Contents
Hello, dear readers of the site! The dysthymic personality type is the most depressive and dull among the other types according to Leonhard.
And today we will find out what his main character traits are, as well as resources and limitations. This information will allow you to achieve the maximum benefit from interacting with him.
Characteristics of character
As already mentioned, distims are more focused on the negative. They manage to get upset and experience sadness even when joyful events occur in their lives.
At least they only notice things that can upset them. Happiness passes by them as if in transit, not lingering in memories at all.
They differ in slow thinking and reactions to various stimuli. Before saying anything, they stand for a long pause, gathering their thoughts and thinking through every word. They do not take an active part in conversations, mostly they listen silently, occasionally inserting remarks and comments.
A child of a dysthymic type is easy to identify, he is usually insecure, timid and shy. He is rarely seen playing, which is accompanied by loud laughter.
He usually concentrates on building blocks and mosaics and refuses to participate in contests and other group meetings.
He prefers loneliness, so he is calmer and safer, and he is given the opportunity to reflect on some sad aspects of life, while no one distracts him with conversations.
Professional activity
They are excellent workers, only on the condition that they are not given a rigid time frame and require quick results. They are able to perform painstaking and monotonous work, which not everyone will undertake, carefully checking all the details and nuances.
Responsible and efficient. You can certainly rely on distims, if they agreed to solve some problem, they will not abandon it in the middle of the way. And they keep their words.
Frequent interaction with other people causes tension and stress, which negatively affects their well-being and productivity. Therefore, it is better to choose a profession that is not related to communication and making responsible decisions.
This psychotype has a highly developed sense of justice. He will not steal, endanger the company and employees, and violate the boundaries that are set even behind the scenes.
Occupying a leadership position, he receives recognition from subordinates who can safely count on his conscientiousness and tact.
In case of any failures, he is inclined to blame himself, despite the fact that he was completely unable to influence some events.
Force majeure situations can bring him to a nervous breakdown, as he is completely unable to cope with difficulties and quickly find the most optimal ways to solve problems.
Therefore, at the moment of stress, he does not think what to do to correct mistakes, but completely surrenders to the process of self-flagellation.
Dysthymic disorder
The danger of this type of character accentuation lies in the fact that he is able to bring himself with gloomy thoughts and focusing only on the negative to a mental disorder called dysthymia.
This is depression, only in a lightweight format. It just takes longer than usual. Therefore, it is recommended that it be treated by qualified specialists, without expecting that the condition will improve on its own.
The danger of dysthymia lies in the fact that it can begin as early as adolescence and last about two years.
Therefore, usually the patients themselves and their close people simply come to the conclusion that the signs of the disorder that alarm them are just character traits and perceive them as a given, which you just need to come to terms with.
Here’s another reason why it’s so important to see a doctor when the first symptoms of dysthymia appear. A psychotherapist or psychiatrist will be able to diagnose the presence or absence of a disorder.
Evidence
The following symptoms may bother two or even three years in a row. Moments of improvement are quite likely, but they are short-term and range from about 10 to 14 days.
- The attitude towards the future is extremely negative, while the past is remembered with trepidation. It is idealized, although at that moment the person did not feel the value of what was happening. It is acquired over time, as nostalgia.
- The ability to concentrate is reduced, attention is scattered, and the person is simply not able to hold it, control it.
- A low level of energy, respectively, decreases efficiency, you don’t want to get out of bed in the morning and generally move.
- Insomnia, nightmares.
- A change in appetite, most often it increases, as a person with this disorder seeks to enjoy life, replacing the feeling of anxiety and hopelessness with food. But there are situations with the refusal of food. It all depends on how she is used to reacting to stressful situations and coping with tension.
- Lack of sexual desire, low excitability.
- Self-esteem becomes critically low. A person is not able to rely on his resources and capabilities, he does not believe that he is capable of something.
- Loss of satisfaction from activities that used to please. That is, he feels indifference to his favorite hobbies and even close people.
Treatment
Dysthymia is usually treated with psychotherapy as well as medication prescribed by a psychiatrist.
Usually these are antidepressants in order to normalize the mood and return the patient to experience the full range of feelings and sensations, in addition to sadness, hopelessness and sadness.
It is also important to diagnose for the presence of secondary mental illnesses that arose as a result of the development of this disorder.
For example, social phobia, panic attacks, dependence on alcohol, nicotine and other psychoactive substances that the patient uses in order to improve his emotional state may appear.
Being gloomy for several years is a rather difficult test. Why often there are attempts to commit suicide in order to get rid of suffering.
In severe cases, we can talk about «double depression», this is when dysthymia occurs with repeated depressive states.
Recommendations
- Dystim personalities should lead a healthy lifestyle. That is, follow the diet, do exercises, spend a lot of time outdoors and completely abandon nicotine and other substances that cause addiction.
- Stop secluded, in order to indulge in despondency, which is typical for this psychotype. Try to find the strength in yourself to communicate with other people, otherwise you will distance yourself so much that it will not be easy to join the social life that is in full swing around at such a moment.
- Look for reasons to laugh and be happy. Play the game, trying to find as many positive reasons as possible for a situation. For example, if it started to rain, then think about why it’s good and not bad if you don’t like it.
- If your loved one belongs to this character accentuation, praise him as often as possible. This will help raise his self-esteem and, possibly, mood.
Completion
And that’s all for today, dear readers! Finally, we recommend that you familiarize yourself with other character accentuations, both according to Lichko and according to Leonhard’s classification.
You can start, for example, with a conformal personality type.
Take care of yourself and be happy!
The material was prepared by a psychologist, Gestalt therapist, Zhuravina Alina