Take Care of Your Friends: An Enneagram Guide to Interpersonal Relationships

by Christina S. Wilcox

Popular writer and artist Christina Wilcox uses her experience to teach others how to utilize the Enneagram to look outward, rather than inward. Learn to connect and support those from every position on the Enneagram, with Take Care of Your An Enneagram Guide to Interpersonal Relationships .

The Enneagram is usually marketed as a tool for self-discovery, but it is so much more than that. The language the Enneagram offers us can restore friendships, marriages, and more. It gives us a way to explain ourselves to those we want to be understood by. Removing the communal, relational aspect of the Enneagram is how the true magic of the Enneagram is lost.

Christina Wilcox’s playful yet informative guide will help her readers find ways to comfort their loved ones through the struggles of life in relation to the Enneagram. There is no linear road to recovery for anyone, but the Enneagram may give us a guiding light as we navigate through the things we rarely have a map for.

This book will include:
* Enneagram “profiles” for each type
* Tips on how to connect, develop friendships, and support others based on each * Enneagram type
* Eye-catching illustrations to illuminate examples of her tips throughout the process

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction

176 pages, Hardcover

Published July 30, 2024

About the author

Christina S. Wilcox is a 26-year-old author, mental health advocate, enneagram expert, and creative. You may recognize her from her first book Take Care of Your Type: An Enneagram Guide to Self-Care, or from one of her Instagram graphics.

In February of 2019, Christina began creating and posting content about her latest interest: the enneagram. Within 8 weeks, her account of 800 followers flooded with 30,000+ strangers. In less than a year, Christina had reached 90k+ followers on Instagram and found herself looking at a book contract in her email inbox.

With Book #2 releasing July 30th, Christina has continued to pursue her passion for writing and the analysis of behavior through the Enneagram. She hopes to advance her understanding of the Enneagram while expanding her written work and online content into other mental health topics outside of personality typing systems. She currently resides in Denver, Colorado with her husband Noah, and their puppy, Moose! When she’s not writing or creating, you can find Christina indulging in cozy video games, books across every genre, and quality time with friends and family.

Reviews

[Kelly Zander · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book helped me see how i am as a friend, what i need from a friend, and helped me put into perspective how to love my people so well. i loveeee to love my friends, so this book was amazing to have to understand how to do it well for each person specifically. this will be so great to have on the shelf to reference when i need. 🫶🏻

this author is simply unmatched!!! can’t wait to see more from her (hopefully all types of genres bc i love her writing style). not to mention she’s my bestie, so i love her vewwwwy much.

[lexi halsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

First book of the summer DONE! I’m giving this four stars unseats of five bc it didn’t like change my life, but in a way that’s what I appreciated most about it? I feel like with these types of books we search for an answer that will fix everything - but instead this book explained the everyday experience of life and taught me not only to love myself but my friends better! If you wanna read this book then you so should! But if ur not ready or don’t want to then don’t bc you won’t take away what u need to i think tbh

[Anna Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so much more than how to Take Care of Your Friends—I found the content applicable for friends, my partner, offspring, and even coworkers. Most notably, this guide helped me understand myself in a way I haven’t before.

I highly recommend this book for anyone to interacts with humans.

[Addy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book, more than her other one. I think she does a great job explaining the Enneagram in a way that works for those new to and familiar with the system. Wilcox takes a very compassionate view of each type, especially the ones that tend to be seen more negatively (namely 4 and 8), and I appreaciate that. When looking at 8 specifically (because I'm biased), I think she represented the type very well in a way that other experts I've read don't. She acknowledged our humanity and lack of desire for conflict (like anyone else), and I felt very seen. I also really like her focus on relationship difficulties being more because of a person's health level and not the traits of each type.
As for the chapters on how to be a better friend, I think they are all very well written and realistic. Each chapter talks about how other types can better take care of each type and how each type can be a better friend, and I appreaciated having both sides shown. Overall, this is a very informative and fun Enneagram book I'd recommend for those wanting to use the system in their interpersonal relationships. Just try to not get too annoyed by the various editing mistakes that somehow made it into the final print version.

[Panda Incognito · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about how the Enneagram can help people better understand their own and their friends' behavior in relationship to each other. The premise appealed to me, since so many Enneagram books focus on giving advice for intimate partnerships, without also applying similar principles to platonic friendships. However, even though I found aspects of this book helpful, it's very simplistic overall, and the descriptions of the different types include much more overlap than necessary, without enough distinction.

