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Highly sensitive people

OmarFW

New member
Joined
May 24, 2011
Messages
84
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
4w5
:shrug: maybe so. it just always seemed to me to correspond well to Ne's ability to see an overall pattern and then just having comfort/familiarity of intrapersonal landscapes thanks to Fi.

The enneagram motivations certainly correlate with certain functions but more in the sense that they use your cognition rather than shape it.

at least that's the way I see it.
 

mumblebee

New member
Joined
May 24, 2011
Messages
9
MBTI Type
ENFJ
I believe it's connected to Si. I also believe part of what I feel as emotional intensity is connected to Si.

I think Si and Fi are married in an NFP. I'm not sure we can fully pull them apart.

I am new to this whole personality types by letters and numbers thing but arn't people still individuals? I am wondering how much external factors can effect a persons personality type so they take on charactoristics of other types. For instance if you take the personality type that is the least perseptive naturaly and put them in an abusive situation, naturaly they will have to adapt to read the situation so to keep safe. If someone calls you stupid for years, eventially you will build up a sensitivity to that word no matter what personality type you are. I don't think MBTI can be used as a blanket...I am new at this stuff so I may not understand fully but to me personality is all encompassing and can not be so easily summed up.
 

OmarFW

New member
Joined
May 24, 2011
Messages
84
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
4w5
I am new to this whole personality types by letters and numbers thing but arn't people still individuals?

Yes because typology systems and inventories are not supposed to and do not try to evaluate someone 100%. Being an ENFJ for example simply means you utilize a certain cognition style which a certain group of people in society also utilize whom we refer to collectively as ENFJs. Cognition however is just a process and is not the only building block in our personalities.

I am wondering how much external factors can effect a persons personality type so they take on charactoristics of other types.

It depends on the type (especially enneagram type) when it comes to adopting external characteristics but external influences are always a factor in shaping a persons personality (specifically growing up).

I don't think MBTI can be used as a blanket...I am new at this stuff so I may not understand fully but to me personality is all encompassing and can not be so easily summed up.

That is the right approach to take with the MBTI. Many people use it as an excuse for unhealthy behavior, but if you learn more about the Jungian cognitive functions that the MBTI is built upon and just how your specific and unique cognition operates, it can be more of a tool for understanding of others and self-improvement rather than a tool for labeling and the over-simplification of the human personality.
 

Southern Kross

Away with the fairies
Joined
Dec 22, 2008
Messages
2,910
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
4w5
Instinctual Variant
so/sp
I certainly identify strongly with HSP descriptions but I've never been quite sure what I'm meant to take from it; what its meant to mean. I don't wish to undermine the theory exactly but I don't know what's the point of categorising it. Of course, people exist on a scale of sensitivity; we can perceive this anecdotally.

Its interesting and all but it just seems like information without any direction. :shrug:
 

King sns

New member
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Nov 4, 2008
Messages
6,714
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enfp
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6w7
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sp/sx
Wow, its erie how much I can relate to what youv'e said....it's like your best qualities turn around and poison you. I work in a non traditional trade for a women and it is important for me to be taken seriously and not get "emotional", but even though woodworking is something is a calling for me, the environment is definaitly not! Also I can't explain how deeply I feel for someone that is hurting....I feel such an intense amount of pain for people when I know thier hurting that in some cases (especially is a child is abused in anyway) I feel physically sick and profoundly hurt for them.
Also about your I talk more comment, I find that too....I can be having a mild anxiety attack, and be joking my ass off....I'm on fire (LOL).

hahaha, yep!!!!!

I certainly identify strongly with HSP descriptions but I've never been quite sure what I'm meant to take from it; what its meant to mean. I don't wish to undermine the theory exactly but I don't know what's the point of categorising it. Of course, people exist on a scale of sensitivity; we can perceive this anecdotally.

Its interesting and all but it just seems like information without any direction. :shrug:

For me, the trait is strong enough to be the apparent source of many of my issues. It's actually a really BIG DEAL that there's a name for it. I don't know if you're supposed to do anything with it except to be aware about how it might affect your life, (so you don't feel like some kind of a weirdo when you're reacting a little differently to things than others.) Just knowing that it's normal helps. It's also just plain interesting.
 
