The Feelings You Run Away From, Based On Your Enneagram Type

Each of us has certain feelings or anxieties we try to avoid. One of the ways to get through life and be resilient is to focus on the positive, to stay present, and to avoid getting wrapped up in negativity. However, repressing certain sides of ourselves can have unintended negative consequences. In our effort to avoid emotional pain we may get ourselves trapped in self-defeating cycles.

As an Enneagram Three, I can easily fall into “robot” mode when I’m stressed – focusing on what I can do rather than what I need. I can avoid feelings of insecurity or pain by channeling all my efforts into detached productivity.  However, this doesn’t leave me feeling fulfilled and happy in the long run.

In today’s article we’re exploring the feeling that each type resists or hides from. This isn’t to say that these are bad feelings or that you shouldn’t feel them. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. acknowledging and embracing all of our emotions is an important part of being a healthy, balanced individual.

Part of stepping into your fullness as a human being means acknowledging all the feelings you have and processing them in a way that is healthy. In this article, I hope to not just point out the feelings you resist, but give a healthy tip for processing those feelings in a way that doesn’t feel overwhelming.

Not sure what your Enneatype is? Take our free questionnaire to find out.

Here’s the Feeling You Resist, Based On Your Enneagram Type

Enneagram One

As an Enneagram One you resist recognizing your anger or tension. To you, anger is a “bad” emotion; something to be avoided at all costs. Rather than blow up or have a tantrum, you clench your fists, clamp your jaw down, and try to bottle it all in.

After all, your core fear is of being evil or “bad.” If you see anger as bad, then you know you’ll be embracing your core fear by embracing anger.

But bottling up anger can lead to all kinds of physical tension, psychological stress, and damaged relationships due to resentment and bitterness.

How can you deal with anger in a healthy way?

How can you stay present and process this feeling without getting lost in anxiety?

Processing your anger involves acknowledging it and then releasing it in a way that doesn’t hurt yourself or others. Sometimes this can mean talking to someone you trust and sharing your feelings with them. It feels vulnerable, but this is one of the pathways to growth for you as a One.

Another way to process your anger is to write a letter expressing all your frustration. Then throw it away. Maybe there’s some truth in that letter that needs to be expressed, maybe not. But writing it out will help you to process it without saying something you’ll regret.

Another important thing to be aware of is how you hold tension and rigidity in your body physically. Over time, this strain can lead to chronic pain and health problems. Prioritize therapeutic relaxation in your life. This could be massage, yoga, deep breathing, counseling, or simple stretching exercises. When you feel yourself tensing up, take a few moments to tense and relax your muscles one by one or simply breathe deeply.

Find Out More About Enneagram Ones: The Enneagram 1 – The Perfectionist

Enneagram Two

As a Two you are highly focused on other people and their emotions and needs. What you resist is recognizing your own feelings about yourself and your own needs. At your core, you believe that to be worthwhile and valued you must be selfless. So in many ways you abandon the self in pursuit of being needed by others.

By focusing on the needs and feelings of others you can avoid looking at your own disappointments, your anger, or the ways you emotionally depend on other people. Over time, this can lead to chronic self-neglect, burnout, resentment, or being overbearing or meddlesome.

How can you deal with your feelings in a healthy way?

To stay present and process your own feelings without getting lost in anxiety, practice self-honesty. This means being brutally honest with yourself about your motivations, intentions, and needs. When you compliment someone, why are you doing it? When you give to someone, why are you doing it? When you exhaust yourself, why are you doing it?

As you process your motivations, don’t beat yourself up over what you find. Self-compassion is essential here. No human has perfect motivations all the time, and if you read this entire article you’ll see that each Enneatype has their own blind spots that they’re unconsciously avoiding.

When you’re honest with yourself about your feelings and needs, you can start to set healthy boundaries. This means saying “no” when you need to, even if it might disappoint someone else. It might mean recognizing when you’re exhausted and giving yourself a hot bath and a nap rather than hosting a dinner party or helping a friend out. It also means taking care of yourself emotionally and physically.

Surprisingly, as you get to know yourself and take care of yourself you’ll find yourself being more truthfully compassionate with others. You’ll avoid little aftertastes of resentment or bitterness when you give to others. And the people who love you will probably feel happier as a result.