This book shares some helpful advice for how different Enneagram types tend to engage with their friends, especially when dealing with conflict and tough emotions. There are also bullet-point lists that go through how different types relate to each other, and in what ways they are most inclined to misjudge people with the other types. Some people will find this helpful, and the book will appeal to the author's social media following, but I don't think that this book added anything substantial to the conversation, and the topic is also really niche, since you can only use this book effectively if your friends are also interested in the Enneagram and have typed themselves.

I received a temporary digital copy from NetGalley, and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

[Jaymie · Rating 4 out of 5]

[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

4 stars = Great! Might re-read.

I enjoyed this new Enneagram resource focused on interpersonal relationships. I'm not sure the author did enough with the "six pillars of friendship" to make their inclusion work out. But the rest is great - I loved the early descriptions of all of the types.

Includes sections on stress/security (called "health levels" which is different than the way other writers/instructors talk about health levels with the Enneagram), triads, stances, conflict styles. I felt like the author's descriptions were fresh and not rehashed ways of describing things I've read a lot about. Her approach makes this the sort of book I would read start to finish rather than just pull out my type info and then move on.

If someone's really interested in digging into the Enneagram, I would start with other resources, but this would make a nice gift for someone who has done that initial work, knows their type, and wants to apply the Enneagram to their interpersonal relationships.

[*ੈ✩‧₊˚Sassy Little Hippy˚₊‧✩ ੈ* · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 ⭐️
I liked the focus of this being around how to listen, understand and support your friends based on their enneagram type. It gives me similar vibes of the 5 Love Languages, and how you need to meet their language style to truly help them feel seen, heard and felt.

The downside is that I can’t say I know any of my friend’s enneagram types…or mine, for that matter. I feel like I teeter around 4 different ones. I would hope that buying buying a book like this, I could get guidance on where to take this test without having to sell my information away in exchange.

In concept, this is an insightful psychological approach to stepping outside of our own mindset to try and understand others, and I always appreciate and respect that. I’ll have to see if I can convince all my friends to take an enneagram test and out some of this to the test before I can give this more stars though.

Thanks to NetGalley, Andrews McMeel Publishing, and Christina Wilcox for providing me with a complimentary ARC to review.

[Kayla Stogner · Rating 3 out of 5]

With her first book “ Take Care of Type” Christina delved into the enneagram and how each person could use the personality framework to better understand themselves. In her new book “ Take Care of Your Friends” she turns that insight outward, helping each type learn to relate, recognize each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and become better friends. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and thought it gave great insight into how different types of people could relate to each other. Thank you to netgalley for a digital copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

[Carlie Harris · Rating 3 out of 5]

What an enjoyable easy read for both those new to the enneagram and experts in the field. Who doesn’t want to be a better friend?! I loved the illustrations and organization of this book! It makes it really easy to flip through and learn more about each Type and how they show up in relationships. I definitely focused in on the Types I know in my life, but I’m looking forward to going back to this often as my relationships grow and expand. Would absolutely recommend this as a gift for enneagram lovers or young adults getting their footing in the “real world.”

[Gemma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very helpful book. Everything is really well-explained. You get yo understand yourself more, which would strengthen your friendships. Moreover, you would get a glimpse of your friends' minds and empathise with them even more and improve your relationship with them. I would recommend the book, its short and the language is very accesible, everything is explained clearly.

[Haley Williamson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Had the chance to go to the book release event for this one and the author is the SWEETEST! She facilitated a conversation in a room full of strangers that was truly one of the most energizing talks I’ve been apart of in a long time and i am still letting everything that was shared simmer in my brain. Cant wait to get her first book!

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started Take Care of Your Friends by Christina Wilcox and struggled with information overload, she had a previous book that I did not read about enneagrams. It is very complex and I am just trying to get the gist of it. I saw my friends and family not fitting into the boxes. Maybe because it is all new to me.

For me, I would prefer reading a simpler book before this one.

[Christina Wilcox · Rating 5 out of 5]

Practicing an exercise in self-love by rating my books 5 stars 😅

[Claire Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perfect “coffee table” introduction to the enneagram! While some details are lacking, it serves its purpose in introducing the types through the lens of friendships + relationships.

[Bookish Guada · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a great book about how to better understand ourselves and the people around us, to improve our relationship. It provided a lot of insight about how people completely different from each other can maintain and nourish incredible friendships and relationships.
It was well written and explained everything in a way all can understand.
I think some of the ideas maybe oversimplified the complexity of human beings and their personalities, but I still think that it’s a great start to improve interpersonal relationships.
Thank you NetGalley for the e-arc!