Enneagram and addiction aren’t directly connected, but Enneagram can provide significant insights about each type’s addictive tendencies and coping skills.
Moreover, the Enneagram test and theory offer a holistic approach to understanding personality types and addiction and can explain the weaknesses of each type that could lead to addiction in extreme circumstances.
In this article, we’ll explore the link between Enneagram and addiction and how each type can identify, control, and overcome their addictive tendencies using their key strengths.
Let’s dive in!
Exploring the Link Between the Enneagram and Addiction
Exploring the link between the Enneagram and addiction inevitably leads us to an analysis of every personality type’s core fears and weaknesses. That’s because addiction often comes as a consequence of unresolved traumatic experiences and childhood wounds that create a weak spot in our character, making us more susceptible to different vices.
What’s important to understand is that it’s not the personality type that defines someone’s inclination toward addiction. It’s the intricate interplay between genetic and environmental influences that together make an individual more or less prone to developing addictive patterns.
However, regardless of what leads a person toward addiction, the most important thing to know is that every personality type has the capacity to overcome it. Enneagram’s value lies precisely in its power to identify the most significant resources of each type and thus help individuals map their way to overcoming addiction.
So, while there is no direct link between Enneagram and addiction, in the sense that Enneagram labels any type as more addictive than the other, that doesn’t mean that it can’t help in overcoming addiction. The possibilities of overcoming addiction with Enneagram lie in its power to encourage self-awareness and personal growth.
Moreover, by encouraging personal growth and exploration, Enneagram helps people understand themselves better and find healthier coping mechanisms.
Enneagram Types and Relationship With Addiction
Addiction comes in many different forms and goes from mild to severe, but regardless of its intensity, it impacts an individual’s life on every level. Therefore, it is important for every Enneagram type to understand their relationship with addiction and be able to identify when they start resorting to addictive patterns.
Now, let’s see what triggers each Enneagram type into addiction and explore Enneagram healing possibilities.
Enneagram 1
Enneagrams Type One, also known as the Perfectionist, like to see themselves as strong people. They have very high standards in everything they do and struggle with accepting their mistakes. Genuinely altruistic, Ones strive to make the world a better place and feel deeply defeated if they fail.
- Addiction triggers: Extreme self-criticism, rigidity, and tendency to suppress emotions. Ones can be very judgmental, both of themselves and others. Their negative self-talk may lead to self-destructive behaviors as a form of self-punishment.
- Common addictive tendencies: Workaholism, prescription medication, and alcohol to relax. Ones are prone to so-called legal addictions—the ones that are most likely to go below the radar.
- Recovery approach: Self-compassion, learning to accept imperfection and mindfulness practices. The key to overcoming addictive tendencies for Ones lies in developing self-empathy and learning to turn off their harsh inner critic.
Enneagram 2
Twos are deeply compassionate, sensitive people whose lives revolve around their relationships with other people. They believe they need to cater to others’ needs to earn their love and acceptance, so they are highly attuned to others’ emotions. Warm, compassionate, and kind, they are always ready to go above and beyond to help the people they love.
- Addiction triggers: Rejection, abandonment, and lack of recognition for their efforts to please others. Rejection and abandonment trigger the deepest fear of Type Two, making them feel like they’ll never get the love they desperately need.
- Common addictive tendencies: Codependency, eating disorders, and alcoholism. Twos are the most likely to develop codependent patterns because they tend to believe everything is better than being alone. Alcoholism helps them soothe their wounds and persevere in their efforts to please others.
- Recovery approach: Learning self-love and fostering self-acceptance. Twos may benefit from counseling and psychotherapy sessions, as the best way to overcome their weaknesses is through a therapeutic relationship.
Enneagram 3
Enneagram Type Three is a success-driven, natural leader who values status, power, and public recognition. Charming and energetic, Threes feel they are only as good as their latest success, so they strive to always achieve more and reach new heights.
- Addiction triggers: Failure, public disgrace, and loss of status and power. Threes’ sense of self-worth depends on the level of success they achieve; even the slightest failure can make them feel like losers.