Discover More About Enneagram Twos: The Enneagram 2 – The Helper

Enneagram Three

Ambitious and determined, you’re someone who longs to climb the ladder of success. However, in the process you tend to resist recognizing your own feelings of emptiness or self-rejection. Deep down, you carry a heavy emotional burden. This burden is the feeling of not being valued for who you are – only feeling valued for what you do. You tend to distrust love, loyalty, or friendship because you worry that at your core people don’t genuinely love you – you’re only loved as long as you can stay “on your game.” As a result, you tend to be charming, competitive, and image-conscious.

By staying focused on achievement and tasks, you can avoid seeing painful feelings of rejection or shame. If other people admire you, then you can get superficial feelings of validation or acceptance. But at the end of the day, it all feels empty.

How can you recognize your inner feelings without feeling lost, empty, or devastated?

First, it’s important to recognize when you’re burning yourself out or “turning it on” for other people. Why are you exhausting yourself? Why are you turning on the charm? What needs are you trying to meet by doing this?

Secondly, as you become more self-aware, aim to make more conscious choices. I urge you to make conscious choices for yourself and not for others. Do something creative because you want to, not because it will impress anyone or check off some mark on your to-do list. Spend at least 15 minutes a day just getting re-acquainted with yourself and what you genuinely like and don’t like.

Finally, practice being vulnerable with someone you trust. This can feel overwhelming at first. You may fear rejection or shame (in fact, you probably do). But the only way to know you’re truly valued for who you are and not what you do is to be who you are. As you realize that your trusted friend or family members are still there, still accepting you, you’ll start to realize that you have an actual support system in place and not just a bunch of phony friends.

Of course, if you aren’t sure who you can trust, this whole step can be a struggle. Look to your pool of acquaintances and ask yourself, “Who has been there for me during hard times?” “Who has seen me at my worst and stuck around?” “Who has been the most honest with me?”

You could also consider talking to a counselor if you’re feeling lost. A therapist can help you get in touch with your feelings and learn self-acceptance and trust in healthy ways.

Find Out More About Enneagram Three: The Enneagram Type 3 – The Achiever

Enneagram Four

Intuitive and insightful, you’re someone who wants to understand the depth and intensity of the human experience. You venture into the darkness of your soul and face your demons – demons that others would try to avoid at all costs. This bravery can make you incredibly empathetic, authentic, and insightful – but it can also take an emotional toll. This is because in the process you may avoid recognizing your own positive qualities and the ties and similarities you have to other human beings.

You’ve always felt different; and in your early years this caused pain. Now, for many Fours, that feeling of “otherness” becomes a home they take solace in. But it can be a lonely home at times. And it can be a home that doesn’t let the light in. But you’re afraid of letting others in, of feeling connected to others, and then losing yourself in the process. You want to be seen for who you truly are, but you’re afraid of being rejected or abandoned, not only by others – but by yourself.

How to Let Positivity and Connection In:

Setting up positive routines is one of the healthiest things you can do as a Four. Take time to discover the activities that bring you joy and a sense of lightness and hope. When you wake up in the morning, open your shades and let the light in. During your lunch break take a walk outside. Before bed read a book that has characters you relate to. These little hits of joy can help you feel like the world is a brighter and more hopeful place.

On top of that, take time to fact-check yourself when your feelings seem dark and isolating. When you find yourself feeling like nobody likes you, ask yourself why? Are the “why’s” based on observable facts? It’s good to be deeply feeling and intuitive, but sometimes as a Four you are prone to jumping to dark conclusions. Because you felt different or rejected in some ways as a child you may pattern that same feeling into future relationships where there are no ill-intents or rejections actually happening.

Finally, start to notice the common values, desires, dreams, and hardships that you share with others. It’s okay to be different, of course, but reconnecting with humanity in a positive way is also vital.

Find Out More About Fours: The Enneagram 4 – The Individualist

Enneagram Five

Self-contained and analytical, you pride yourself on being “heady” and thinking things through. But in your desire to stay in your head you fail to recognize your physical presence, needs, and emotions. There’s a feeling inside that if you can stay detached and observe everything from some higher meta plane that you’ll be “above” everything. Staying cerebral and detached keeps you from feeling the sharp pain of the physical or emotional worlds.

At times your perspective can keep you from getting carried away with your feelings or getting wrapped up in minor emotional setbacks. But over time this detachment can lead to physical neglect, isolation, or emotional emptiness. Or you may wind up at the end of your life seeing a host of thoughts and very few fulfilling experiences or relationships.

How to Get In Touch with Your Body and Emotions:

It’s easy to feel like you’re a brain with a bunch of hanging limbs that carry you from place to place. But your body is so much more than that. Take a moment to feel actual gratitude for your physical form. Consider all of the things your body does for you on a daily basis – from keeping you alive to giving and receiving pleasure. Then actively work to incorporate physical experiences into your day. Whether you’re lifting weights, doing yoga, or simply taking walk – make time for physical connection and awareness. You’ll notice that over time you start to feel more fully alive and awake to reality and the rich experiences of life.

