Love

E2s enjoy touching, laughing, joking, making eye contact, creating an atmosphere in which you feel that magic is happening. Contact with a Social 2 becomes a promise of something deep that will happen in that relationship. And it does happen, because for this character, every contact represents an opportunity to recreate the state of fusion with the mother, with the illusion of healing the ancient wound of loneliness in their heart. This form of contact presents a significant difficulty, as it cannot be sustained over time due to its excessive intensity; it is more like an excitement than a mature feeling.

The Social 2 makes promises they don’t keep. The intensity will be interrupted. Generally, E2s give more than they promise and promise more than they give. They invest heavily in relationships, but they are inconsistent and superficial. Instead of an ascending spiral, where the meaningful relationship is gradually cultivated, deepened, and nourished, the one established by the Social 2 is made of steep climbs and falls in equal proportion.

The Social subtype of E2, as a merchant of a parental love they don’t know directly, imagines it, idealizing it. They manipulate the relationship by positioning themselves as a guide, aiming to "buy" filial love and admiration. They want to be admired and loved as any child might desire. To achieve this, they sell their enthusiasm with projects and goals,

positioning themselves as a father who knows where to go and how to get there. They generously share this with their children, expecting gratitude and recognition through obedience and service in promoting their image.

One or both parents deposited their unmet needs onto them, offering a manipulative, utilitarian, and conditional love. This is why all their relationships contain these three components, desperately seeking what they believe once existed and interpreted as unconditional love, which they idealize and will never be able to recover. This leads them to continuous frustration, which results in revenge through punishment and withdrawal. Thus, they condemn themselves to a life devoid of love.

The Three Loves

According to Claudio Naranjo's view, E2, as an emotional character, represents compassionate love, the mother. The Social 2, however, seems to have more developed the love of admiration, as do most Social subtypes, precariously inhabiting the compassionate and erotic love.

This love of admiration, however, is not, as Naranjo says, a love for God or abstract aspects like beauty, music, or art. Rather, they seek to impress and be adored through their magnified image, as a patriarch. The Social 2 presents essentially two distorted forms of admiring love. As they are incapable of surrendering to something greater, they transform it into self-worship. At the same time, they attribute disproportionate value to those they want to conquer in order to later feel admired.

The absence of an authentic model of a mother's love towards the child is what the Social 2 lacks. Because it disguises itself as an adult and a father, it doesn't know how to admire but loves being admired. They are a child disguised as an adult and a father.

This yearning for admiring love leads them to cultivate a self-image of being charismatic, intense, and good at the same time. Their great desire is to be loved by people, a luminous leader who is followed by love, not by fear.

Regarding Eros, it belongs to the world of the instinctive, an aspect of oneself that is very difficult for them to accept. Sexuality brings them into contact with something that makes them very uncomfortable: their animal nature. They have lost touch with their essential nature and secretly suffer from sexual shame. They cannot bear aspects of themselves that bring them closer to their need for the other and to their own humanity.

Despite their innate seductiveness, they flee from surrendering to pleasure and, even more so, to intimacy, as they feel betrayed just when they experienced that ecstatic unity in their

childhood. Loving at that level is forbidden territory. The fear of such exposure is overwhelming, and the Social 2 becomes avoidant to not relive the profound feeling of deprivation and betrayal they experienced as a child, which, in some way, meant the death of an essential part of themselves: the ability to surrender and the trust in being worthy of love.

It is helpful for the Social 2 to pay attention to their sexuality, to discover it as a game and as a form of love toward themselves. From there, they can begin to loosen their armor and surrender to a state of rest and surrender that allows them to detect their most intimate needs.

Compassionate love is deeply distorted in this character, and it is always utilitarian and exaggerated. While they have a great ability to empathize, to be generous and supportive, they do so from a manipulative movement. The gesture comes from the heart, but the ego quickly transforms it into an opportunity, into a form of personal benefit, which is no longer genuine or selfless.

Although they have a true capacity to see the light in others, they use it as a form of excessive flattery to create a bond of loyalty and debt, like a way to create subjects who follow them. They cannot show compassion because their self-demand makes it difficult for them to see fragility or the possibility of error, both in themselves and others. Doing so would involve a dangerous opening of the heart, which confuses them. To avoid this, they maintain a sustained anger that traps them in a dismissive judgment of everything and everyone. This contempt is a defensive reaction, and devaluing others results in a distancing from both the divine and the human.

They suffer from the pain of others, but distort it through theatricalization born from their hyperemotionality. The only available path will be to enter the dark night of the soul and walk through it with pain and deprivation in hand, opening themselves to their own finitude and vulnerability.

