Nine Types. Nine Ways Your Body Says "I'm Not Okay"

Friend, can we talk about something that might save you from your next burnout?

Your body is constantly sending you text messages about your stress levels, but most of us never learned to read them. And here's the thing—each Enneagram type receives these messages in completely different ways. 

Let me tell you what stress feels like in my Type 3 body. It starts as this buzzing energy in my chest—like I'm a phone that's been plugged in too long and might explode. My heart rate picks up, but not in an anxious way—more like my entire system is revving up for performance. If I ignore it, it moves to my shoulders, which literally feel like they're carrying the weight of everyone's expectations.

But my Type 4 friend experiences stress completely differently. She describes it as this heavy, dark feeling that settles in her chest like a stone. Her Type 7 partner feels stress as this restless energy that makes her feel like she's going to crawl out of her skin if she has to sit still for one more second.

The research from Dr. Peter Levine's somatic experiencing work shows us that trauma and stress are stored in the body, not just the mind. Each nervous system type has developed specific patterns for how they hold and express this stress. Type 1s often carry it as physical tension—jaw clenching, shoulder tightness, that feeling of being wound too tight. Type 5s experience it as depletion, like their internal battery is draining faster than they can recharge.

Here's what's fascinating: Type 6s often feel stress as that buzzing anxiety that seems to live in their nervous system, making them feel simultaneously wired and exhausted. Type 8s experience it as this burning intensity in their gut, their body literally preparing for battle. Type 9s feel it as heaviness, like everything suddenly requires more energy than they have.

When you learn to read your body's stress signals, you can intervene before you hit that point of no return. You can catch the warning signs and use your type-specific regulation tools before you're completely overwhelmed.