IFS · IFS
IFS Trauma Work — Protector Permission
Never bypass protectors to get to exiles
Never bypass protectors to get to exiles. If protectors don't give permission, the exile work will backfire. This is the permission conversation.
The exile I'm hoping to work with
The protectors who guard it (list all — inner critic, avoidance, dissociation, using)
Ask each protector
- Would you be willing to let me get to know the part you're protecting?
- What are you afraid would happen if I did?
- What would you need from Self to feel safe enough?
- What pace works for you?
Which protector still says no, and what would need to be true for it to say yes
Protector permission is the accelerator
Consent-based trauma work moves slower to start and much faster over time. The protectors doing the guarding know things you don't — believe them.