Parts Work: Getting to know your inner team
"Part of me knows better… but part of me just can't."
Part of you wants to move forward. Another part keeps you stuck on the couch, scrolling at midnight. Part of you is fine. Another part is quietly falling apart.
If that sounds familiar, you're not broken, and you're not "too much." You're a whole person made up of different parts, each trying to help in its own way. Parts Work helps you get to know them.
What is Parts Work?
Parts Work is a way of understanding your inner world as a team of "parts" rather than one single self. We all have them. There's the part that keeps everything organized, the part that wants to hide under the covers, the critic, the caretaker, the one that still feels about seven years old.
Think of it like a family dinner. Everyone at the table has a role, a history and strong opinions. Some are loud, some barely speak. Most of them are trying to protect the family, even when they're making a mess of it.
In Parts Work, we don't try to get rid of any part. We get curious about what each one is doing and why. When parts feel understood, they often soften on their own.
Why it helps
After trauma or loss, some parts step up to protect us. One might keep us busy so we never have to feel. Another might numb out, reach for a drink or snap at the people we love. These protectors are doing their best, but they're often working overtime with outdated instructions.
Underneath them are the parts carrying the hurt: the grief, the fear, the shame, the loneliness. Protectors keep those parts locked away because they're afraid of what will happen if we feel them.
Parts Work gently changes that relationship. Instead of fighting yourself, you learn to listen. Protectors can relax a little. Hurting parts can finally be met with care instead of being pushed down. Many people describe it as a kind of inner peace treaty.
What a session looks like
Parts Work is gentle and paced by you. Nobody is going to make you "go there" before you're ready. In a session, we might:
Notice a strong reaction and get curious about which part is showing up
Check where you feel that part in your body
Ask what it's worried about and what it's trying to protect you from
Thank protective parts for their hard work, and ask if they'd be willing to step back a little
Offer care and attention to parts that have been carrying pain for a long time
Picture a client who always says yes to everyone, then lies awake resenting it. In Parts Work, we might discover a part that learned long ago that keeping people happy kept her safe. Once that part feels understood, saying no starts to feel possible.
How it fits with my other approaches
Parts Work is one of four core elements in how I work, and they fit together naturally:
Mindfulness helps us slow down enough to notice parts as they show up, instead of being swept away by them.
Somatics brings in the body, because parts often speak through a tight chest, a clenched jaw or a sinking stomach before they ever find words.
EMDR can help process the painful memories that some parts have been carrying, once protective parts feel safe enough to allow it.
Parts Work ties it all together, helping you build a kinder, steadier relationship with every part of yourself.
My Parts Work draws on training with leaders in the field, including Richard Schwartz, Arielle Schwartz, Frank Anderson and Fran Booth. Much of my training has focused on where somatics, EMDR and Parts Work meet. And I hold it all within a mindfulness container.
Who it can help
Parts Work can be a good fit if you:
Feel torn between what you want and what you keep doing
Have a harsh inner critic that never seems to take a day off
Are grieving and find yourself swinging between numbness and overwhelm
Live with the effects of trauma or complex trauma
Struggle with anxiety, people-pleasing, perfectionism or addictive patterns
Have tried talk therapy before and understood your patterns, but still felt stuck in them
Ready to meet your parts?
You don't need to know anything about parts to get started. You just need a little curiosity, and I'll bring the rest. Book a free consultation and we'll talk about whether Parts Work feels right for you.