No, any type can have trauma. And trauma responses cover such a wide range of behaviors that it's unlikely any one person would exhibit all of them. Some people respond to trauma by putting up huge walls to avoid getting hurt while others respond by putting themselves into drama situations on purpose. Some people respond to trauma by being conflict avoidant while others respond by fighting back at the slightest threat. Most likely the specific trauma responses a person exhibits are influenced by their personality type. But, for example, the stoic ISTP who never acknowledges their emotions and shuts down into silent brooding during conflict can be caused by trauma just as much as an INFP crying, drinking, and listening to Nirvana on repeat.
True. But being an infp is more the way you see the world. Through fairness/inequality. Kindness over cruelty. Idealism vs. selfishness. It’s more of a character identity which can be altered by past trauma but likely you were born into the world seeing this way and any kind of trauma would make it even clearer. On the other hand, trauma can knock you off this course into other personality types. You can essentially grow out of being an infp if trauma makes you colder, angrier, more judgmental. It’s really up to you what you choose to do with it.. heal and help others heal (infp) or become jaded which would certainly be more on the TP/TJ side of things because you would rely more on your thinking vs intuition. But we’re all on our own journeys. There is no one right answer. All I can say is from personal experience.
I can definitely see this in my own life lol When I was in one of my most jaded parts of my life, I consistently was assessed as INTJ, but as I’ve been learning more healthy coping mechanisms and trying to tear down some of the protective walls I built up, I’ve been back in INFP territory. The two types functions may not be the same (FiNeSiTe vs NiTeFiSe), but it was my cognitive preference for surviving the world at that time.
It's taken me a long time to separate my truama responses and dysfunction from my natural introversion, and figure out what is naturally me/my personality and what is learned behaviour. I'm still getting to know who I am outside of trauma, but I think my introverted mind and strong internal emotions definitely made the truama I went through more intense in how I processed it and acted out.
Same, I feel like I don't know who I really am. It's gonna take a lot of work to figure that out but I've heard that past the anxiety and insecurity you have a true self that can be discovered
My problem is while my abusers kept me isolated from the world i told myself the world wasn't as bad as my home. Then I'm finding out its exactly like my home. So my idea of leaving that all behind me is gone.
I think my trauma is separate from my personality. I've always been strange, introverted and daydreamy. The trauma I've gone through is just stuff that happened to me, and definitely does not define me.
I think we all need to remember that the MBTI isn’t all that accurate and isn’t accepted as a psychological guide. It’s very limited and broadly places you in a category.
That’s natural, of course you’re trauma is going to shape who you are as a person. It’s important to remember that despite all that, you are still more then your scars. You’re still a full person, and you don’t have to let your bad experiences define you. Sorry if this coming off like hallmark card empty feel good bullshit, I’m speaking in ernest, even if I don’t have any first had experience with trauma.
No i dont think you're coming off like a hallmark card empty feel good bullshit thing HAHAHA Ive had some experience with trauma, and what i feel about my life rn is exactly what u said. I used to constantly wallow in my sufferings and really couldnt see any way out of the sadness and hurt etc. Even when i felt slightly happy for a short period of time I'd feel soooo weird because i wasnt used to the feeling of happiness at all. Then id wonder when id go back to being sad. All those feelings are valid, and it takes time to process and deal with them, but spending too much time wallowing in self-pity doesn't help at all. Compounding all the scars we have as a result of trauma and suffering is norma, and honestly really hard not to because its just so hard to feel happy when all this shit is going on in our lives, but yea the scars dont define all of us. Its only a part of us, and our future shouldn't get held back by these scars. Ok i dont really know what I'm saying anymore but i like the way u put it into words and i agree with what u said. Also i like how you didnt use any toxic positivity like "oh yea, you've dealt with trauma hut just leave it all behind! You'll get over it someday, time will heal"
everyone has trauma and everyone responds diff to trauma. diff personality types can be due to diff trauma responses but that would apply to all people, not just infps
I’m fairly sure any Myers-Briggs type can have a history of trauma. The other types just have a different trauma response. But maybe it has something to do with having high sensitivity as that trait often makes people more aware of their wounds and want to work them out. We may become more introverted and less goal oriented when stuck in post-traumatic stress.
The MBTI is really just the simplified version of the four main functions you use out of all 16 of Jungian Functions. So take MBTI with a grain of salt. Everyone uses each function to an extent. Where as trauma is related to your ego more than how you process information (which you do through the functions).
Just because you’re sensitive and have feelings doesn’t mean you are an INFP. This sentiment grinds my gears so much. Stop stereotyping all of us as these depressed, traumatized little flowers. It’s infantilizing and gross. Introverted Feeling makes us way more in tune with our own emotions than other types so we end up focusing on our own feelings more, but ANY type can get sad / depressed. If you’re identifying with INFP just because you think we’re the only type that is capable of recognizing our own sadness you know nothing about MBTI.
