🕯️IFS and Maladaptive Coping

Maladaptive coping isn’t failure in IFS—it’s protection. Every habit that numbs, distracts, or controls began as an attempt to survive what once felt unbearable.

• A bingeing part may seek comfort when loneliness rises.

• A scrolling part may chase distraction to avoid pain.

• A self-critical part may punish to maintain order and safety.

IFS doesn’t label these as bad behaviors. It asks:

• “What are you trying to help me with?”

• “What are you afraid would happen if you stopped?”

When Self listens, the urgency softens. These coping parts realize they don’t have to hold the system together by themselves.

In IFS, healing isn’t about cutting out coping—it’s about understanding it, so the same energy that once protected you can begin to nurture you instead.