Internal Family Systems (IFS)

So, what exactly is IFS? In spite of its name, I rely heavily on IFS when counseling individuals. While it can be used in family therapy settings, the word ‘family’ indicates a network of feelings that you might experience throughout your day. One way of thinking about this is any time you’ve said, “Part of me wants to go to that party this weekend, but part of me wants to stay in and catch up on some sleep.” In IFS, this is a normal expression of the different motivating aspects of your being that drive internal conflict. In other words, the part of you that wants to go to the party is in conflict with the part that wants to catch up on sleep.

If it seems like this example is overly simplified, you’re right. IFS is applicable to much more complex sets of feelings and behaviors. A more common one that I hear is when a client expresses a strong desire to lose weight but finds it difficult to follow through. Even when the client has a firm grasp on what they specifically need to do, there remains some sort of force that prohibits the desired action. While it might be easy to point to a lack of self-control, IFS holds that trying to will the part of yourself that holds you back only feeds into that part’s need to continue. Instead, I work with you to explore and discover whatever it is about refraining from losing the weight might seem more beneficial.

If that last sentiment seems counterintuitive, hang with me just a little bit longer. I imagine you’re saying to yourself that there is nothing you can think of that is beneficial to keeping the weight on. Fair enough. However, one possible benefit might be that any type of major change is scary. But why, though? The answer to this question changes from person to person. Expectations of us change when we make changes. We don’t know how we will think of ourselves from major changes. We don’t know how we will experience the entire world due to major changes. Therefore, by not making changes, we are able to continue to live in a world that is familiar to us.

By no means is this example meant to represent the full list of possible benefits. The truth often leads to much deeper aspects of who you are. Parts that you might never have thought about explicitly but still have a significant impact on the way you make decisions.

IFS Has Much Broader Application

While it is true that I have helped clients through the process of losing weight, I want to assure you that IFS is effective no matter what you might be going through. In fact, it was developed by Dr. Richard Schwartz. In his work with teenagers who were dealing with eating disorders, he noticed a pattern in the way that they spoke. Namely, they routinely identified parts of themselves that had different desires and motivations. He harnessed that language to help his clients explore the many layers of what drove them. Eventually, he refined these skills into IFS, which he found to be effective with other clients as well. In fact, during a pilot study that Dr. Schwartz and his colleagues performed, 92% of clients suffering from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) showed enough improvement to no longer qualify for PTSD after only 16 sessions.