intuition- nature vs nurture

[amethyst]

hello after reading through some of the threads, especially the ones in the mature topics section, i noticed that a few INFJs mentioned that there were certain topics that were not discussed within their family. i have only recently discovered the MBTI type model and had always thought that my intuition mainly came from the fact that very little was openly discussed in my family. i do now believe that alot of it just comes naturally, but still feel that the skills may have been honed due to the fact that i always had to interpret my often extreme environment in a non-verbal manner from a young age. i was wondering how many INFJs have had a similar experience and whether any of you see a correlation between the two?

 

[poetrygirl]

Well actually my mom is an extrovert to the EXTREME. It's a rarity for her to NOT try to disscuss something. She was always pushing me to be social. But my father was an alcoholic and I was always on the edge never knowing what was going to happen. And my mother is so moody and random I never know if she's going to come home happy or raging mad. So I guess I developed it at an early age for survival.

 

[Milon]

For me, intuition wasn't nurtured at all, until College or later. So it's got to be nature for me! Growing up, I held the odd belief that it was better to be rational and analytical about everything - actually forced myself to be ASTJ (A = Ambivert). I certainly don't fit your correlation, but I don't disprove it either - never tried using my intuition at that point.

 

[acd]

i do now believe that alot of it just comes naturally, but still feel that the skills may have been honed due to the fact that i always had to interpret my often extreme environment in a non-verbal manner from a young age. i was wondering how many INFJs have had a similar experience and whether any of you see a correlation between the two?

While I'm actually not INFJ, I think there may be some similarities in upbringing and how it honed my intuitive skills.

I was brought up in a pretty hectic/violent environment... As a result, I used my imagination to escape reality as a means to cope and focus on everything that was good and beautiful and peaceful.

The intuition came as I had to focus on anticipating the next disaster and then begin to prepare for it. I learned to read people and piece together situations into a big picture, because those who cared for me had to try and maintain this facade of security through secrecy. Children who grow up in dysfunctional environments have to learn to think for themselves and question from a very early age, and not to trust their environments as those in a more stable upbringing are able to.

I'm not sure to what degree intuition is natural in a person, so I'm mainly just talking about the nurturing of it.

 

[IndigoSensor]

My intuition has always been natural for me, for as long as I can remember. It is deffinitely inate for me. My parents divorced when I was 4. My mom has, and still is very open and honest with me. Nothing is swept under the rug. My dad is the inverse of it. So I had the best of both worlds. I much more preferred my mom's method. As you can imagine, my intutive ways were discouraged and occaisonally punsihed by my dad.

I think for some there is a corrlation for what you said. But I think it is much more largely nature.

 

[KingOfSpades]

I think my intuition developed as a result of a broken home. I think it developed as a result of trying to anticipate when my mom and dad would fight, or when some other relatives would fight with my parents, etc. It was kind of a defense mechanism -- a way of reading in between the lines of alleged normalcy thrust upon me. It became a guide to navigate some of the chaos of growing up.

Now my intuition is almost second nature. It's like you can see a bit of the path ahead. I can't see actualities, just probabilities based on trajectory. It's tough to explain. I never see surprises, or things that just happen for some reason. So my intuition definitely has limits.

 

[amethyst]

thanks for that guys, that's really interesting.
merrytrees, what you said about the facade of security upheld with secrecy really resonated with me. i always felt betrayed because i knew the truth and knew i was being lied to. i realise now that truth and security are probably what i yearn for most in life. thanks so much for sharing, all of you

do any of you feel that your intuition is stronger in times of stress or have you noticed the opposite?

 

[arbygil]

My intuition, I think, was always with me, but I always had a great deal of fears as a child and I didn't learn to trust my intuition until much later. I would know things, but I would dismiss those things as untrue. My father, I believe, was an intuitive (he believed in many holistic things and fostered my healthy imagination) but he was also broken himself, and I never knew quite what to expect from him. My mother was practical and very Sensory and I loved her, but she was hard to talk to. My parents separated when I was very young (like Indigo - I was three or four) and I lived with my ESTP mother who loved me very much and protected me, but I knew inside that I couldn't really trust her with all of me. I was an only child, so I focused on playing more on my own and developing a rich inner life, and reading/writing a lot. So sometimes I used my intuition without knowing it, and it just "happened."

As to my intuition being stronger under stress, it's hard to say. If I calm down enough to use it, I'm okay. But if I'm in "freak out mode" from too much stress, I can't concentrate on anything.