Internal Family
Systems (IFS)
What is IFS Therapy?
Internal Family Systems (IFS) counseling is a therapeutic approach that sees each person as made up of different “parts.” These parts are not merely aspects of your personality—they are your inner responses to experiences, both good and challenging. For instance, you might have parts that protect you, parts that react when you’re hurt, and others that carry your heaviest burdens. IFS helps you to compassionately connect with and understand each part’s purpose, enabling you to foster a more harmonious internal relationship and reduce internal conflict. If you have ever said something like, “There is a part of me that wants to go forward here but another part of me really feels stuck,” then you have already spoken in the language of “parts.” The language of parts and IFS helps us to, amongst many other things, identify how hidden or unexplored parts of ourselves might be contributing to where we are at in life without us even realizing it.
With IFS, no part of you is “bad” or “wrong.” Rather than pushing away uncomfortable feelings or reactions, IFS encourages you to meet these parts with curiosity and compassion. In sessions, we work together to identify and understand these parts, recognizing that all parts have positive intentions, even if their actions aren’t always helpful. The goal is to help you develop a strong, compassionate “Self” to lead and harmonize your internal system.
What to Expect in an IFS Session
At Willamette Wellness Center we strive to create a safe, non-judgmental space for exploring the experiences tied to your emotional and mental well-being that feel too heavy or painful to navigate on your own. Through IFS therapy, our counselors aim to help you learn how to better understand yourself and your response to the world around you by acknowledging and embracing the parts of yourself that may feel hidden.
Who Can IFS Counseling Help?
IFS therapy is a benefit to people who are looking to better understand how approaching their mental health from a holistic view might help them overcome the obstacles that have been hindering their growth or healing. It gives a landscape outlook of how various mental health conditions like anxiety, depression, stress, or complex trauma may be playing a larger role in a person’s life than they realize and paves the road for a new way of addressing these concerns.
This method of counseling is especially helpful for those who are seeking to grow their awareness of the things that trigger their anxiety or trauma so that they can face challenges with a newfound sense of understanding of the power that their reactions hold over them.
The Journey to Inner Harmony Starts Here
Our community-based practice is more than a therapy center—it’s a welcoming space where you can share your curiosity and experiences with therapists who are ready to help you thrive. We are your partner in the journey of discovering the parts of yourself that you might have been missing and healing the parts that you feel are taking over your life. Contact our office to learn more about IFS therapy and how it can help you on your path to understanding and recognizing your inner strength.
