Protectors

Bodyguards of the psyche: sometimes clumsy, always purposeful.

Description

Protectors keep exiles’ pain from flooding the system. Proactive parts - managers prevent trouble in advance; Reactive parts - firefighters act fast when pain leaks through. Both prefer control over vulnerability.

What Protectors is NOT:

The enemy; “your worst self”; healthy adult boundaries (though they can imitate them).

Examples:

Over-scheduling to avoid feelings.
Snapping at a partner to stop a shame spiral.
Hyper-analysis to defuse risk.

see also:

Proactive parts - managers; Reactive parts - firefighters; Exiles; Consent; Polarization