How do you protect yourself in sex and intimacy?

A "protector" is the strategy your nervous system reaches for to keep you safe in intimacy — often without you choosing it consciously. This isn't a diagnosis or a fixed type. It's a mirror — the protective strategy your body reaches for most, as you experience it at this moment in your life. Because you are inherently fluid and adaptive, none of this is fixed. These are intelligent adaptations, not flaws. You'll likely recognize yourself in more than one; we organize differently depending on the person, the safety we feel, the kind of touch, even the moment.

This mirror is only as honest as your noticing. There are no right answers — respond from what's true in your body right now, not what you'd like to be true. About 4 minutes, 22 questions.