—Ana Balza

I was in the hospital completely drugged up on morphine. The pain had become so unbearable that just breathing felt like it was tearing me apart. They had removed half of my lung, and when they removed the tubes, they caused a pneumothorax, so they had to operate again. They took me down to the operating room, put me on a cold stretcher, and left me there. I felt alone for what seemed like a long time. Fear settled in. The pain was so sharp that, for the first time in my life, the possibility of surrendering to death seemed not only pleasant but desirable.

As if my hand wasn’t mine, I began to caress my face and cradle myself like a baby: "Poor thing, poor Ana." Something immensely soft and warm opened up inside of me. A light enveloped me. I guess the morphine, plus the anesthesia, even if it was local, had something to do with it, but I felt my body lose weight, my head emptied, there was no contact with any emotion, only stillness inside and out, and an immense and benevolent love that filled and emptied everything at once. Everything stopped mattering except the silent mantle, called compassion, that surrounded me. I had never felt anything like it.

—Ana Balza

The Social 2 is capable of establishing supportive relationships and forms of love related to exchange, although always linked to the pursuit of personal gain. Their own neurosis prevents them from allowing themselves the freedom to receive care and attention and from establishing relationships in which maternal love prevails, projecting onto the other their deepest need for affection.

The Couple

In a romantic relationship, the Social 2 appears to be the least dependent of E2s, though in reality, they are counterdependent. More than intimacy, they seek recognition for their special qualities, and one way or another, they end up making themselves indispensable.

The Social 2 sells a relationship of equality, but in reality, what they want are subordinates. They don't know how to navigate horizontal relationships, and their partnership will not be different. They feel stronger, smarter, faster, more decisive, and capable. To prove this to the other, they subtly enter into competition, which only ends when the partner submits, and they are placed above.

This is achieved through their control and their ability to anticipate, organize, and take advantage of every opportunity that presents itself, leaving the other with a sense of uselessness, clumsiness, slowness, and lack of reflexes. This will inevitably impose an internal distance and an unequal relationship. Power has already been established.

When in a partnership, the Social 2 will, sooner or later, begin trying to polish the other’s shortcomings that don't align with their ideal. Always through subtle manipulation, they begin shaping those small inconveniences. If the partner makes a mistake or shows any disagreement, they will act condescendingly, like a mother who needs to educate her child, or will initiate a vehement dialectical battle full of emotional manipulations until, either through conviction or boredom, the other gives in.

—Ana Balza

I exert a silent power that, when questioned even minimally, unleashes anger, disdain, and offense; something like, "But how dare you?" or "After everything I’ve done for you..." Then I try to make the other feel guilty: I don’t need anything, and I make them feel useless. I feed myself by showing that what they give me has no value. With my partner, I went through a whole process of stripping him of his masculinity, his power, to later look at him mockingly and say, "You’re not good enough for me," making him feel unworthy and despising him.

At home, the lazy emperor who feels entitled appears most clearly. They have much more important matters to attend to than the "chaos" of the household. They give fatherly love, but not the warmth and tenderness of maternal love. What the Social 2 likes is to organize, plan, decorate, and, above all, dictate what needs to be done and how. It may seem like they carry the burden, but in reality, it's the others who take care of the more domestic and everyday tasks.

If someone visits, it’s different: the Social 2 manages to dazzle and impress the guests creatively, even if it takes many hours of preparation or subjects their closest ones to their numerous perfectionist demands—all for the sake of their public image.

They are very possessive and territorial, so if they feel in any way threatened, they will use all their charm, various tricks, and even their seductive skills to win the other back. This applies to friendships as well. If they are unable to touch the pain caused by the fear of loss, they will experience it first with disbelief and then as something devastating.

Childhood resentment and distrust of possible betrayal, understood as any form of dissent, appear in the form of revenge, which materializes as silence, contempt, distance, cynicism, and coldness. The empress and emperor need cyclical confirmations of their worth and privileged position. Consequently, they expect their partner to make sacrifices to validate their love. To do so, they may ask their partner to stop doing activities of personal interest or any matter that holds relative importance for them.

The Social 2 is both present and absent in the romantic relationship. Something internally prevents them from fully surrendering or committing deeply and sincerely because this entails an archetypical dilemma: the dichotomy between loyalty to the father or mother, depending on whether they are male or female, and loyalty to the partner. On the other hand, even though they aspire to fusion with the other and idealize love, they are convinced that it is always conditional and utilitarian, just as they experienced it in early childhood.

In general, they have many affairs, but rarely do they settle into a partnership, and when they do, the relationships tend to be long. In the case of women, they are quite faithful, and when they separate, they leave space until the next relationship. There are other cases where they have multiple lovers throughout their lives but can never consolidate a partnership. Some reasons for this include their high demands, need for independence and

freedom, or their prioritization of professional matters over personal ones. It's common for the Social 2 to be the one who ends the relationship due to frustration with their high expectations, boredom, inability to maintain commitment and intimacy, or fear of being abandoned.

