Dr. T in the St. Tammany News

 

Tina Thomas, the Personality Theorist

 

By Debbie Glover, St. Tammany News

Dr. Tina Thomas

Dr. Tina Thomas

Nestled beyond Abita Springs on acres of beautiful natural grounds sits Abita Springs Be & Be, a quiet getaway of nature preserved, with amenities such as a hot tub and labyrinth for meditation walks. The two cabins provide all amenities without telephones, TV or kids—a nice adult retreat for a couple wanting to get away from it all, or perhaps an author wanting to finish a literary work.

Owner of the property is Tina Thomas, PhD. Thomas holds her degree in biopsychology, a field in which she excels. She is also a registered nurse, a licensed clinical social worker and a TEDx speaker. She currently is the director of the Gestalt Institute and Relationship Center of New Orleans.

She has been credited with cracking the code of human personality and is the author of several academic studies and books, including “Understanding People from the Inside Out,” the language of the nine basic personalities; “A Gentle Path,” a new guide that will help you harness your knowledge and inner resources to achieve your dreams; “Enlighten Up,” which contains an explanation on how to become a more enlightened person; and her latest work, “The Personality Puzzle … Solved.”

Thomas’ definition of personality is “how a person thinks, feels and behaves consistently over time.”

She explains her findings through the chemicals found in the brain, neurotransmitter pathways, including norepinephrine, the thinking neurotransmitter; serotonin, the well-being neurotransmitter; and dopamine which helps control the brain’s reward and pleasure centers as well as energy.

The nine personality types each have their own combinations of these chemicals and a complex combination of the chemicals, which would be biologically based, and other influences create each person’s individual personality.

Examples of some of the personality types include the following:

Reformers are principled, orderly perfectionists and self-righteous. They have a fear of being bad and are sometimes tempted to be overly critical. Examples of this type include as a high performer, Gandhi; a low functioning example would be the Church Lady.

Achievers admire success, and want others to admire their successes. They have a basic fear of being worthless. Also called the hero, an example of a high functioning achiever personality would be John F. Kennedy, with the darker side of the personality type Jeffrey Dahmer.

Thinkers or Investigators include at a high function Albert Einstein; low function would be the Unabomber. They are the most mentally intense, and make maximum use of their intellectual capacities. They think before they act, are excellent investigators, sharp observers and have a fear of being helpless, incapable or incompetent.

The Loyalist is engaging, committed, defensive and paranoid. An example of the low functioning loyalist gone bad would be Adolph Hitler, with the either you are with me, or against me mindset. When they trust someone they are extremely loyal to that individual

The Leader is self-confident, decisive, dominating and combative. An average functioning example of this personality was John Wayne, high functioning was Gen. George Patton. Put it under pressure in a stress culture, you get Saddam Hussein, the boss or leader personality gone bad.

There is a wide range of how a personality expresses itself. Thomas said, “We believe it begins with the level of functioning the family is, then over time, with therapy, life circumstances and influences, life changes or even with certain medications, the personality either gets healthier or deteriorates, depending upon how the individual processes their life. No one is really thrilled with their low function aspects.”

Thomas says that different things can affect personalities, such as the food we eat; the music we listen to; stressors in our lives; exercise; and the people that we interact with on a daily basis. Even the other chemicals and hormones in our bodies can affect personality, such as thyroid.

She has found that three of the nine personality types are emotional eaters.

“I am very interested in how we can make choices related to those influences that support our personality in a positive and healthy way,” said Thomas.

“Even though personality is the lens through which we perceive our world, and perhaps the lampshade through which others perceive us, the essence of who we are, at our core, some might call it spirit or soul, others might call it consciousness or mind remains a mystery and perhaps that part of us, by its very nature, will always be beyond our ability to label,” said Thomas.

 
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