- Common addictive tendencies: Workaholism, stimulative substances, and compulsive exercising. While they seem highly committed to their career, their commitment often hides dangerous workaholic tendencies. After so much work, they may find it hard to wind down, so they readily resort to all kinds of substances that make them feel better.
- Recovery approach: Learning healthy self-respect and self-love and separating their self-worth from their achievements. Learning to connect with their authentic emotional needs is also very important for their mental health.
Enneagram 4
Enneagrams Type Four are introspective, deeply emotional, and imaginative. They are driven by a deep desire to understand their identity and to be authentic. For them, the purpose of life is to go through many meaningful, deep, emotional experiences.
- Addiction triggers: Isolation, abandonment, rejection, and emotional pain. Rejection and abandonment trigger Four’s core fear of inadequacy, making them feel flawed. Then, they isolate themselves as they try to cope with the pain they feel, which may make them susceptible to addictions.
- Common addictive tendencies: Substance abuse, alcoholism, overeating, codependency, and stimulant overuse. Apart from the need to find relief from their pain and intense emotions through addiction, Fours are also very impulsive and prone to experimenting with different substances just for the sake of new experiences.
- Recovery approach: Learning to separate their feelings from their identity, cultivating interdependence and healthy connections with others, and fostering creative expressions. Fours may find great relief through creative outlets, but it is also important for them to learn to manage their emotions in healthier ways and build self-respect.
Enneagram 5
Fives are intellectually oriented, highly independent, and endlessly curious about the workings of the world. They are driven by an insatiable thirst for knowledge, as the better they understand the world, the safer they feel in life.
- Addiction triggers: Lack of skills for managing intense emotions, prolonged existential insecurity, and unrecognized loneliness. Fives deny their need for connection with others and easily cut off relationships from their lives, which leads to an isolated lifestyle that may make them susceptible to addictions.
- Common addictive tendencies: Internet addiction, substance use, alcoholism, prescription medication. Similarly to Ones, Fives aren’t into illegal substances but will use whatever is at their disposal that can help them detach from their feelings.
- Recovery approach: Learning healthy emotional regulation skills, building emotional intelligence, and fostering connections with others. Recognizing that hyperindependence isn’t a sign of strength but a coping mechanism.
Enneagram 6
Enneagram Type Six, also called the Loyalist, is driven by the need for stability and security in life. They love traditions, rules, and systems and try their best to make life as predictable as possible. Though they may seem ambitious as they are very dedicated employees, they are actually family-oriented and feel their best around loved ones.
- Addiction triggers: Abandonment, lack of financial and/or existential security, and loneliness. For Sixes, it is essential to feel a sense of belonging to the community, so loneliness is a big risk to their mental health. Also, unpredictability in life makes them profoundly anxious, and prolonged anxiety makes them susceptible to unhealthy choices.
- Common addictive tendencies: Sedatives, alcohol, and codependency. Due to their natural aversion to risks, Sixes aren’t likely to go for illegal substances but may abuse prescription medication and alcohol because these have a relaxing effect on their nervous system.
- Recovery approach: Developing self-confidence, raising self-awareness, and strengthening relationships with others. Sixes need to build a healthy support system and learn to trust themselves.
Enneagram 7
Sevens are playful, carefree enthusiasts who live for adventures. Optimistic and energetic, they are always searching for new and exciting experiences. They are very communicative, charming, and open-minded but struggle with discipline and responsibility in life.
- Addiction triggers: Boredom, unpleasant emotional experiences, and lack of stimulation. Sevens don’t have the skills to deal with unpleasant emotions, so they avoid them at all costs, and their emotional avoidance is the biggest factor in developing addictions.
- Common addictive tendencies: Substance abuse, eating disorders, alcoholism, and shopping. Due to their need for constant stimulation and lack of caution, Sevens readily try everything that looks fun.
- Recovery approach: Acquiring healthy emotional regulation skills and learning to control impulsive reactions. It is essential for Sevens to learn to sit with discomfort and resist the impulse to run away from deeper feelings and emotional experiences.
