Many people think healing means fixing themselves, but real change often begins when a “protector” part finally feels met.

In this episode, Ava shares a personal IFS (Internal Family Systems) breakthrough from a retreat in India: instead of feeling guilt about time away from family, an old survival pattern surfaced: pressure, urgency, and the fear of falling behind. Through the lens of IFS, she explores how protectors work to keep deeper pain out of awareness, and how healing happens through contact, attunement, and relationship rather than force or self-improvement.

If you’re navigating anxiety, overdoing, or inner pressure, this conversation offers a grounded way to understand what’s happening inside and a compassionate pathway toward more space, safety, and inner freedom.

Listen in and share how this lands for you. Whether it resonates or challenges you, reflections are welcome.

Chapter markers:

• 00:00 Introduction to healing and inner freedom
• 09:00 IFS overview: protector parts, exiles, and the shift from fixing to meeting
• 14:30 “Healing is contact” attunement, nervous system resourcing, and compassion
• 22:00 What changes when the protector softens

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