**🔼 Up:** [[Character Strategies]] **⏺️ With:** [[Sensitive-Emotional Character Strategy]] **\#️⃣ Tags:** #Psychology #Psychotherapy #Character > **🌱 Planted:** Mon 21 July 2025 --- # Overview | Category | Core Belief | Energetic Flow | Barriers | Needs | Strengths | Other Names [^1] | | -------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Safety-Seeking | The world is unsafe, people are dangerous or invasive, and I must stay hidden or separate to survive. I don’t belong here. | Overbounded (tense, tight, energetically contracted) | Insight (used to block feeling or connection) | To be seen and met. To pierce the veil of separateness and feel human warmth, clarity, and contact | Sensitive, psychic, spiritual, imaginative, artistic, creative, innovative, intellectual, perceptive, good at tracking others | Sensitive-Analytic (Hakomi), Schizoid (Reich, Lowen), Leaving (Kessler) | The Sensitive-Withdrawn[^2] strategy is part of the 'Safety-Seeking' category of character styles and is centred around core belief that it is not safe to express oneself or that one does not belong here. It forms in very early stages of life (from birth up until around six months old) when the infant can't yet separate themselves from the world around them. Whatever happens externally is felt internally, so if the [[Holding Environment]] is harsh or lacking in warmth, the child takes that on which leads to feelings of immense terror and anxiety. Without consistent [[Empathic Attunement]] and co-regulation from the caregiver, the baby's [[Nervous System]] falls into survival states where there's flight (withdrawal from experience, dissociation and retreat into the inner world), fight (hyperarousal, anxiety, chronic tension, and repressed anger), and freeze ([[Muscular & Emotional Armouring]], terror, numbness). To cope, the child retreats from the rawness of human experience into the inner world. They often limit their expression, stay quite and prefer isolation as they delve into worlds of fantasy or logic (especially when under stress). They may appear shy or distant, and are usually more comfortable with thinking, analysing, and fantasising than feeling or connecting. Others are kept at a distance and the body becomes rigid and tight. The world feels harsh, and existence can feel painful. At its core the strategy is a way of surviving in a world that once felt overwhelming, scary and unwelcoming. Yet, there are still gifts to be excavated from this strategy. Those with this pattern often have highly developed imaginative or analytical minds. They tend to distance themselves from conventional ways of being and are often the original thinkers, creative artists or spiritual truth seekers among us. ## The Child's Experience | Experience with Caretakers | Adaptive Strategy | [[Presence\|True Nature]] | | --------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------- | | “I feel hostility, coldness, and abandonment”. | “I’ll protect myself by withdrawing, freezing, or bracing myself”. | “People are warm and there for me when I need them”. | | “I’m ignored or attacked”. | “I’ll protect myself by hiding from people and not expressing myself”. | “I am welcome here in the world”. | | “I’m not accepted, loved, cared about”. | “I’ll live in my own world of thought and fantasy”. | “I naturally get love, human warmth”. | | “I’m usually afraid or in terror. It’s not safe to need”. | “I’ll live without feeling my feelings, and I won’t ask for anything”. | “I feel safe and secure". | | “I don’t belong here”. | “I’ll keep a low profile so people don’t notice me". | “I’m a part of a whole”. | | “People are cold and hateful”. | “I’ll avoid personal contact and deal with the world through my ideas”. | “People are safe, gentle, and loving". | ## Developmental Origins The Sensitive-Analytic strategy forms in the very early stages of life (from birth, or even in the womb) where at this stage, the baby doesn’t have a clear boundary between self and world, so everything that happens in the environment is felt as if it’s happening inside them. Babies in this stage of life need a reliable, dependable and comforting [[Holding Environment]]. If they don't have this, and this strategy develops, this might be due to: - Cold or disconnected parenting where the caregiver is distant, unresponsive, or emotionally unavailable. - Birth trauma or medical complications including premature birth, hospitalisation, or separation from the mother. - Abuse, neglect, or violent