Sometimes, they use sex compulsively, as a form of conquest and dominance, but also as a means of contact, to relieve accumulated tension and, primarily and unconsciously, to avoid the fear of intimacy. There is no true loving surrender, nor can they easily let go of control.

—Ana Balza

I don’t linger much on the preliminaries, and when I finish quickly, I break contact, leaving no room for tenderness. I have never allowed myself to be conquered by a man; I am always the one who chooses, goes, and takes. I have a great fondness for conquering giants and leaving them with honey on their lips; for the pleasure of leaving them wanting, but also for my own clear inability to consummate the conquest. I prefer some kisses and playing at having sex.

I am deeply offended when someone I don’t consider my equal tries to seduce me.

—Ana Balza

Family, like the group, can be the place where the desire for recognition plays out by occupying a reference position: the one who gives good advice, leads when necessary, and provides protection. Somehow obliged to be the emotional support of the system, they cannot appear weak or needy. They try to avoid displays of affection because these bring them into contact with their vulnerability, and they feel they could collapse.

The Social 2 is often called upon to resolve interpersonal family conflicts, which gives them a certain power, placing them in territory under their control but one they cannot share with anyone, as they exclude themselves from the familial system to elevate themselves above their siblings and parents. They only show willingness to receive admiration.

They feel a strong desire to rise above the crowd and mediocrity, to occupy a privileged position of visibility and personal importance. They fulfill this need by helping their partner achieve social visibility useful for their personal project.

The Confusion Between Love and Territory

The Social 2 confuses the love they receive from groups with unconditional love. They experience this as acclamation from those who now belong to their territory. And if we talk

about possession, it is impossible for it to be love. In their exaltation from the applause of the group, the person with this character confuses being admired with being loved, accompanied, cared for, included.

"I don't manage well with time, but with space, it's different. I feel like I'm in authority and like a fish in water. It's as if it's my natural place, especially if there are groups: I am quick, efficient, very creative, and I don't struggle to prepare a presentation or a talk. I put all my seduction into play in a very subtle way. My tone of voice, my smile, my gaze... everything is internally calculated."

In individual therapy, fears arise about being discovered, about others realizing that, deep down, they are a fraud because they sell more than they have. Sometimes, they leave therapy feeling they haven't given enough, but subsequent evaluations contradict this and return them to their place of empowerment.

"I like to have power and for the authority to look at me, value me, and give me recognition for my abilities, competence, involvement, and effort. I show obedience, but only when I've given authority to someone and that person places me close. Otherwise, I fall into contempt and devaluation—sometimes of myself, sometimes of others. I feel comfortable in this terrain, superior, and very capable."

Reality returns the feedback that they have a special brilliance. They are often placed as a leader or a reference within groups. However, they have realized that this generates envy or competition that eventually leaves them isolated. Sometimes, they don't mind because they think it's a price to pay, even though it internally hurts and they don't even fully understand it. They feed off power and their supposed authority, but it doesn't nourish them.

—Ana Balza

Motherhood and Raising Children

The Social 2 woman has not generally played with dolls. When she observes others doing so, she despises it as something superficial, absurd, and unnecessary. She doesn't feel an impulse to be a mother, as if lacking that instinct. The mission to fulfill with the world imposes itself and fills everything.

"I had not spent all that time training to end up doing laundry and going to the park to waste time with other mothers talking nonsense. There was a whole world to explore and develop in."

—Ana Balza

The life project doesn't initially include motherhood. There are many professional goals to fulfill, so the partner is often relegated. She invests a lot of time in a wide social circle, as she can be immersed in different projects simultaneously.

There are different reasons that might awaken the motivation to have children, but none seem to arise solely from love or a maternal instinct. Age, or seeing people around her consider motherhood, awakens a hidden envy.

"The first time I heard my biological clock ticking was when several couples were sitting in a restaurant. There were my husband's partners and their wives, and one of them mentioned that she was pregnant. In that moment, something clicked for me. Now I see the envy and competition. And when we got home, I demanded that my husband and I should have a child, now!"

—Anonymous

Another reason could be that, depending on her profession or social position, motherhood gives her a status she sees as an added value: enhancing her social image, aligning with what she says in certain contexts she moves in, or demonstrating that she can handle everything. That’s when she considers it, like another project to conquer: becoming a mother.

From the moment she learns of her pregnancy, she sets to work as if it were a new project. She informs herself, reads, and attends all the courses to demonstrate what a great mother she will be. She becomes controlling regarding herself and the baby's environment, but no instinct for protection or nurturing love awakens in her.