N

NPcomplete

Guest
Hey SHort n Sweet. I relate all too well. I didn't know that it could be inherited, but my mom is an INF and has it too. About 3 years ago a friend introduced me to some info she thought might help me, on being "overly-empathic." I don't talk about it much because alot of people scoff at shit like this, believing its a blanket diagnoses that gets thrown out like candy from the modern psychiatric community. Fact is, there are people so overly empathic they feel physical sensations and pain when seeing others hurt. They've proven this with brain monitors and neuro activity observation. As for me, I don't overly identify with the physical sensations of others, but far too much emotionally. This is why I can't stand seeing others humiliated or abused. (aside from simply being immoral) it's also why I have recently developed over sensitivity to horror movies, or dark movies, and can get really choked up over things others might perceive as everyday life. This "over-sensitivity" ties right in with other beliefs I have on a more spiritual/energy vibration level.. and I think that some peoples energy is truly more sensitive, operating at a higher frequency. In one study, they actually found it common for overly empathic people to have extremely porous skin, easily absorbing outside toxins. Funny story, when I tried to quit smoking.. I put on a 4 mg nicotene patch. I was smoking over a half pack a day.. so this was extremely minor to my normal nic dose. I fell asleep and woke up 2 hours later in a sick sweat, ripped the patch off, and was poisened from the patch so bad we had to call poison control and go to ER. I had crawled my way to the toilet, and friends had to carry me to the car. ER said they had never seen anything like it, and that my skin had actually sponged all the nicotene at once. Diet is extremely big for OS people, and part of the reason I am trying to move to a 90% raw food diet. My advice is to take special care of your diet and nutritiion, and make time every day to go somewhere or do something that calms you. Meditation can do wonders, if your into that hippie shit =P

I can relate really well to all this.

It has always been a combination of mental state, food and my surroundings. I take long walks and/or listen to music and/or talk nonsense and/or read. (Last week itself, I read 5 books...stress around me) If all else fails, I cry or I unburden myself on someone who understands and we reason me out of that.

I didn't know about the chemical absorption thing. I wonder if it's related to my food allergy issues.

EDIT: I've been known to feel pain (and occasionally cry) when I see people get hurt, when I read descriptions of people hurting themselves and when I watch (well-made) torture scenes in horror movies.
 

Fluffywolf

Nips away your dignity
Joined
Mar 31, 2009
Messages
9,581
MBTI Type
INTP
Enneagram
9
Instinctual Variant
sp/sx
I'm very sensative about my lack of sensitivity, but that's as far is my sensitiveness goes so I can't say I can relate either.
 

mumblebee

New member
Joined
May 24, 2011
Messages
9
MBTI Type
ENFJ
Yes because typology systems and inventories are not supposed to and do not try to evaluate someone 100%. Being an ENFJ for example simply means you utilize a certain cognition style which a certain group of people in society also utilize whom we refer to collectively as ENFJs. Cognition however is just a process and is not the only building block in our personalities.



It depends on the type (especially enneagram type) when it comes to adopting external characteristics but external influences are always a factor in shaping a persons personality (specifically growing up).



That is the right approach to take with the MBTI. Many people use it as an excuse for unhealthy behavior, but if you learn more about the Jungian cognitive functions that the MBTI is built upon and just how your specific and unique cognition operates, it can be more of a tool for understanding of others and self-improvement rather than a tool for labeling and the over-simplification of the human personality.

Great information thanks:) I find the whole environment vs genetics thing very interesting. Also I question anything that presents itself as an absolute. If you don't realize how much power and control you have over your own self, then you will never see your full potential as an individual. You can let any ideology create your indiviuality if you allow it. Not to say that personality types do not exsist, on the contrary I do believe this is true. I just feel that it is important to take this knowlege in and process it, as opposed to it taking you in and you becoming processed.
 

Meek

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Apr 26, 2011
Messages
288
MBTI Type
Infp
Enneagram
4w5
I remember when I lived with my dad, I hated living there because there was nothing but drinking and pot smoking going on.
I'm very allergic to pot smoke which causes me to have anxiety issues. When I was outside away from it, I felt weird. It was all the time.

Since moving more up north, I started eating more and feeling a sense of comfort every day. I can be myself more often, since I am always around my
Enfj boyfriend. He is off the wall different, gets my sense of humor and is retardedly concerned about my well being, lolz.

It took me a few years to determine why I get so sensitive. This happens when my blood sugar is extremely low, which is from eating too much sugar.
The sugar causes my blood sugar to sky rocket then crash. The sky rocket feeling causes anxiety, then the crash gives me depression/fatigue.
This especially happens when I don't eat enough. It's why I stop any shrink dead in their inaccurate tracks who tells me I am bi polar etc.

I explain to them at first, that I hear voices and see blue specks sometimes but then that when I eat or eat properly, it never happens.
It's always temporary. I believe that a lot of sensitivity comes from blood sugar being out of control. It doesn't help that I'm a feeling.
 

mmhmm

meinmeinmein!
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Xenon

(blankpages)
Joined
Oct 5, 2009
Messages
832
MBTI Type
INTP
Enneagram
5
I'm not sure I fit the HSP description anymore. I definitely did during childhood and adolescence, but it seems to have dampened quite a bit since then.

