IFS Therapy
Internal Family Systems (IFS): Compassionate, Parts-Based Therapy
Online sessions across BC, Alberta, Ontario, Nova Scotia & The Yukon
You are not just one way.
Part of you wants to slow down.
Another part can't stop pushing.
Part of you longs for connection.
Another pulls away the moment someone gets too close.
There's an inner critic that never lets you rest.
A perfectionist trying to get everything right.
A people-pleaser trying to keep everyone happy.
A part that shuts down when life becomes too much.
These aren't contradictions.
They're parts of you that learned different ways to help you survive.
What Is IFS?
Internal Family Systems (IFS), developed by Dr. Richard Schwartz, is a compassionate, evidence-informed approach to therapy that understands the mind as naturally made up of different parts.
Rather than trying to silence, overcome, or get rid of these parts, IFS invites us to understand them.
Every part developed for a reason.
Even the ones that seem frustrating, exhausting, or self-defeating are usually trying to protect something more vulnerable beneath the surface.
At the heart of IFS is the belief that everyone also possesses a deeper core of calm, curiosity, compassion, and wisdom. What IFS calls the Self.
Healing isn't about eliminating parts.
It's about helping your Self develop a new relationship with them so they no longer have to work quite so hard.
Understanding Your Parts
IFS often groups parts into three broad roles.
Managers
These parts work hard to keep life under control.
They may show up as the inner critic, perfectionist, over-achiever, caretaker, or people-pleaser—doing everything they can to prevent pain before it happens.
Firefighters
When emotional pain breaks through, firefighters step in quickly.
They may use distraction, numbing, overworking, dissociation, substance use, or other strategies to help you escape overwhelming feelings.
Exiles
These are often younger, more vulnerable parts carrying experiences of shame, grief, fear, loneliness, or rejection.
Protective parts work incredibly hard to keep these feelings out of awareness until the system is ready.
What IFS Can Help With
IFS can be particularly helpful for:
Complex and developmental trauma
Self-criticism and shame
Perfectionism, burnout, and over-functioning
Anxiety and chronic worry
People-pleasing and self-abandonment
Relationship patterns that seem to repeat
Feeling fragmented or internally conflicted
A sense of not knowing who you are underneath years of adaptation
I weave it together with somatic therapy, attachment theory, NARM, and EMDR.
As we explore different parts of you, we also pay attention to what's happening in your body, your nervous system, and the therapeutic relationship itself.
Protective parts are never pushed aside.
We spend time building trust with them, understanding what they're trying to accomplish before asking them to do anything differently.
When more vulnerable parts begin to emerge, we move slowly, allowing them to be met with curiosity, compassion, and care rather than urgency.
Healing happens through relationship—including the relationship you develop with yourself.
How I Use IFS
IFS isn’t something I use in isolation.
What Becomes Possible
IFS often feels different from traditional talk therapy.
Rather than analysing yourself, you begin developing a relationship with yourself.
Over time, many people notice:
Less inner conflict and more internal cooperation.
An inner critic that softens because it no longer has to work so hard.
Greater self-compassion that feels genuine rather than forced.
More access to calm, clarity, curiosity, and confidence.
Protective parts becoming less burdened and more flexible.
This isn't about getting rid of parts.
It's about helping every part feel less alone.
IFS & Trauma
IFS is particularly helpful for complex and developmental trauma because it works with the protective strategies that developed around painful experiences.
Rather than asking "How do I get rid of this response?" we ask:
"What is this part trying to protect?"
That shift often changes everything.
When appropriate, I also integrate EMDR and somatic therapy alongside IFS.
IFS helps us understand and build relationships with protective parts.
EMDR helps process experiences that remain emotionally charged.
Somatic therapy supports the nervous system in experiencing those changes in a deeper, more embodied way.
Is IFS Right for You?
IFS may be a good fit if:
You feel pulled in different directions by different parts of yourself.
Your inner critic hasn't responded to logic or self-help.
You understand your patterns but still feel stuck inside them.
You want a therapy that approaches every part of you with curiosity rather than judgment.
You're looking for deeper change, not just greater insight.
Curious how I integrate IFS into my broader approach?
If you're interested in how I integrate IFS with somatic therapy, EMDR, NARM, and attachment-informed work, you can learn more about how I work below.
Every part of you developed for a reason.
Healing begins when those parts no longer have to carry their burdens alone.