Demeaning: The type 7 enneagram can become very offensive when they are under stress and they believe that they are in a position to tell people what to do. Also, if anyone does not listen they also have the liberty to call them names or label them. Hence, in stress, the type 7 enneagram resorts to belittling others to deal with their own stress and issues.
- Depressed: Maintaining a standard that does not always make sense can become stressful and seeing others suffer because of you can also take a toll on one’s health. The type 7 enneagram also faces depressive episodes in this state. They will sometimes withdraw or become very quiet. They will get confused and sad not only because they are unhappy with how things are but also because they do not know how to always impose their correct teachings on others – they begin to see the difficulties of being inflexible.
- Quiet or Talkative: A result of the stress they face can be in opposite directions. They can either become extremely quiet and withdraw from society most probably because they cannot bear the ‘wrongdoing’ going on. Also, they can become very talkative and go on and on about how things should be and how people should live their lives. They will not restrain from giving their opinion even if it is not wanted. They believe they have the duty to speak up no matter what!
- Perfectionistic: The type 7 enneagram becomes panicky under stress and hence adopts a perfectionist attitude to compensate for the failings in their desired behaviour! They will try to do everything in the perfect manner and also expect the same from others.
- Inflexible: When type 7s are stressed, they won’t care about others and what they need or the help they require. They will push them to work or do what they need without taking into account their problems. They become inflexible even if the other person puts forth a good argument or reason to convince why things can be done in a more different way. The type 7 enneagram becomes angry at such suggestions and will throw them out of the window and expect others to follow their way of work. Hence, it is difficult to work with such people for a long time especially in a team. They are indeed inflexible and intolerant of others.
How Can An Enneagram Type 7 Work On Self Improvement?
The enneagram type 7 can work on self improvement by focusing on the following areas:
- Give Others Space
- Accept Differences in Others
- Focus on their Own Self
- Work Hard, Think Less – Be Practical
Conclusion
This article took a look at how the type 7 enneagram behaves when they become stressed out and also what they can do to deal with the stress. The article also introduced this enneagram in detail to the audience.
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