Ikr i hate those stereotypes which make us all seem like weak crybabies who are sad allll the time. Like if someone is sad all the time then its not about being an INFP anymore.... Its actually real suffering and it may be depression Truthfully there were a few years when i was like the stereotype, sad all day everyday but its def not a normal INFP thing to do imo. Im much happier now, mostly happy everyday in fact but im still INFP
I'm not sure what the overlap is. Can you share some? I appreciate that you're trying to understand more about yourself but personality type is very different to coping strategies.
As a kid I used to be really outgoing and extroverted but after my sexual abuse I started to get way more introverted and avoidant of people and I'm avoidant till this day. That's why I think that
Yup. I’m 90% sure most of it is trauma. I used to be loudmouth extrovert then it happened and I had to rebuild myself from the ground up. I now an introvert who spends most of his time in his own head.
Posts like this make me hate the community a little. I am INFP, and I have no trend towards trauma. Get your ducklings in order, INFPs are not meant to be traumatized.
HAHAHA yea the mtbi community does constantly stereotype INFPs to be trauamtized crybabies all the time which is really annoying. Also the uwuwuwuuwuwuw stereotype ugh
Oh god I was thinking the exact same thing a while ago. Sometimes I feel like I was forcibly molded into an infp rather than becoming one through my own set of choices yk? Growing up with strict parents and an unstable household in general caused me to live in my own bubble instead of tactically facing whatever that was.
I found out a few years ago that I was autistic. I’m not saying that all INFP’s are, but in my case, the trauma theory seems quite plausible, as I do have anxiety disorders as a comorbidity.
I am both, however I am learning to differentiate between what is actually my character (my needs), and which responses come from a place of fear. Therapy helps :)
There is overlap between INFP stereotypes and trauma response/coping behaviors.
I like this idea.
Yes
I don’t really think I have any trauma
yeah honestly i have never had to suffer any serious physical or emotional distress and i feel like everyone around has suffered in some way
Same, still much INFP here
We are sensitive. And like an sponge for trauma.
So true
For real
This is so true.
No, any type can have trauma. And trauma responses cover such a wide range of behaviors that it's unlikely any one person would exhibit all of them. Some people respond to trauma by putting up huge walls to avoid getting hurt while others respond by putting themselves into drama situations on purpose. Some people respond to trauma by being conflict avoidant while others respond by fighting back at the slightest threat. Most likely the specific trauma responses a person exhibits are influenced by their personality type. But, for example, the stoic ISTP who never acknowledges their emotions and shuts down into silent brooding during conflict can be caused by trauma just as much as an INFP crying, drinking, and listening to Nirvana on repeat.
True. But being an infp is more the way you see the world. Through fairness/inequality. Kindness over cruelty. Idealism vs. selfishness. It’s more of a character identity which can be altered by past trauma but likely you were born into the world seeing this way and any kind of trauma would make it even clearer. On the other hand, trauma can knock you off this course into other personality types. You can essentially grow out of being an infp if trauma makes you colder, angrier, more judgmental. It’s really up to you what you choose to do with it.. heal and help others heal (infp) or become jaded which would certainly be more on the TP/TJ side of things because you would rely more on your thinking vs intuition. But we’re all on our own journeys. There is no one right answer. All I can say is from personal experience.
I can definitely see this in my own life lol When I was in one of my most jaded parts of my life, I consistently was assessed as INTJ, but as I’ve been learning more healthy coping mechanisms and trying to tear down some of the protective walls I built up, I’ve been back in INFP territory. The two types functions may not be the same (FiNeSiTe vs NiTeFiSe), but it was my cognitive preference for surviving the world at that time.
No I relate to this tok, well said and I'm glad my trauma didn't turn me bitter
Jesus this obnoxious. Saying that all thinkers are cold and jaded is like saying all feelers are irrational and melodramatic.
It's taken me a long time to separate my truama responses and dysfunction from my natural introversion, and figure out what is naturally me/my personality and what is learned behaviour. I'm still getting to know who I am outside of trauma, but I think my introverted mind and strong internal emotions definitely made the truama I went through more intense in how I processed it and acted out.
Same, I feel like I don't know who I really am. It's gonna take a lot of work to figure that out but I've heard that past the anxiety and insecurity you have a true self that can be discovered
I like you, you’re very wise.
My problem is while my abusers kept me isolated from the world i told myself the world wasn't as bad as my home. Then I'm finding out its exactly like my home. So my idea of leaving that all behind me is gone.
I think my trauma is separate from my personality. I've always been strange, introverted and daydreamy. The trauma I've gone through is just stuff that happened to me, and definitely does not define me.
I have a lot of trauma, but trauma can form your personality.
I think we all need to remember that the MBTI isn’t all that accurate and isn’t accepted as a psychological guide. It’s very limited and broadly places you in a category.
Agree!and same!lol
That’s natural, of course you’re trauma is going to shape who you are as a person. It’s important to remember that despite all that, you are still more then your scars. You’re still a full person, and you don’t have to let your bad experiences define you. Sorry if this coming off like hallmark card empty feel good bullshit, I’m speaking in ernest, even if I don’t have any first had experience with trauma.
