Turbulent personality traits can cause challenges with mental health. People with these traits are often hard workers and can experience many emotional shifts.
The Myers-Briggs personality test is a commonly used test to assess personality traits. You may have taken a Myers-Briggs test before and received a four-letter acronym describing your personality. There have been some additions to the test over time.
One addition to the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is the Assertive-Turbulent scale. The scale results are often tacked onto the end of your MBTI personality type. Turbulent-type personalities can be unpredictable. But there are ways to manage a turbulent personality.
If you have a turbulent personality you may be:
- high-strung
- anxious
- perfectionistic
- sensitive
According to the 16Personalities, individuals with turbulent personalities constantly push themselves to improve and are very success-driven.
People with turbulent traits may tackle problems head-on before they become bigger ones.
While a turbulent personality isn’t “good” or “bad,” people with turbulent personalities can experience high anxiety. They are sensitive to what others think and may become hurt by criticisms. Frequently, they experience high levels of stress, which can negatively impact their mental health.
Turbulent personalities are often linked with the neuroticism trait. Neuroticism isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It just means you handle situations differently.
Assertive vs. turbulent personality
On the extended versions of the Myers-Briggs Personality Type Indicator, there’s an indicator for two personality types: assertive and turbulent.
| Assertive | Turbulent |
|---|---|
| even-tempered | rapid emotional shifts |
| can handle stress well | overwhelmed by stress |
| don’t worry often | anxious |
| confident | perfectionistic |
If you’re wondering what the signs of a turbulent personality are, they’re often
1. Perfectionistic
Individuals with a turbulent personality are often perfectionistic. You may be high-achieving and driven to success, striving for constant improvement.
While it isn’t harmful to work hard and want to achieve the goals you set for yourself, many people with turbulent personalities abandon themselves to work toward their goals. You may work on goals for hours without taking breaks, sleeping adequately, or eating.
You can be sensitive to criticism and insecure. They work hard to make up for any insecurities or imperfections they believe they have.
2. Anxious
Anxiety about things that could go wrong often makes people with turbulent personalities work hard to prepare for any unexpected events. Anxiety could lead to poor sleep and self-care.
Poor self-care can take a toll on mental health and make it hard to handle social situations adequately. If you have a turbulent personality and are having mental health challenges, consider talking with a mental health professional.
3. Optimistic
If you have a turbulent personality, you often display lots of optimism. You might believe that bad situations can be turned around by hard work.
People with turbulent personalities often compensate for bad times by throwing themselves into work. This unfaltering optimism can make you a great leader and help you achieve goals. Conversely, that hard work can sometimes be too much and overwhelming.
4. Emotional instability
Turbulent personalities are often linked with neuroticism, which means there can be a lot of rapid emotional shifts. Emotions can be high when someone with a turbulent personality is embarrassed, criticized, or feels like a failure.
On the other hand, emotions can be enjoyable for people with turbulent personalities when they feel like they’re achieving and having success in their lives. The ups and downs are common for individuals with neuroticism.
5. Easily stressed
People who have turbulent personalities can become easily stressed out. They may have trouble dealing with the inconveniences in life. Strong stress management skills are necessary to avoid becoming easily overwhelmed if you have a turbulent personality.
You can learn ways to manage a turbulent personality. Having the right skills can help you navigate the shifts in mood you may experience.
Having a turbulent personality can also cause mental health conditions, such as depression and anxiety.
You can manage a turbulent personality by:
- Engaging in ongoing therapy: Seeking a licensed mental health professional can help you gain emotional regulation skills and stress management skills.
- Practicing mindfulness techniques: Mindfulness can help you remain in the here and now and non-judgmentally notice thoughts and feelings.
- Having healthy ways to manage stress: Because individuals with turbulent personalities can quickly become stressed out, having a hobby or outlet to manage stress can be beneficial.
If you need help locating a mental health professional, use the FindCare tool to locate one near you.
Having a turbulent personality can come with instability in mood and cause a lot of stress. Since people with turbulent personality traits generally have a positive outlook on life and can problem-solve when things go wrong, these individuals can make great leaders.
You can learn to manage having a turbulent personality in various ways. Because this personality trait can cause mental health problems, seeing a mental health professional can help you learn skills to manage associated conditions.