What is Internal Family Systems (IFS)?

Internal Family Systems is a therapeutic model that understands each person as having different “parts” of themselves that have protective and vulnerable qualities. Some parts of ourselves are anxious and react to life events with worry that serves as a way for us to shield ourselves from potential harm. Some parts have learned that food, susbstances, or entertainment can be ways to distract from or soothe pain. Other parts can be critical as way to ensure motivation or avoiding making mistakes. These parts of ourselves communicate with us through emotions, thoughts, and physical sensations and serve important, but sometimes extreme roles.

At the core of us, is a calm, confident, and compassionate inner Self that we often have difficult time accessing and embodying. Protective or vulnerable parts believe they need to be in the driver’s seat of your life and this can lead to us feeling anxious, depressed, disconnected, lost, and distressed. IFS believes there are no bad parts, just parts that have taken on a really tough job that they have become familiar with despite feelings of overwhelm and burden.

IFS helps us to better understand and develop deep compassionate relationships with the different parts of us with the hope of unburdening them from the belief, fear, or shame that leads them to working so hard. IFS also assists in helping us access an authentic connection with our Self, which has intuitive wisdom and inner leadership, who knows how to meaningfully connect and heal all parts of our internal system.

There is an immense transformational opporunity of witnessing and being with, or withnessing, all parts of ourselves. Please reach out if you are interested in working with the IFS modality in therapy.