I hate it when people tell me it's a chemical inbalance. It amounts to the same thing as you are wired wrong. When I get a second, I'll pull up some of the science papers that indicate across the board, at least in mammals about 15-20% of the population is considered to be Highly sensitive. Especially in pack animals, the HS as a part of the group confer a definite advantage. Hypervigilant means real dangers are percieved quicker, so action can take place faster.

Exactly. It's normal for a species to have variation in a number of traits, including temperament. When I studied ecology, our text gave several examples of this. It described a hypothetical population of rabbits, some bolder in temperament and some more reactive and timid. The bolder ones were more likely to survive if the food supply is low, because they were more willing to venture out farther to find more. The more timid ones were more likely to survive if there were a lot of predators about. The fact that there was variation ensures the population survives changes in the environment. In social species, there's even more reason for this as individuals can play different roles and all that.

I question sometimes whether the HSP traits should all be grouped together like that. It seems pretty common to have heightened sensitivity to some things but not others. There could be some genes that influence overall sensitivity, but people can also end up sensitive to certain things and not others. Sensitivity to strong tastes and new foods, for example, depends partly on the amount of taste receptors on your tongue. People who have less tend to like stronger flavours, and people with more tend to be pickier eaters. There are likely all kinds of factors like that.

Yesterday, for instance, I was watching this older couple at work. The woman, mother of 10, has severe dementia. Very sweet tiny little old lady sitting in a geri chair. She had a bib on for some reason. The husband is still with it and came to visit her. He was wearing a little tan hat, kind of like a beret, but i'm not sure of the correct term. His facial expression was lost, and she looks like an elderly child. He was holding her face and looking directly into her eyes, bent over her like he was taking care of a baby, straightening her bib. I can't really describe what I saw in every single detail, but in one glance my heart immediately dropped into my stomach and tears came out of my eyes. It was really embarrassing. An aide was watching me, goes, "Are you crying?" (She knew what I was looking at.) It was so embarrassing that I had to go in the bathroom for a few minutes. (One of many examples.)
To me, that's a part of "highly sensitive" or "empathic." I feel like I just see too much sometimes. I'm happier when it's turned down or turned off.

Personally, if those were relatives of mine and I'd witnessed your tears, I'd be glad that my loved one was in the hands of someone who genuinely cares about them and can enter others' worlds like that. I think that would be a comfort. My grandfather's in a nursing home and the staff mostly act very light and breezy, and I suppose a lot of that detached kindness is necessary: they can't be walking around on the verge of tears all the time. I've wondered what it's like to need to keep that balance, to feel enough empathy for these people to be motivated and satisfied in their jobs, and yet stay detached enough not be overwhelmed. The way people can deteriorate like that is very sad; how could it not be?
 

King sns

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Nov 4, 2008
Messages
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enfp
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sp/sx
I'm not sure I fit the HSP description anymore. I definitely did during childhood and adolescence, but it seems to have dampened quite a bit since then.



Exactly. It's normal for a species to have variation in a number of traits, including temperament. When I studied ecology, our text gave several examples of this. It described a hypothetical population of rabbits, some bolder in temperament and some more reactive and timid. The bolder ones were more likely to survive if the food supply is low, because they were more willing to venture out farther to find more. The more timid ones were more likely to survive if there were a lot of predators about. The fact that there was variation ensures the population survives changes in the environment. In social species, there's even more reason for this as individuals can play different roles and all that.

I question sometimes whether the HSP traits should all be grouped together like that. It seems pretty common to have heightened sensitivity to some things but not others. There could be some genes that influence overall sensitivity, but people can also end up sensitive to certain things and not others. Sensitivity to strong tastes and new foods, for example, depends partly on the amount of taste receptors on your tongue. People who have less tend to like stronger flavours, and people with more tend to be pickier eaters. There are likely all kinds of factors like that.



Personally, if those were relatives of mine and I'd witnessed your tears, I'd be glad that my loved one was in the hands of someone who genuinely cares about them and can enter others' worlds like that. I think that would be a comfort. My grandfather's in a nursing home and the staff mostly act very light and breezy, and I suppose a lot of that detached kindness is necessary: they can't be walking around on the verge of tears all the time. I've wondered what it's like to need to keep that balance, to feel enough empathy for these people to be motivated and satisfied in their jobs, and yet stay detached enough not be overwhelmed. The way people can deteriorate like that is very sad; how could it not be?

