Benefits of Using the Enneagram for Counselors in Clinical Practice

While there are many different ways to approach therapy, I have found the Enneagram can provide deep insights into a client’s personality and serve as one of the most empowering and effective ways for a counselor to quickly ascertain a client’s core wounding, fears, motivations, issues, and desires as well as illuminate their innate gifts.

Below are a few significant benefits to using the Enneagram in clinical practice:

Improves Communication and Rapport
If a counselor can identify a client’s type early on, it enables the therapist to adjust their language and approach to match the client’s worldview. As a result, the client feels seen and understood culminating in an experience of “you get me”, which is likely to increase their willingness to continue with a course of therapy, strengthen the therapeutic bond, and set the stage for deeper work.

Enhances Client Understanding
With input from the client, a counselor can begin to get a sense for each client’s type and explore topics as well as patterns of thinking, feeling, and behavior that are associated with their type. Soon, clarity around a client’s core wounding, fears, motivation, desires, issues, vulnerabilities, defenses, and coping mechanisms will emerge. Counselors can then suggest themes or topics for insight and exploration and begin to introduce therapeutic interventions that will be relevant and helpful to clients.

Informs Therapeutic Approaches
Knowing a client’s Enneagram type allows therapists to identify and customize interventions to suit the client’s personality. Each type struggles with certain patterns of thought, emotion, and behavior. For example, Sixes will need reassurance, effective ways for managing worry, and help with developing self-soothing skills while Fours could benefit from activities for creative self-expression, creating supports for follow-through on action plans, and improving their ability to manage emotions.

Identifies Client’s Core Struggle and Defense Mechanism
Each type struggles in a particular way and has favored a defense mechanism. Recognizing these defenses can help counselors proactively address potential resistance to the therapist’s deepening agenda and guide clients toward healthier and adaptive coping strategies.

Supports Client’s Personal Growth and Healing
The Enneagram can not only identify key themes and issues to be worked on in therapy, but can also outline a path for development and growth in a client’s life, work, and relationships. It encourages clients to integrate their unique strengths while working on their weaknesses in service to greater well-being and relational health.

Facilitates Conflict Resolution & Relationship Repair
Understanding the client’s type and how it interacts with other types can assist counselors in identifying useful ways for clients to improve their relationships by not only helping them see and understand themselves and their underlying needs, but also gently guide them to acknowledge how they may be contributing to challenging relational dynamics and communication issues in their relationships.

Encourages Client’s Mindfulness & Emotional Regulation
As counselors develop a greater understanding of their clients by uncovering a client’s type, they can begin to suggest mindfulness practices based on type. For example, Ones may find yoga or a body scan meditation more appealing because they are body-based. Fives may enjoy a traditional meditation practice. Sevens may prefer a form of Guided Meditation that is likely to help them maintain a moving focus while also practicing stillness.

Such mindfulness practices encourage clients to engage in self-reflection to find more emotional balance, compassionately explore patterns, and clarify their values as well as inspire them to courageously pursue their hopes, dreams, and wishes.

Offers a Holistic View of Mental Health
Unlike some approaches to therapy, the Enneagram provides a holistic approach to mental health. It integrates emotional, cognitive, and behavioral aspects of being thereby helping therapists capture the “bigger picture” of a client’s struggle and understand how best to support each client in their pursuit of healing and growth.

Conclusion

While the Enneagram can be very useful to counselors focused on personal growth, it can be beneficial to supplement treatment using additional approaches to therapy to address specific issues. Clients bring a myriad of issues to therapy and there are many different ways to work with clients. I encourage you to use what works best for you and your client based on your client’s presenting needs and goals of therapy.

Have fun with it!

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