On top of that, dip your toes into exploring your real emotions – even grief. It’s natural for you to split off and detach yourself from your emotions. You don’t want to feel their sharp pain or be controlled by them. But bottling them up can lead to even worse problems down the road. You may reject relationships, feel empty inside, or try to fill up all your emotional needs with some kind of numbing agent.

In a safe and quiet place, allow yourself to tune into your heart and the emotions that are locked up inside. You can write down your feelings, or if you’re feeling especially brave you can talk to a friend or therapist about what you’re going through. Your emotions are physical and they have physical affects. Stress when bottled up can lead to all sorts of health problems. Grief when denied can cause serious depression. So take a step towards health and wholeness by getting in touch with the emotions you’ve been running from.

Find Out More About Fives: The Enneagram Type 5 – The Investigator

Enneagram Six

As a Six you are always on the lookout for a sense of security or threats to that security. Loyal and cautious, you often have a feeling of anxiety about your relationships and affiliations. You worry about betrayal, rejection, and danger. These feelings of anxiety can lead you to try and control every variable in your life so that you’re never taken advantage of or caught off-guard. However, in the process you avoid looking to your own inner guidance or recognizing the support you already have in place. You may test others, trying to find weak links in their support for you.

Most Sixes believe that support is something they have to find outside themselves. Whether they seek out authority, financial security, or religious affiliation, they think if they can just find the right people or resources to trust then everything will be okay. But this approach actually keeps you from facing the insecurity that is within. It also keeps you doubting yourself and your inner voice and doubting others.

How to Find Support and Security From Within:

In order to balance out your tendency towards external support, start by recognizing the ways that you already offer yourself emotional and spiritual support. When you start worrying about something and want external assurance, take a moment to pause. Breathe deeply. Relax your body. You may hear a cacophony of voices vying for your attention, telling you to worry, plan, or seek guidance. But what does your heart say? See if you can access your inner guidance – the voice that isn’t panicking. This may take time, but it’s worth trying. Sometimes it can be helpful to literally tell the other anxious voices that you will deal with them later, “I’ll take care of you. Can you hold off for a moment?” It may feel funny, but it can help you find a calmer and more centered sense of self.

On top of finding your inner voice, it’s important to take time to relax yourself and get in tune with your body. Carve out time to practice self-care; take walks, swim, bake, listen to music, garden, spend time with a favorite pet. This can help you to feel more connected to yourself and the world around you and can put you in a place of more calm when something goes wrong.

Find Out More About Sixes: The Enneagram 6 – The Loyalist

Enneagram Seven

You’re someone who is always on the lookout for new opportunities and possibilities. Filled with a zest for life, many people turn to you for a good time and a view of “the silver lining” in a situation. What you tend to run away from are your own feelings of pain or anxiety.

You might scoff at this revelation. Anxiety? You don’t pause to consider such things because you don’t *have* anxiety! But when Seven’s slow down and really look inward, they often find that the fear, sadness or worry has been lurking in the background for quite some time. You’ve just been trying to distract yourself from it with all of your plans and activities. By overemphasizing your entertainment, ideas, or experiences you try to pull attention away from inner emptiness, grief, or fear.

You might think to yourself, “Why should I try to face my anxieties? Why would I want to make myself uncomfortable in that way?” The answer is that by acknowledging the feelings that you run away from, you can actually start gaining a greater sense of freedom and stability. You can become more self-aware, more insightful, and wiser about life. When you run from distraction to distraction, you risk making impulsive mistakes and living an escapist lifestyle that lacks meaning. You also risk hurting other people because of potentially selfish, reckless decisions.

How to Connect To Your Inner Feelings Without Getting Overwhelmed:

Allow yourself to be still every day for at least 10 minutes. It might seem overwhelming or silly at first, but this is one of the ways you can get to know yourself better and acknowledge the feelings inside. Practice deep breathing. You can do this by focusing on your breath and counting from 1 to 5 in your head. Hold your breath for five seconds, then exhale for five seconds. During this time, notice if there are any feelings that come up for you.

Find a safe and supportive person or space to talk about what you’re feeling. This might feel bizarre at first because you tend to veer away from vulnerability, but it’s extremely healthy. Having a person who can be a sounding board and help you process your feelings can be immensely helpful. They will probably appreciate the deeper level of trust, honesty, and depth that you’re bringing to the relationship.

