Family Roles
In families, especially those touched by stress, trauma or inconsistent emotional safety, individuals often adopt particular roles to help the family system survive.
These roles are adaptive responses and not fixed identities
They emerge as creative strategies to maintain connection, reduce chaos or secure a sense of belonging. Over time these roles that once may have protected you in a family system, can now hold you back or limit authenticity and choice.
We can discover more about these roles inviting curiosity and self-compassion by noticing any relationship patterns like:
• What purpose did this role serve?
• Do I still need it?
• How do these roles show up in my present?
Exploring these roles in therapy using this inner-parts work can uncover hidden emotions or unmet needs. This work is not about pointing fingers in blame but rather understanding how we functioned in a family system. This awareness then enables us to make conscious choices in how we choose our own current relationships with partners, friends or work colleagues.
Support integration rather than blame.
The goal is not to eliminate a role but to honour its intention and help you reclaim flexibility so that all aspects of self: strength, vulnerability and truth can coexist.
Below I will share 18 roles that I see show up within my work. You can download your own FREE PDF file to print and make your own cards here:
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