Do you get sick less than others? Is it possibly type related?

apemon

apemon

Permanent Fixture
MBTI
INFJ
Enneagram
9 wO
I was talking with a buddy the other day and he (INTJ) mentioned he had seen the flu was widespread. We got to talking and neither one of us could remember being sick with colds or flu in a while. In fact I cannot remember the last time I was ill with one of those passing things. Could this possibly be a type thing? There are times I don't take the best care of myself (workin' on it) and still don't even when others around me are sick. Any thoughts on this?
 
Hmm, *looks over at sick INTJ brother* I wouldn't say it's a type thing. I haven't been sick with the flu ever, and the last time I was too sick to eat/go to school was about 3 years ago when I had a minor bug, and before then I can't remember when I was last ill to that degree.

I'm so healthy right now. Not even a hint of a runny nose. And I'm not even cold. In fact, I have barely worn socks in the past month.

In my case, I think it's the combination of all the meditation/energy work I do and the fact that I volunteer in a hospital and spent an entire semester working with various bacteria in the lab, so my immune system is a boss at the moment.
 
The other day I was talking with my ENFJ friend about how much we like waffles. Neither of us could name anyone else who likes waffles as much as us.

This must be a type thing too. :m159:
 
I was just writing about this on here not too long ago but I can't be bothered to find the post right now. But to answer your question: yes, I get sick way less than others. No, I don't think it's type related at all. It has more to do with factors such as:


  • genetic and immune system fitness
  • diet (especially vegetable and water intake)
  • sleep
  • stress levels
  • activity levels
  • whether or not one has a good regimen of antioxidants available when illnesses first take hold

...etc. As a kid, people always commented on how fast I'd heal from cuts and bruises and such. Part of that is coming from a genetic line of healthy people but I also attribute it to being raised in a stable, happy environment and my mom always making nutritious meals.

Right now, I'm doing well in all those categories and then some - so I could probably lick the inside of a dive bar toilet bowl somewhere and be fine. But when if I start losing sleep and stress goes up, I'm way more susceptible to getting ill.
 
Immunity and personality are very distinct structures. While I would not strictly correlate them, it has been found that positive emotions, associated with general positivity, can have an affect on health (read: stress affects immunity). One of my positive psychology textbooks cited a study from 2002 that found patients with greater well-being and positive outlooks have more effective immune system responses via higher NK cell production from being less stressed. Ergo, if a health-personality correlation is to be made, I would say resistance to disease can be an indirect benefit of psychologically stable members of any type who are rewarded for using their cognitive functions deftly. In my {youthful} experience, doing so tends to make one more capable of navigating challenges, evading psychological distress, and finding personal fulfillment.

In general, health is affected by rest, genetics, diet, exercise/affect, chemical balances, and stress {if memory serves}. None of these are directly related to personality.

{If anyone's interested in positive psych itself, this link may be helpful.}

Edit: Korg beat me to it.
 
I used to get sick 2 or 3 times a year, but last December I quit smoking, and started jogging and taking vitamins.
I didn't get sick at all this year.
 
niffer said:
The other day I was talking with my ENFJ friend about how much we like waffles. Neither of us could name anyone else who likes waffles as much as us.

This must be a type thing too. :m159:
Click to expand...

If you have them with chicken I'm right there with 'ya.
 
I suppose so. Even when almost everyone around me is ill and contagious, I don't seem to get sick. My coworkers tend to catch a cold and pass it on to the rest us, but it'll just skip over me. The most I'll ever get is a runny nose and a sore throat every rare once in a while (like maybe once every few years), and it clears up in a day or two. I also can't recall ever having had a flu, unless I had one as a child and I was too young to remember (I've also never been vaccinated against the flu).

I don't think it has anything to do with type.
 
When others are getting sick with a bad flu, I might get a little runny nose stuff.

The only way I get sick is food poisoning - about three times ever, which isn't too bad, considering how often I eat out.

As for reasons... it could be connected to relatively more distant forms of social contact... or perhaps a more conscious awareness of hygene.
 
I'd love to say I don't get sick and hope I won't get sick after saying it.
 
i haven't been sick in quite a while, not since around december 2001

but i can give thanks to my DNA, its in the genes for sure
 
apemon said:
If you have them with chicken I'm right there with 'ya.
Click to expand...

:m185:

No, of course the two aren't correlated at all. The strength of one's immune system is a culmination of their genetics, diet, exercise, and stress factors. Different types rationalize things differently and so it's entirely possible that certain types can arrive at the same conclusions regarding their health and so make similar lifestyle choices to ensure that they remain healthy.

As for the question, I don't get seriously ill (bedridden) more than maybe once per year. I get periods where I'll have a case of the sniffles or a sinus infection, a migraine or two, but very rarely do I actually get so bad that I have to stay inside and vegetate. That said, I do almost nothing to maintain my health - I've got good genes.
 
I rarely get sick and haven't been to the doctor's in years. But it's because I eat well, listen to my body, and exercise.
 
I've been a nurse for 15 years. The area I work in allows for a lot fairly extensive health history taking. When I assess people, I am also in the quiet habit of trying to place them using mbti.

Certain types of diseases most definately have personalities that go along with them. I can spot a fibromyalgia, chohn's, cardiac, endometriosis case, and so on, a mile away. I've not been able to really put to words for others, what those personalities are, but, almost always, I can guess the ailment before I'm told what it is. The trouble is, coming up with anything difinitive, so that you can turn it into a science. MBTI after all, is not a science, it's a theory.
 
Other than maybe a mild cold that lasts a couple of days, I haven't been knock down, drag out sick in well over 20 years.
I do wash my hands frequently. Especially during this time of year, and don't touch anything in public areas unless it can't be avoided.
I can't say with 100% certainty that is why I don't get sick often, but it has to play a role.
Now that I've posted this, I will surely wake up tomorrow looking and feeling like something the cat dragged in.
 
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