environments. - A particularly sensitive [[Nervous System]] that is overwhelmed by stimuli. - A mother who is ill, [[Trauma|Traumatised]], or unable to [[Attunement|Attune]] to the baby’s needs. - Subtle cues of rejection where the baby feels deeply unwelcome, misunderstood, or like something is wrong with them. # Characteristics ## The Body The body of someone with the Sensitive-Withdrawn strategy often tells the story of withdrawal and tension. Energy isn’t fully present in the body, rather it’s held in as if bracing against collapse or invasion. Instead than grounding downward, energy tends to move up and out which gives a floating or ungrounded quality. The sympathetic [[Nervous System]] is often on high alert, but the outward appearance may be frozen, controlled, or emotionally flat. There’s minimal softness or natural flow. Eyes may appear blank or distant, and the body may feel tight, cold, or rigid. Potential physical traits: - Energy not fully in the body (pulled inward or held above) - Paradoxical breathing (pulling the stomach in on inhale) - Uncoordinated or disjointed movement - Tension especially in the spine, base of skull, and chest - A narrow, thin, contracted physical appearance - Joints may feel loose or unstable, walk can be disjointed - Skin may feel cool, circulation poor - Eyes are deep-set, often with a blank or guarded expression - Little to no shoulder presence, arms hang loosely - Chest and pelvis often constricted - Feet may have high arches, body may feel ungrounded - Headaches are common ## Core Beliefs of Self and World At the heart of this strategy is a sense that the world is dangerous and unwelcoming, and that there is something deeply wrong with the self. Core beliefs may sound like: - “I am not safe.” - “There’s something wrong with me.” - “I don’t belong here.” - “The world is harsh and invasive.” - “I can only exist if I don’t need.” There’s often a loss of contact with the body and feelings. The person may retreat into abstract thought, spiritual ideas, or imaginary inner worlds. While these provide safety, they also disconnect them from needs, vitality, and embodied experience. This strategy also tends to bring a preoccupation with death, disintegration, or being overwhelmed. At the core, there is often frozen fear, dissociation, and the belief that one’s presence is too much or not welcome. ## Relationship Patterns and Behaviours People with this pattern often seem distant or lost in their own world. They may prefer solitude, or relate to others through ideas or symbols rather than direct emotional contact. Intimacy can feel dangerous or overwhelming, so they may keep others at a distance (even in close relationships). They are often cautious, quiet, and emotionally reserved. Communication may lean toward the abstract or metaphorical rather than the personal. Naming and expressing emotions can be difficult, and sometimes emotional expression can feel out of sync with what’s being said. These individuals may struggle under pressure or in social situations. Affection may be shown awkwardly or withheld altogether. While there may be moments of connection, they are often followed by withdrawal. Relationships that allow for space and distance often feel more manageable. ## How It Protects This strategy originally forms to protect the highly sensitive infant from overwhelming or unsafe contact. It serves to: - Keep the vulnerable self hidden, to survive emotionally or physically. - Minimise emotional input that would be too much to bear. - Avoid triggering the dread of annihilation or collapse that comes with relational contact. ## How It's Reinforced The Sensitive-Analytic pattern tends to reinforce itself in a loop: 1. The person withdraws and becomes hard to reach, which leads to being overlooked or misunderstood. 2. This lack of attuned contact confirms their feeling of being invisible or wrong. 3. These feelings reactivate the original terror and shame. 4. In response, the person retreats further, thus reinforcing the belief that it’s safer to stay hidden. ## Higher Purpose The Sensitive-Analytic strategy carries the seed of great transformation. The purpose of this adaptation is not to live forever in retreat, but to eventually face the core terror and integrate the fragmented [[Parts]] of the self, which carries potential to unlock immense creativity and inner wholeness. For some, this path becomes spiritual as they bring the formless into form, or expressing the mystical in tangible ways. As they reclaim their right to exist and feel, their gifts can flow into the world. # Working Therapeutically ## Presenting Issues Those with a Sensitive-Analytic strategy often arrive in the therapeutic container with a sense that something is missing, even if they can't quite name what it is. Common presenting issues include: - Fear, anxiety, and confusion. - A sense of not fitting in or not belonging anywhere. - Difficulty forming or maintaining close relationships. - Trouble accessing or expressing emotions. - Strange or dissociative inner experiences that feel hard to explain. ## Missing Experiences At the core of this strategy is a set of [[Missing Experience|Missing Experiences]] that were never felt fully or safely. What’s often missing: - A basic sense of safety and freedom from fear. - Feeling welcome in the world and at home in the body. - Being seen, appreciated, and warmly met by others. - Joy, playfulness, spontaneity, and emotional aliveness. ## Therapeutic Aims Working with this strategy requires deep attunement, patience, and pacing. The practitioner's [[Presence]] is often more powerful than any method, tool or intervention. Therapeutic goals may include: - Building trust through consistent, respectful contact. - Moving slowly, tracking the client's pace and signals carefully. - Normalising defences, not pushing for change too fast (See: [[Change Without Force]]). - Helping the client recognise and articulate what they feel. - Gently reconnecting feelings to the body. - Reducing hypervigilance and encouraging regulation. - Supporting the emergence of boundaries, agency, and self-definition. - Offering genuine warmth and delight in the client’s presence. - Making space for underlying terror and rage, when safe to do so. - Affirming that something good, alive, and human exists within. ## Therapeutic Modalities Because this strategy is shaped around withdrawal from embodied contact, experiential and body-inclusive therapies tend to be helpful. Some supportive modalities: - Dreamwork. - Art therapy or creative expression. - Writing and journaling. - Feldenkrais and gentle movement practices. - Yoga. - [[Focusing]] - Tai Chi. - Spontaneity or improvisation groups. - Small group or community-based experiences. ## Probes In the [[Hakomi Method]], probes are short, emotionally charged phrases the therapist offers to help surface a client's [[Core Material]]. They can be thought of as invitational statements for the client to study how they [[Organisation of Experience|Organise Experience]] in [[Mindfulness]]. When used carefully and tactfully, they can bring up subtle reactions which can be explored together. Some useful probes for this strategy: - “You are welcome here.” - “What you feel is natural.” - “You belong.” - “It’s OK to feel.” - “You don’t have to fear what’s inside you.” - “You can be kind to yourself.” - “I’m so glad you are here.” - “There’s nothing wrong with you.” - “Welcome to the world.” ## Experiments Somatic and relational experiments can help a client begin to shift out of their habitual patterns, but only when there’s enough safety and resourcing. Experiments are small, clear, and framed as explorations. Possible experiments for this strategy: - Making eye contact, looking away, noticing the impact. - Exploring the boundary between touch and no-touch. - Playing with physical distance: moving toward and away. - Making sounds or expressive vocalisations. - Turning the head side to side (instead of remaining frozen). - Letting the therapist 'take over' vigilance or tension for a moment. - Firm, supportive touch at the skin boundary (if welcome). - Sensory grounding (e.g., textures, pressure, warmth). - Boundary and containment exercises. - Self-soothing movements or gestures. - Bringing energy down from the head or eyes into the body. - Feeling pleasure or curiosity in the body. - Practicing dissociation and return, and learning to come back. [^1]: People found these older/alternative names difficult to take in and relate to because they were pathologising. These names evolved through many iterations (and many practitioners) to where they are today so they're easier to engage with. [^2]: This work was created and amalgamated from a variety of resources including [[Body-Centered Psychotherapy by Ron Kurtz]], Hakomi Mindfulness-Centered Somatic Psychotherapy by Halko Weiss, Greg Johanson & Lorena Monda, Marilyn Morgan and Pat Ogden's work on Character, and various other handouts sourced online.