"When I found out I was pregnant, I began researching all types of natural childbirth preparation courses, natural parenting, etc. I knew all the organizations, entities, and the best professionals related to prenatal care, childbirth, and parenting through my participation in workshops, conferences, and groups. I then made sure to connect people and organizations, selling what was best for pregnancy and child-rearing. I even suggested to a pediatrician that she have private consultations with us. We were her first patients, and she later became the most recognized holistic pediatrician in Madrid. I turned everything into a business matter where I was the origin. I had an epidural delivery and did not breastfeed."

—Anonymous

When something goes wrong in raising the child, her arrogance and magical thinking will lead her to believe she is the only one responsible. Beneath that lies the deep feeling of orphanhood that has accompanied her since childhood, having placed herself above both

the father and the mother, and a real desire to have a family to belong to, although, again, from a place of importance.

Once the new "business" begins, she will see everything related to pregnancy and raising the child as an extension of her self-image. The Social 2 mother boasts of staying active until the last moment, highlighting her ability to endure it all with dignity and calm. In reality, this involves very little contact with her own need for care and rest, as her physical pain threshold is quite high, and she is unaware of the stress that accumulates both in her and the fetus. She doesn't want to give up any of her other projects and will only stop if someone external imposes it on her. There may be excitement, but it’s actually a reflection of what she sees in others, and she doesn’t seem to have much awareness of the changes that the birth of the baby will bring to her life or the sacrifices necessary to be present in the upbringing.

"The first time I became aware of something like what it meant to be a mother was when my husband had an accident. He couldn’t do almost anything for himself; it was almost like having a baby. All the care and attention he gave to the kids, plus the household tasks, I had to do. For that, I had to give up my work trips and stay home taking care of them. It was a dramatic realization for me to understand that I had built a life I couldn't sustain, and I started my personal process."

—Anonymous

The Birth Moment

At the moment of birth, she may appear somewhat alert, judging what is happening. She might even try to direct the medical team. It’s as if it weren’t happening to her, merely an observer of the event. She might start planning and coordinating others rather than focusing on the baby or her feelings from the sole perspective of being a mother. The birth moment can become just another scenario.

"For the birth of my first child, I finally chose a public university hospital. Suddenly, fourteen people entered the delivery room to observe the birth. At that moment, I didn’t consider it an invasion of my privacy, but as a service for future doctors, witnesses of how well I was going to do."

—Anonymous

Returning to Work and Childcare

The Social 2 mother intends to return quickly to work and delegate the daily care, as if that "human" part didn't belong to her. In reality, and without being aware of it, she carries an internal, somewhat disconcerting sensation of not knowing and that it's too much for her.

In terms of parenting, there is an imbalance between neglecting aspects like physical contact with the child, taking them to the park, or daily care, and overstimulating others, like intellectual or creative aspects. She may treat her child in the same way as other aspects of her life: from the neocortex, neglecting the mammalian brain.

"At times, when I am hugging my children, I feel the urge to separate. Prolonged physical contact makes me feel trapped, as if my freedom were at risk."

—Anonymous

Parental Disconnect and Inconsistencies

She may have great difficulty seeing her child as a being who needs care, attention, and presence, with their own pace. It seems there are almost always other priorities, urgencies, and distractions before attending to the child.

"I arrived at the emergency hospital because my son had a fever and difficulty breathing. Coincidentally, we saw the pediatrician who had attended his birth. He asked me if we had followed up on the cryptorchidism diagnosis he made after the birth. It was devastating when I realized that I had not 'seen' my son until then, and he was already three years old."

—Anonymous

There is an abandonment of the child in the sense that she intends to continue directing most of her energy to her professional or personal projects. In many aspects of parenting, she is inconsistent and erratic. As for feeding, she is an ambivalent mother: she can behave very delicately and rigidly or be careless, as an extension of the neglect she has for herself.

—Anonymous

Mothers of this subtype don't play actively. They prefer to use their sense of humor, read stories, or stimulate with toys that have pedagogical recognition. They are very creative and position themselves as providers of resources for their children. They may organize the best birthday parties, an opportunity to stand out socially. In general, they pay more attention to what impacts their social image than to the more intimate aspects of motherhood.

It is practically impossible for them to maintain boundaries in all senses. They rarely apply punishments, and when they do, they almost never follow through. Their dialogical and

permissive style ensures that their children respect the minimum rules, which are more implicit than explicit, but with which they feel respected. They are ambiguous and very lax when it comes to household rules, though if they express their anger, it will be forceful, brief, and without consequences.

"Either they become rigid and demanding and ask for everything at the same time."

Exchanging words with my older child: "I told you to brush your teeth!" And when he’s brushing them: "And take a shower, and clean your room, and clear the table from the kitchen!" "Okay, Mom! Where do I start?"

—Anonymous