IFS Therapy
You're not broken. You're a person made up of different parts, and they all serve a purpose.
What Is IFS?
Internal Family Systems (IFS) is an evidence-based therapy developed by Dr. Richard Schwartz. The core idea is simple: we are not one unified self. We're made up of parts whether its inner voices, patterns, and protectors that developed for good reasons, usually early in life. The perfectionist who keeps you grinding. The people-pleaser who can't say no. The part that shuts down when things get too overwhelming. None of these parts are problems to be eliminated. They're responses to pain that made sense at the time and each part is waiting to be understood, not fixed.
At the center of IFS is the Self which is a calm, grounded, compassionate core that exists in every person, no matter how buried it feels. The goal of IFS isn't to get rid of your difficult parts. It's to help them relax so your Self can lead.
What are Parts?
Parts: These are distinct inner voices, feelings, or patterns that show up in response to stress, threat, or pain
Managers: These are parts that work hard to keep you functional, in control, and safe from vulnerability
Firefighters: These are parts that react when pain breaks through: numbing, rage, avoidance, substance use
Exiles: These are the younger, wounded parts carrying shame, fear, grief, or the belief that you are not good enough
Self: This part is your core: calm, curious, compassionate, and capable of leading
What IFS Looks Like With Me:
A typical IFS session with me looks like checking in with what's present for you, noticing which parts are activated, and beginning to get curious about how you can show up for yourself differently in this season. Our goal isn’t to criticize or analyze you or your parts, but to actually meet you where you’re at. What does your anxious part need you to know? What is the inner critic trying to protect? What does the part of you that shuts down, actually fear?
Over time, as your parts feel heard and seen, they start to soften. And as you begin to soften, you will begin to feel safer with yourself. This allows your Self energy to have more room to lead in your relationships, your work, and your inner world.
My therapist parts are present throughout our work together, and I will guide, support, and lend my nervous system to you and your parts so that we can collectively create space for your healing.
Going Deeper
Some clients find that they need or want extended time to be with their aching and activated parts. For those interested in a deeper experience, IFS Intensives are a great option. IFS intensives are extended half-day or full-day sessions that allow for more concentrated inner work than a standard 50-minute session allows. Intensives are particularly effective for people those who have reached a plateau in weekly therapy and are ready for a deeper dive, those with hectic lives that want to approach their healing in chunks, and those who have the capacity to be in the therapeutic container, longer.
How IFS combines with EMDR: In my practice, IFS and EMDR work together. IFS helps us identify and build trust with the parts holding trauma before we process it with EMDR. This makes the processing safer, more thorough, and greater lasting, especially for those with complex trauma histories.
Who Is IFS For?
IFS is for people who feel at war with themselves, who know what they should do but can't make themselves do it, who understand their patterns but keep repeating them, who are exhausted from the constant inner noise.
IFS is a good fit for:
Overachievers driven by a relentless inner critic
People pleasers who can't locate what they actually want
Anyone who shuts down, freezes, or disappears when conflict arises
Adults with childhood attachment wounds or complex trauma
People struggling with OCD and intrusive thoughts
Anyone who feels codependent, stuck, or trapped in the same relationship patterns
High-functioning professionals who look fine on the outside and feel overwhelmed inside
Women navigating perimenopause, when old wounds surface with new urgency
Anyone who has done talk therapy, understands their history — and still can't change
What to Expect & Potential Outcomes:
Early sessions: Getting oriented. Learning to notice parts instead of being taken over by them. Building trust with the process, with me, and with yourself.
Middle work: Going deeper with the parts that have long protected you. Meeting exiles, or the parts of you that are overfunctioning and managing your experience. Processing the burdens they've been carrying, including the shame, fear, and old grief that never had anywhere to go.
Over time: Less inner conflict. A softer inner critic. More access to how you actually feel, what you actually want, and who you actually are. You’ll begin to feel separate from the roles you perform and the fears you manage.
What clients commonly experience:
Reconnection to parts of yourself you buried a long time ago
Less driven by self-criticism and more able to make decisions with clarity
Healthier boundaries with others in their personal and professional lives
Deeper, more honest connections with peers
A felt sense of calm that doesn't depend on everything being perfect
Freedom from anxiety that used to feel permanent
Relief from OCD, intrusive thoughts, and the constant mental noise
A sense of being unburdened by the symptoms that have felt difficult to manage
Reconnect with your body and mind as you escape the noise of everyday life.
FAQ’s
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Yes. IFS therapy is recognized as an evidence-based model by the U.S. federal National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices (NREPP). It’s proven effective for trauma, anxiety, depression, OCD, and relationship challenges.
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Absolutely. Many high performers experience internalized pressure, anxiety, or emotional disconnection despite external success. IFS therapy helps you understand why and create deeper self-trust and emotional balance.
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My rate for a 50 minute session is $250. I do offer a invoice if you would like to get reimbursed by your insurance. I also offer Thrizer as a secure payment platform for clients who wish to use out-of-network benefits or submit claims for reimbursement.
You don’t have to keep managing or suppressing what you feel.
Through IFS therapy in Colorado and California, you can move from self-criticism and control toward clarity, connection, and authentic freedom.