Enneagram 8
Enneagram Type Eight, also known as the Challenger, is strong-willed, driven, ambitious, and very determined to live their life their own way. Motivated by a deep need to have power over their destiny, Eights are very focused on their goals and stop at nothing to get what they want. In addition, they also have a prominent hedonistic streak.
- Addiction triggers: Betrayal, loss of power, heartbreak, and unresolved anger. Loss of power makes Eights feel deeply humiliated and vulnerable, which is something they can’t bear. They also don’t trust others easily, which is why they can’t forgive betrayal.
- Common addictive tendencies: Alcoholism, substance abuse, prescription medication, eating disorders, workaholism, and sex addiction. In general, Eights struggle with vulnerability and will use anything to suppress the feelings that they believe make them weak.
- Recovery approach: Learning to build emotional intimacy, integrating vulnerability into their identity. Eights need to understand that only through accepting their vulnerability can they become as strong as they want to be.
Enneagram 9
Nines, also known as the Peacemakers, are warm, gentle, and kind people who value inner and outer peace. They are at their best when they are surrounded by the people they love and excel at creating harmony in their environment. Compassionate and supportive, they make everyone feel seen and heard.
- Addiction triggers: Persistent conflicts, suppressed anger, and disconnection from their community. A Nine seems like the kind of person who never gets angry. However, bottling up their feelings leads to depression and disconnection from others, making them susceptible to addictions.
- Common addictive tendencies: Substance abuse, sedatives, binge-watching TV, and overeating. Essentially, Nines seek ways to numb their intense emotions, so they will resort to anything that brings them a sense of peace.
- Recovery approach: Overcoming passive behavior patterns, fostering assertiveness, and learning healthy ways for expressing anger. The key to addiction recovery for Nines is to acknowledge and accept their anger and understand that, essentially, anger is a positive emotion that has a function to propel us to take action.
Take Control of Your Life with the Enneagram!
By understanding your Enneagram type, you can not only overcome your addictive tendencies but also prevent their development! Enneagram helps you identify the core fears, triggers, and weaknesses that make you vulnerable while pointing out the strengths you can use to overcome them.
Take the Enneagram test and start your journey toward a healthier life today!
Key Takeaways
Ultimately, it is critical to emphasize that addiction is a complex phenomenon and that having a particular Enneagram type does not correlate with an increased risk of addiction. With that in mind, let’s round off with some key insights from this article:
- All Enneagram types can develop addictions, and all of them have the capacity to recover and overcome their addictive personality tendencies. No link between Enneagram and addiction can indicate with certainty that an individual is destined to become an addict.
- The key to overcoming addictive tendencies of every type lies in understanding their key triggers and weaknesses, which is where the Enneagram test and theory can help.
- While the Enneagram test and theory can’t help you recover from addiction, they can help you understand yourself better and have more control over your life.
Enneagram and Addiction FAQ
#1. Are some Enneagram types more prone to addiction than others?
Theoretically, certain types like Two, Four, Seven, and Nine may seem to be more prone to addiction. However, every type can develop addiction under certain circumstances, and there is no straightforward link between Enneagram and addiction.
#2. How can each Enneagram type develop healthier coping mechanisms?
Each type can develop healthier Enneagram coping mechanisms through introspection, self-exploration, and investing in Enneagram personal growth. In general, each type can learn to use their strengths to overcome their triggers.
#3. Are some Enneagram types less prone to addiction than others?
In theory, Ones, Eights, and Fives may be less prone to addiction because of their strong need for independence. However, Enneagram wings can significantly modify the core type’s tendencies, so these kinds of assumptions shouldn’t be made easily. Plus, many more factors determine a person’s susceptibility to addiction apart from their Enneagram personality type.
#4. Is there a connection between Enneagram and substance abuse?
No, there’s no direct connection between Enneagram and substance abuse, as there’s no direct correlation between Enneagram and addiction in general. However, by analyzing Enneagram stress responses, we can make some assumptions about each type’s inclinations toward substance abuse.