No i dont think you're coming off like a hallmark card empty feel good bullshit thing HAHAHA Ive had some experience with trauma, and what i feel about my life rn is exactly what u said. I used to constantly wallow in my sufferings and really couldnt see any way out of the sadness and hurt etc. Even when i felt slightly happy for a short period of time I'd feel soooo weird because i wasnt used to the feeling of happiness at all. Then id wonder when id go back to being sad. All those feelings are valid, and it takes time to process and deal with them, but spending too much time wallowing in self-pity doesn't help at all. Compounding all the scars we have as a result of trauma and suffering is norma, and honestly really hard not to because its just so hard to feel happy when all this shit is going on in our lives, but yea the scars dont define all of us. Its only a part of us, and our future shouldn't get held back by these scars. Ok i dont really know what I'm saying anymore but i like the way u put it into words and i agree with what u said. Also i like how you didnt use any toxic positivity like "oh yea, you've dealt with trauma hut just leave it all behind! You'll get over it someday, time will heal"
everyone has trauma and everyone responds diff to trauma. diff personality types can be due to diff trauma responses but that would apply to all people, not just infps
There’s such a thing as healthy infps and all types have trauma.
I’m fairly sure any Myers-Briggs type can have a history of trauma. The other types just have a different trauma response. But maybe it has something to do with having high sensitivity as that trait often makes people more aware of their wounds and want to work them out. We may become more introverted and less goal oriented when stuck in post-traumatic stress.
The MBTI is really just the simplified version of the four main functions you use out of all 16 of Jungian Functions. So take MBTI with a grain of salt. Everyone uses each function to an extent. Where as trauma is related to your ego more than how you process information (which you do through the functions).
Why not both?
Just because you’re sensitive and have feelings doesn’t mean you are an INFP. This sentiment grinds my gears so much. Stop stereotyping all of us as these depressed, traumatized little flowers. It’s infantilizing and gross. Introverted Feeling makes us way more in tune with our own emotions than other types so we end up focusing on our own feelings more, but ANY type can get sad / depressed. If you’re identifying with INFP just because you think we’re the only type that is capable of recognizing our own sadness you know nothing about MBTI.
Exactly this
Ikr i hate those stereotypes which make us all seem like weak crybabies who are sad allll the time. Like if someone is sad all the time then its not about being an INFP anymore.... Its actually real suffering and it may be depression Truthfully there were a few years when i was like the stereotype, sad all day everyday but its def not a normal INFP thing to do imo. Im much happier now, mostly happy everyday in fact but im still INFP
I think traumadumping happens more in xNFx forums. I had to distance myself from the FB groups because of this.
I was gonna say, introversion is not indicative nor a response to trauma. Nothing about an INFP personality type is indicative of trauma.
I'm not sure what the overlap is. Can you share some? I appreciate that you're trying to understand more about yourself but personality type is very different to coping strategies.
As a kid I used to be really outgoing and extroverted but after my sexual abuse I started to get way more introverted and avoidant of people and I'm avoidant till this day. That's why I think that
Both
Yup. I’m 90% sure most of it is trauma. I used to be loudmouth extrovert then it happened and I had to rebuild myself from the ground up. I now an introvert who spends most of his time in his own head.
Yeah, I think about this theory a lot of times.
It isn’t just INFPs. INFJs also are sensitive and experience trauma profoundly.
Posts like this make me hate the community a little. I am INFP, and I have no trend towards trauma. Get your ducklings in order, INFPs are not meant to be traumatized.
HAHAHA yea the mtbi community does constantly stereotype INFPs to be trauamtized crybabies all the time which is really annoying. Also the uwuwuwuuwuwuw stereotype ugh
I am probably infp but I 100% have trauma.
Oh god I was thinking the exact same thing a while ago. Sometimes I feel like I was forcibly molded into an infp rather than becoming one through my own set of choices yk? Growing up with strict parents and an unstable household in general caused me to live in my own bubble instead of tactically facing whatever that was.
No trauma. I'm just dumb andlazy
toolazyforspaces
yep
No matter how much trauma i have (and i have plenty).. My Fi and my inability to Ti prove im an infp. And im stuck with that.
Yes
Good freaking question.
Relatable
Let me go re take this test
I always assume that INFPs have some sort of trauma
I mean we all have trauma, right? How many functional and happy families are there? I bet it ain't even 10%
In all the tests I made I was like yeah, I act like this, but only because I had trauma and it made me more shy and so and so
I am an INFP. “Relationship Issues” are not a part of my identity / personality.
Omg
Breh. Wtf has typology become?
INTP
I found out a few years ago that I was autistic. I’m not saying that all INFP’s are, but in my case, the trauma theory seems quite plausible, as I do have anxiety disorders as a comorbidity.
Yes
Sorry for you 😞
Maybe we have weaker coping skills and thus soak up trauma worse
No.
I scored INFP after years of depression. Before that, I was INTP.
I mean, if you can mange to get out of bed in morning without being crushed by existential dread, are you even really an INXP?/s
https://youtu.be/-_nHB2ySu9o
I am both, however I am learning to differentiate between what is actually my character (my needs), and which responses come from a place of fear. Therapy helps :)