Oh, well, thank you. :)
I did find the light and breezy attitude overall as well. You need a wall about you to work in that environment. But, it took an exceptionally long time for me to build that wall and now I have the right balance most of the time.

While we do a great job with the medical care, this environment is about more than just that. It's about socializing and challenging their minds. Anyone in an environment surrounded by people who are quickly declining physically and mentally are going to also do the same. I try to challenge them the best way that I can when I have time.

Sometimes work just drains every last little bit of energy out of me. Other times are better. One time my cousin and I were sitting at a table feeding residents, and got one of them "on a roll", though she was confused, she kept saying the most hilarious stuff. In a dining room full of extremely quiet residents, workers, and family members, you just heard our whole table, (residents, myself, and my cousin,) roaring with laughter in the corner. People around us were starting to laugh. It made the whole night better. My energy is your energy, your energy is my energy. (That's why the happy attitude is wonderful in that environment when appropriate!)

I've even been able to find highly sensitive residents... I never understood how someone so confused might ask me "what's wrong?" One day or be tearful and the next to be happy right along with me. There is one that I expect to be practically psychic with emotions. On the day that I decided I may be highly sensitive and kept thinking about it, the resident kept walking up to me and giving me big hugs.

At the end of the day, with this personality in this setting I feel that I could really write a book.

Edit: Got wasted and passed out last night. Needed to get rid of myself for a minute, my thoughts and reactions to everything being so odd yesterday. I feel more normal this morning. :) (Drinking kills brain cells, in this case, some unwanted ones!)
 

Doctor Cringelord

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 27, 2013
Messages
20,567
MBTI Type
I
Enneagram
9w8
Instinctual Variant
sp/sx
Often at work, I find myself overwhelmed with incomprehensible sadness. It usually happens in the mornings, a little while after most employees have arrived.

I just assumed it was a result of being miserable at work.

Yesterday, after being hit with a wave of sadness, I realized one of my coworkers was crying and whispering to another coworker, presumably for advice and emotional support. It happened again today.

So I think I found one source of my random bouts of sadness at work.

Is this an HSP phenomenon?



It also brings up the question... do I hate my job for reasons that were unaware to me? I really enjoyed it for a week or so, but the unexplained, random bouts of sadness began almost immediately and had me convinced I must be in the wrong job. But I think it's the people. If I could do my job in a large, empty building with no one around, I think I'd be fine.
 

violet_crown

Active member
Joined
Jun 18, 2009
Messages
4,959
MBTI Type
ENTJ
Enneagram
853
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sx/sp
Often at work, I find myself overwhelmed with incomprehensible sadness. It usually happens in the mornings, a little while after most employees have arrived.

I just assumed it was a result of being miserable at work.

Yesterday, after being hit with a wave of sadness, I realized one of my coworkers was crying and whispering to another coworker, presumably for advice and emotional support. It happened again today.

So I think I found one source of my random bouts of sadness at work.

Is this an HSP phenomenon?



It also brings up the question... do I hate my job for reasons that were unaware to me? I really enjoyed it for a week or so, but the unexplained, random bouts of sadness began almost immediately and had me convinced I must be in the wrong job. But I think it's the people. If I could do my job in a large, empty building with no one around, I think I'd be fine.

I'm an empath as well (unfortunately?). For me it's to the point that if the person is someone I'm close to, they don't even have to be near me in order for me to feel if they're having a particularly strong emotion. Sometimes it's the emotion itself, and other times it's just feeling "prompted" to check in with them.

I've worked with at a lot of places that favor open floor plans which are literally a little slice of hell for me. Between the physical environmental stimuli and all the emotional background noise I have to do a lot of shit to just stay sane in that kind of environment. I could share a couple of techniques that I've learned over the years if you're interested. They're more hand wave-y than I'd prefer to go into publicly, but I've found them to be effective.
 

Doctor Cringelord

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Messages
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I
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sp/sx
I'm an empath as well (unfortunately?). For me it's to the point that if the person is someone I'm close to, they don't even have to be near me in order for me to feel if they're having a particularly strong emotion. Sometimes it's the emotion itself, and other times it's just feeling "prompted" to check in with them.

I've worked with at a lot of places that favor open floor plans which are literally a little slice of hell for me. Between the physical environmental stimuli and all the emotional background noise I have to do a lot of shit to just stay sane in that kind of environment. I could share a couple of techniques that I've learned over the years if you're interested. They're more hand wave-y than I'd prefer to go into publicly, but I've found them to be effective.

Yes, I'm open to any advice to help me get through this. I don't want to quit only to find myself in a similar situation at a new job. Like I said, I like my job, I just don't like the way I feel when I'm at work.

Feelings suuuuck.
 
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