How Brainspotting Can Help You Connect with Your Inner Parts
Ever feel like there’s a full-on debate happening inside your head? Like one part of you is ready to sign up for that pottery class, while another part is like, “Absolutely not—we’re terrible at trying new things.” Or maybe there’s a part that wants to eat a salad, but another part is already in the kitchen grabbing the cookies.
These inner conflicts aren’t just quirks of being human—they’re actually different parts of you, each with its own thoughts, emotions, and strategies for keeping you safe. When trauma or stress enters the mix, these parts can feel even more at odds with each other.
That’s where Brainspotting and Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy come in. These two approaches work beautifully together to help you access, understand, and heal your inner parts—so you can feel more balanced and at peace (and maybe finally make that decision without an internal wrestling match).
What Are Inner Parts?
In IFS therapy, your mind is like a team—except sometimes the players have very different ideas about how to win the game. These parts generally fall into three main roles:
Exiles – These are the parts that carry deep emotional wounds. They’re often hidden away to protect you from pain.
Managers – The overachievers of your system, trying to keep everything under control through perfectionism, people-pleasing, or avoidance.
Firefighters – The “quick fix” parts that jump in when emotions get overwhelming, often through distraction or numbing (hello, binge-watching, impulse shopping, or eating ice cream straight from the tub).
Every part has a reason for what it does—even if its methods are, well… less than helpful. The goal of IFS isn’t to get rid of these parts but to help them find better, healthier ways to support you.
How Brainspotting Enhances Parts Work
While IFS helps you understand and communicate with your inner parts, Brainspotting adds a powerful mind-body element to the process. It taps into how trauma and emotions are stored in the brain and body, helping you heal on a deeper level.
Here’s how they work together:
Accessing Emotional Memories – Brainspotting helps you find and process the physical sensations linked to your parts, like that tightness in your chest when you’re anxious or the heavy feeling of self-doubt.
Creating Safety for Vulnerable Parts – Brainspotting helps soothe your nervous system, making it easier for those exiled parts to step forward and share their stories.
Resolving Inner Conflicts – When the nervous system calms down, it’s a lot easier to mediate between conflicting parts—so you’re not constantly stuck between “I should” and “I don’t wanna.”
Integrating Healing – Addressing both the emotional and physical layers of your parts creates a deeper, longer-lasting healing experience.
What Does a Brainspotting + IFS Session Look Like?
A session that blends Brainspotting and IFS might go something like this:
Step 1: Identifying a Part – You start by noticing which part of you feels strong that day (maybe an anxious part, a self-doubting part, or your inner critic).
Step 2: Finding the Brainspot – Your therapist helps you find an eye position that connects with this part, allowing deeper access to its emotional and physical layers.
Step 3: Processing the Emotion – As you focus on the brainspot, you explore the feelings, memories, and messages that come from that part.
Step 4: Healing and Integration – From the perspective of your compassionate Self, you offer this part validation, support, and maybe even a new job description—one that doesn’t involve sabotaging your happiness.
The best part? This process unfolds at a pace that feels safe and comfortable for you. No force, no pressure—just gentle exploration and healing.
The Benefits of Combining Brainspotting and IFS
Clients who use Brainspotting alongside parts work often experience:
✔ A Deeper Connection with Themselves – You’ll get to know your inner parts on a whole new level (and maybe even appreciate their intentions, even if their methods need some tweaking).
✔ Relief from Emotional Pain – Brainspotting helps release trauma and emotional burdens that parts have been carrying—sometimes for decades.
✔ Increased Inner Harmony – By resolving inner conflicts, you can experience more ease in decision-making, relationships, and day-to-day life.
✔ More Self-Compassion – When you understand that even your most frustrating parts are trying to help, it’s easier to treat yourself with kindness instead of self-criticism.
Who Can Benefit from This Approach?
This combination is especially helpful for:
Trauma survivors looking for a deeper way to process emotional and physical pain.
Anyone struggling with inner conflict (hello, overthinkers and second-guessers).
People who feel disconnected from their emotions or body and want to reconnect in a safe, supportive way.
Anyone on a journey of self-discovery who wants to understand themselves on a deeper level.
Your Inner Parts Hold Wisdom
Even the parts of you that feel inconvenient, overwhelming, or frustrating are trying to help in their own way. When you combine Brainspotting and IFS, you create a path toward deeper healing, greater self-understanding, and an internal system that feels more like a supportive team than a constant tug-of-war.
Let’s Begin Your Healing Journey
If you’re ready to explore how Brainspotting and parts work can help you feel more balanced, whole, and at peace, I’m here to help. Book an appointment today, and let’s start this journey together.