Are You Living Your Enneagram… or Rewriting It? The Story That Kept You Safe with Katie Gustafson (The Velvet)

About this episode

Kelly Henderson and Katie Gustafson discuss how our Enneagram types are shaped by childhood survival stories and the potential for growth beyond those narratives.

Kelly sits down with psychotherapist and Enneagram specialist Katie Gustafson for a conversation that challenges the way we think about personality, identity, and growth. Instead of asking “who am I, really?”—this episode explores a different question: what story did you learn to tell to stay safe… and are you still living inside it? They walk through the nine Enneagram types not as fixed identities, but as early survival stories we wrote in childhood—patterns shaped by our environments, needs, and experiences. From the achiever who equates worth with success to the peacemaker who keeps the peace at the cost of their own voice, these stories may feel familiar—but they’re not final. The conversation moves into what it actually looks like when those patterns stop working, how those moments show up in the body, and why that tension might be less of a breakdown and more of an invitation to change. Socials:  @katiegustafson.co website: katiegustafson.co   Watch The Velvet's Edge on YouTube! Email us:  theedge@velvetsedge.com TikTok: @velvetsedge Follow the podcast on Instagram: @VelvetsEdgePodcast HOST: Kelly Henderson //…

People in this episode

Hosts: Kelly, Kelly Henderson

Guest: Katie Gustafson

Topics covered

• Enneagram
• personality
• identity
• growth
• childhood experiences

Keywords

• psychotherapy
• self-discovery
• patterns
• change

Mentioned in this episode

Products: Enneagram

Books & works: The Story That Kept You Safe, The Velvet

More episodes of Velvet's Edge with Kelly Henderson

• Brain Health Habits: What Kelly and Chip Are Prioritizing Now (The Edge) · June 12, 2026 · 41 min
• The Brain Health Habits That Matter More Than You Think with Dr. John Lewis (The Velvet) · June 10, 2026 · 54 min
• The Power of a Fresh Perspective (The Edge) · June 5, 2026 · 54 min
• June Astrology with Master Astrologer Marvin Wilkerson: The Next Chapter (The Velvet) · June 3, 2026 · 38 min
• What Love Looks Like After the Honeymoon Phase (The Edge) · May 29, 2026 · 31 min
• What Happens After the Honeymoon Phase? With Thais Gibson (The Velvet) · May 27, 2026 · 1h 2m