Lastly, when you find yourself feeling bored or impatient, take a moment to analyze the underlying emotion behind it. What is the restless feeling that’s pushing you to find a distraction? Is it fear, sadness, or something else? Naming the feeling can help you become more mindful of yourself and help you to address that underlying fear. Sometimes you can speak to that fear in a way that provides long-lasting relief. You could also write down your feelings, and write down the reasons you no longer have to be afraid or worried. If there is a legitimate concern or need that comes up, you can write down any solutions that pop into your mind.

Find Out More About Sevens: The Enneagram 7 – The Enthusiast

Enneagram Eight

You’re someone who values strength and power, and you tend to be quite bold in your decisions. You have a lot of energy and are always pushing yourself to the next goal or level. What you tend to run away from is any need for nurturing or any position that might make you feel vulnerable.

You believe that it’s a dog-eat-dog world out there, and you need to be the one on top. You may even believe that if you let yourself feel vulnerable, other people will take advantage of you or use it against you. So instead of acknowledging your softer side, you often try to project a tough persona and steer clear of anything that might make you appear weak or powerless.

But this is actually a very limiting way to be. You have so much potential for greatness that can only come about by allowing yourself to open up and take risks.

How to Embrace Healthy Vulnerability:

Take a minute to understand that vulnerability doesn’t equate to weakness. It can actually be a sign of strength and courage, as it takes some level of trust in yourself and other people before you can open up. It’s a lot easier (for you) to push things down, act out, or embrace a tough, devil-may-care exterior.

Acknowledge the fear that comes with vulnerability but don’t let it control you. You will likely feel scared and that’s okay, but remember to focus on the potential for growth over the short-term discomfort. See your openness and vulnerability as just another form of being tough; the kind of toughness that comes with real honesty in the face of emotional risk.

Find someone you can trust; a friend, family member, or even a therapist who you can open up to. Make sure they are understanding, patient and non-judgmental. When you’re ready, start with the smaller things until you feel comfortable enough to talk about deeper issues. It might feel weird at first, and you may be tempted to run away, but know that it will be worth it in the end.

Find Out More About Enneagram Eights: The Enneagram Eight – The Challenger

 Enneagram 9

As a Nine, you focus on creating a sense of harmony and peace within you and around you. You enjoy a relaxed, open atmosphere where everyone is contributing and getting along. However, in your effort to find inner harmony you can sometimes avoid seeing your inner strength and capacity. You may also try to ignore signs that there are problems with your loved ones or with your environment itself.

As a Nine you want to focus on the positive and create an inner harmonious world where no threats from the outside can touch you. However, avoiding potential problems can create even more obstacles for yourself in the long run. Shying away from your true self can lead to one-sided relationships, resentment, and anger.

How to Embrace Your Authentic Inner Strength:

Understand that conflict isn’t always bad. It’s a natural and necessary part of life. In fact, conflict can lead to closer and more meaningful relationships. How can you have more intimate relationships when the other person doesn’t know what you’re all about? Respectful conflict allows you to show up as you really are, to express what you really feel, and to work out issues honestly and directly.

Take time to assess what you actually want in a situation. Often you’re so busy taking others’ needs and desires into consideration that you don’t even consider your own. It’s only later that you feel the weight and drain of not getting your needs met. Don’t be afraid to pause and ask for time to think about what you want in a situation. It’s okay to ask others for time and to give yourself space to reflect.

Be mindful of your emotional reactions when something threatens to disturb your peace. Instead of running away or suppressing, take a step back and observe what’s going on inside of you. Notice how your body responds and observe the feeling objectively. This will give you a better understanding of your needs and boundaries. If this process is stressful, take a few moments to breathe and remind yourself of your inner strength.

By embracing your inner voice and understanding your own needs, you can move closer to a world that is truly peaceful, harmonious, and accepting of yourself. You don’t have to run away from your feelings anymore. By understanding them, you can create a safe space to explore them and grow. After all, growth is the key to true inner peace.

Find Out More About  Nines: The Enneagram Type 9 – The Peacemaker

What Are Your Thoughts?

Did this article encourage your or inspire you in any way? Do you have any suggestions for other people with your Enneagram type? Let us know in the comments!

Discover more about your personality type in our eBooks, Discovering You: Unlocking the Power of Personality Type, The INFJ – Understanding the Mystic, The INTJ – Understanding the Strategist, and The INFP – Understanding the Dreamer. You can also connect with me via Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter!