#synflow

[enneaqueen]

Mika | so/sx 2w3

[9-w-1]

Synflow and Contraflow are silly

Launching this blog with a theory that's been in my mind for a while now, and it's the fact that old typology tumblr gave too much importance to syn and contra.

Some time ago i read a post (idr who wrote it but if i find it again i'll link it here) that explained something that made me go oh fuck, that's true actually. If we assume that sx blinds are the majority of people in the world, are we really so sure that basically half of sx blinds (sosps) are really so bad at living like people describe them to be? Like, since I've been in a new city for uni I've met lots of people. Most of them are soc doms because Italy is a soc dom country. Most soc doms I've met were sosps, and they were not the awkward anxious ridden fuckups of society that ppl think sosps are. Actually, most of them were definitely more adjusted into society than I am, and this takes me to a point I discussed with a friend: in our society soc and sp are the most valued instincts to have, so sp blinds and soc blinds are definitely gonna seem more "contraflow" than a healthy and adjusted sosp. Like, take a Fe dom 9 core sosp for example. Are we really gonna assume that this person is gonna have this extremely contra vibe to them? No. In fact, I'd say that an estp 7 core sosx is gonna vibe more contra to people than a 9 core sosp.

I don't think synflow and contraflow is inherently a bad theory, I think it needs some more expansion and thought because it fails to stand on its own, it's wonky:

Like, maybe it's a bit overemphasized. I don't wanna discard the theory completely, but it needs something more to work in my mind.

By default I still think that having both soc and sp puts you at an advantage in our society, and you're automatically more well adjusted. I've met some sosps with a wonkier sp, but most of them had normal sp like you would expect from a sxsp. My gf is a 3 core sosp and her sp is normal. It's not always there, but you can feel her sp wall sometimes, it's sudden, maybe then that's what contraflow is about, but she's not bad at socing at all. So yeah, stop being mean to soaps >:C But yeah i probably forgot to add other things i had in my mind so if anyone wants to add anything feel welcome to do so :3

[counterphobes]

Perspective is important

A rant about the general approach to typology and why it does more harm than good.

So, Instinctual variants has always been a bit controversial and hard to understand for people. Its the best theory to showcase the point I'm making because of its less direct nature. People, if they were synflow, would simply reject the synflow/contraflow dichotomy because it just "didn't make sense" which translated to: "I don't have it, so I can't understand it" Big obstacle for most people who try to get into it.

I found it easy, probably because it takes a lot of observation of others rather than taking people's word for it. Its not a clear cut set of descriptors of personality like enneagram, but a categorization of people's mental and social energy flows. The Se really helps me out here.

Instinctual variants, like the name suggests, are instinctual, lots of it is subconscious behavior but its very evident to other people. It shows in body language, adjustment to society, opinions, rather than set personality markers.

There used to be a theory talking about how the instincts develop based on survival needs, sx is pair bonding, so is community, and sp is basic survival. That was the idea. Personally, I never liked it much, but thats probably for my own lack of sp and the fact that I simply never viewed the world in terms of survival. Its very obvious this perspective was written by an sp-dom, and thats the thing, even if I have other problems with the survival idea -> like the overall lacking sp-blind descriptions because sp blindness inherently invalidates the association of sp=human drive for survival. ( I mean, erybody has that! Even sp-blinds!) or depicting sp-blinds as leaching off of others for survival, I still see the benefit because this perspective explains an sp-dom to me, someone I'm never gonna relate to, this is what they see in the world.

We should realize that the source of those descriptions basically give us an "in" to the brain of the author. Its much more valuable to me to dissect somebody's perspective. than somebody's personality. How their brain works, how they conceptualize things around them, how they're able to understand the world.

Logic is not objective, the things we consider to make sense don't make sense for another and their inability to understand our point doesn't translate to any lack of intelligence. It simply points towards a perspective so different, their way of making sense and understanding things is not comparable, and thats interesting. We need perspectives, we need different interpretations, we need to understand eachother, thats what typology is about for me. Not "who is more intelligent" and making a pissing contest out of it.

I encourage anyone to make their own theories, to make sense of things themselves, translate your world with the descriptors of typology and let other people begin to understand your perspective. Analysis is typology, no matter where you're coming from, as long as you're dissecting things and sorting them, I wish to know by what order the world works to you. What categories do you apply? What similarities do you see? Where do you recognize yourself? What do you find important?

Tell everyone! Write your own shit. Who cares.

[azenta]

How can I determine if I'm 7w6 sx/so or sx/sp?

The main way to know is by noticing which blind spot the you have, and knowing if you rather attract or repel (syn or contra) also greatly help to tell them apart. 

Sp blindness implies someone who rather neglect or sacrifice its material gains and intimacy quite easily. They prefer challenging and varied connections, therefore it makes them the most shallow and scattered 7 out there. Shallow because Sp blindspot paired with 7 imply a disinterest for intimacy and so, a sort of avoidance of it also. They’re most likely Pe dom or have their Pe integrated on top of having their ego fixated on Pe.

Sx/so over So/sx will be more of a show off and so, more focused on competitivity. Therefore, they tend to use connections around and their engagement to spice things up and heighten the stake of any activity. This usually translates in challenging people to all sort of stuff, casual to serious business, so they tend to be the biggest risk-taker of the 7s. I’d say they’re the most sensitive to being challenged by people, as challenges will be their main source of stimulation, and soc plus w6 will make them sensitive to engage into those challenges due to search for appartenance this combo creates. They tend to have a cp w6 usually because of this, and to be confounded for 7w8. By comparison, So/sx 7′s thrill is to connect and get engaged in social activities of all sort. So/sx 7 will use challenging activities to bond and improve their engagement with whatever they’ve chosen to. It will be less axed toward competition and more so on challenges that force people to cooperate, since So/sx being synflow pushes towards unity compared to contra in Sx/so, which highlights individual survival, as showcased above. This makes So/sx 7s the typical hyperactive social butterfly 7s. 

Soc blindness on the other hand will imply someone who will sacrifice or neglect engagements and social needs. They’ll prefer intimate but challenging connections, which makes them the most typical ride or die 7s. Therefore, they are much more prone to runner-chaser dynamic, which isn't remotely better than being shallow. It’s exciting, but not lasting. They’re not less likely Pe dom, but they are more prone to have some introverted development or ego fixation on introverted function, more likely Pi if they are Pe dom. It is more likely for a 7 soc blind to have an introverted dominant function, compared to the sp blind ones, but they are likely fixated on their Pe as well.

Sx/sp over Sp/sx will be more of a ‘’chaser’’ for opportunities, and so more typically showcasing the assertion of 7s than the Sp/sx stacking. Therefore, they’re the kind to track down what could stimulate them and enjoy the play around getting what they want. They play it safer than Sx/so, as Sp makes them more aware of their resources (material or energy), but they also willingly spare those resources to then use them at the best opportune time in order to own up to any challenge they were seeking for. They are the most thrill seeker of 7s. By comparison, Sp/sx is more the runner, purposefully daring people to some challenges and then vanishing once it is done, creating a sense of wanting more and of desire in their targets. They give just enough to hook people up, but then retreat in Sp, in their safe space, all while creating a storm around to keep them entertained and stimulated. They are non-conventional 7s, as their assertion will play more in spontaneously creating limits out of their ass nowhere, which purposefully instigate tensions and often create all sort of conflict justifying their avoidance (aka, running away). I’d simply call them the most typical avoidant 7s. The syn and contra distinction here would be that an Sx/sp 7 is more engaging as it prefers to pursue what it is attracted to, while the Sp/sx 7 tend to be dismissive and hard to establish anything with. Even tho Sx/sp 7 doesn't guarantee much more commitment on the long run, due to being 7 core and having soc as a blind spot, they are still more open to try to establish some kind of bond, while Sp/sx finds its thrill by maintaining anyone on verge, preventing more often than not to establish anything at all.

What the Sx/so and Sx/sp stacking in 7 core have in common is how they’ll both seek to challenge themselves one way or another. So, they’ll be the most assertive 7s. The biggest distinction is how Sx/sp is more picky and will invest their energy for a longer period of time, but won’t be aware of the engagement it can implicate and will likely disengage themselves the moment the challenge isn’t relevant anymore. While Sx/so is more willing to any kind of challenge and more willing to engage themselves in all sort of opportunities, but will invest less of their energy as it is shared in the ‘’many’’ and therefore depleted compared to their soc blind counter-part.

I would recommend to get further information to get a broader idea of Sp blindness vs Soc blindness, and even syn vs contra flow, so you can get enough information to make a more thoughtful judgement on whether you’re one of those. That’s what I had to share on that matter. There could be more nuances to be added, but I need more specific question to pin point what details you, or anyone, would like to know about.

So, I hope it could be helpful. If you have any other question, you’re welcome to ask. 

[istj-hedonist]

Maybe dumb ask lmao but re: ur sp/sx is contraflow so it's very sp, are contraflow types seemingly more dominated by their first instinct compared to the synflow variant (like sx/so will seem more "sx" or w/e than sx/sp)?

with synflow the functions are just in balance and the second instinct serving the dominant one well and you can mostly see them working in symbiosis.

for contraflow it’s more like “90% the dominant instinct only”.. then “10% the second instinct going nuts and ignoring the first one completely and ruining everything the dominant instinct stands for”... and then going back to the dominant one who needs to clean up the mess.

e.g. sx/so will mostly look “extremely sx with no soc” and then at rare times “extremely soc with no sx” before returning back to sx-mode. whereas sx/sp is a constant flow of steady intense sx + a touch of sp.

[weedinduceddepression]

hello my lovely contraflows!! :) i decided to make us a contraflow pride flag - it’s time we stood up to our oppressor (the synflows) and show pride in who we are!!! if anyone is curious, katy perry stands for so/sp, the axe murderer stands for sp/sx, and the witch stands for sx/so :) :) :)  i hope all of my contras are staying safe today - it can be scary living in a synflowarchal society!!!

(synflows you can reblog)

[asinskare]

i have a hypothesis abt contraflow development!!

okay so idk at what point people take on their first instinct but i don’t think it’s unreasonable to assume people are either born with it or it shows within the 1st year of life. and the natural path for every child is synflow so if they are born/show sx their natural evolution would be to have sp as the second instinct. i want to put forth that this is the default. if you let a child develop their second instinct without interference this is how it will develop.

so my hypothesis is that contraflows develop by having the unnatural instinct forced on them by their parents/community/circumstances! if a child is born with/shows sx and their parents force them to pay attention to soc because they believe it’s important the child will develop the contraflow orientation. so contraflows will likely develop when their parents’ or primary caretaker’s first instinct is counter to the natural orientation of the child’s first instinct.

i had this thought bc of @galacticlust thank you!! for explaining your experience it really helped me decide on this bc my experience with sp is similar to yours with soc!!

[estj-destroyer-of-misinformation]

You're so synflow omg

Yay I’m functional