Internal Family Systems (IFS)   

What is IFS?

A unique approach to healing trauma and emotional distress.

IFS is an evidenced based psychotherapy. Have you noticed how your mood or state of mind changes throughout the day depending on how you're thinking or what you're experiencing? In IFS therapy any thought, feeling, emotion or physical sensation we experience is labelled as a part. For example anxiety, worry, anger or sadness would be identified as a part. Have you ever heard yourself say "a part of me feels sad" or "a part of me feels angry". Have you ever been aware of a familiar patten of always reacting to someone or something in the same way, but don't know why. This familiar thinking or feeling would categorised as a part expressing itself in your system. In IFS it's all about becoming aware of and developing an understanding of how various parts of you are interacting with each other and learning to develop a better, healthier relationship with these parts. 

The IFS process is about helping you get to know a a particular part and gain an understanding of its purpose and motivation of why it's making you feel a certain way, and more importantly what you can do about it. This process initially involves developing a healthier relationship between you and whatever you are experiencing, this is what we call befriending.

Parts can be categorised depending on the different role of function they have in your system. Parts can be proactive, i.e helping you to control or manage certain situations or feelings. Parts can be reactive, i.e numbing, distracting or helping you avoid what's on your mind. There are also parts that can be vulnerable and may hold emotional pain or negative beliefs.   

Every part holds important information about why it is doing what it's doing to you, so it can be helpful to understand why these parts are expressing themselves in the way that they do, and how you are aware of them.

Some parts may hold burdens which are negative beliefs from past experiences or traumatic memories, while others serve as protective roles to shield us from pain. The goal of IFS is to develop understanding, self-awareness, compassion, and harmony among these parts.

The main focus of IFS therapy is to help these parts work together harmoniously, fostering greater self-awareness, compassion, and inner peace.

If you would like to find out more about IFS please click on the links below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ym8o762U7uc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdZZ7sTX840