Therapy approach
IFS is sometimes called "parts work." It treats the mind as a system of inner parts, each one doing a job, and teaches you to listen to those parts instead of fighting them. Most people find it surprisingly gentle for work this deep.
IFS is short for Internal Family Systems. It was developed by Richard Schwartz in the 1980s. The core idea is that everyone has different parts of themselves. There is the part of you that is anxious about money, the part that drinks too much wine on Friday nights, the part that takes care of everyone else before yourself. None of these parts is the real you. The real you (IFS calls it the "Self") is underneath them, calm and curious.
IFS sorts parts into three rough groups. Managers try to keep your life organised and away from pain. Firefighters jump in when pain breaks through (with drinking, eating, raging, scrolling). Exiles carry the pain itself, often from early life, and the other parts work hard to keep them locked away.
The work is not about getting rid of any part. Every part is trying to help in its own way. The work is to know them, thank them, and let your Self take the lead instead of any single part running the whole system. People describe it as feeling less like a battle inside.
Imagine you keep meaning to start a creative project (writing, painting, music) and never start. Every weekend you plan to, and every weekend you scroll your phone for four hours instead. You feel ashamed, then you scroll some more to push the shame away.
In an IFS session you would not lecture yourself about discipline. You would get curious. There is a part of you that wants to make the thing. There is also a part that scrolls. Why does the scrolling part scroll? Sometimes it turns out the scrolling part is protecting a younger part of you that was told your creative work was not good enough. The scrolling keeps the younger part from getting hurt again.
Once you can see what the scrolling is protecting, you can speak to the younger part directly. You can tell it the truth, which is that you are an adult now and you can survive a bad draft. The scrolling part often relaxes when it sees the younger part is taken care of. You still might not write the next weekend. But the inner war gets quieter, and the project usually gets unstuck in its own time.
IFS has been studied in depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, and chronic medical conditions like rheumatoid arthritis. It is especially well-suited to people who feel stuck in conflicts with themselves, perfectionists, and anyone who has done other therapy and wants to go deeper without retraumatising.
IFS sessions are slower-paced than most talk therapy. There is less "telling" and more "noticing." Sessions follow a flexible structure your therapist holds while you do the listening inside.
You and your therapist start by noticing what part of you is loudest right now. Maybe it is the anxious one, maybe the angry one, maybe the part that does not want to be here at all. You name what is present.
Your therapist guides you to ask the part questions. How long has it been around? What is it worried about? What is its job? Most parts have a story they have not been asked about in years. The goal is curiosity, not management.
Most parts are protecting something. Often that something is a younger version of you carrying old pain. Your therapist holds the structure while you, from the Self, connect with what is underneath.
When the protective parts give permission, the exiled part can release the burden it has carried (the belief, the feeling, the memory). This is the heart of IFS and it does not happen on a timeline. Some sessions get there; many do not. Both are progress.
Every session ends with thanking the parts that showed up and grounding back into the present. Your therapist will check that you are stable enough to leave the room.
Every part of you, even the ones you find shameful or destructive, is trying to help in some way. The work is understanding the help, not punishing the part.
Underneath the parts, IFS holds that there is a calm, curious, compassionate Self. The work is about Self-leadership, not eliminating any part.
You do not push into pain before the protective parts agree it is safe. This makes IFS feel gentler than approaches that go straight at the trauma.
Beliefs and feelings parts have carried for years (often from childhood) can be released. The part is still there, but it no longer has to carry the weight.
IFS was added to the US National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices in 2015 as an evidence-based practice for depression, anxiety, phobias, and general functioning. Since then, randomised trials have shown benefit for rheumatoid arthritis, post-traumatic stress, and depression.
The evidence base is younger and smaller than CBT, DBT, or EMDR. That said, the trials so far are positive, qualitative reports are consistent across diverse populations, and the model has been adopted by major trauma treatment programmes. We list it as moderate evidence with momentum.
Several of our clinicians draw on IFS in their practice. The right match for you depends on more than just the approach, so we encourage you to read the profiles and pick whose voice and focus feels closest to what you are looking for. The first session with any Saalvio therapist is free, and you can switch if it is not a good fit.
No. Parts in IFS are a normal feature of how everyone thinks. They are not dissociative identities. Many cultures and traditions have language for inner parts (the "inner child," the "shoulder angel and devil"). IFS gives that everyday experience a structured framework.
No. The language is a tool, not a doctrine. If "parts" does not land for you, your therapist can adapt. Many clients use words like "this side of me" or "the version of me that does this" and it works just as well.
IFS includes inner child work but goes further. Inner child work focuses on one young part. IFS maps the whole system: the young parts, the parts that protect them, and the manager parts that run your daily life. The protectors get as much attention as the exiles, because they are usually the ones running the show.
IFS has a strong "permission" principle. Your therapist will not lead you into a memory or feeling before the protective parts of you agree it is safe. This is one of the things that makes IFS gentler than approaches that go straight at the trauma. If something does come up before you are ready, the closure process is designed to bring you back to baseline before the session ends.
Most clients work in IFS for several months to a year or more. The pace depends on what you bring and how protected the system is. Single-incident concerns can shift in 10 to 20 sessions. Long-standing patterns and complex trauma take longer. Your therapist will give you an honest estimate after the first few sessions.
Yes. Most of the work happens internally, so virtual sessions are nearly identical to in-person ones. Some people find virtual IFS easier because they can do it from a familiar, comfortable space.
IFS is a talk therapy that treats the mind as a system of distinct inner parts (the inner critic, the protector, the wounded younger self) along with a calm core self. The therapy was developed by Richard Schwartz in the 1980s and is used for trauma, anxiety, depression, eating concerns, and relationship work.
A typical IFS session focuses on noticing the parts that show up in a current concern, getting curious about what each part is trying to do, and helping them step back so the calm core self can lead. The therapist asks questions about what you notice internally rather than giving you advice. Most of the work is felt rather than analysed.
Often yes. IFS delivered by a Registered Psychotherapist or Registered Social Worker is treated the same as other psychotherapy on most Canadian extended health plans. Saalvio does not bill insurers directly; we send a detailed receipt for you to submit to your extended health plan.
Many people work in IFS for several months to a year or more. Single-incident concerns can shift in ten to twenty sessions; long-standing patterns and complex trauma take longer. Your therapist will give you an honest estimate after the first few sessions and check progress with you every few months.
Yes. IFS is one of the talk therapies most often used for trauma, especially complex trauma rooted in childhood. It works alongside or instead of EMDR or trauma-focused CBT. Many trauma therapists draw on more than one approach in the same course of treatment, depending on what the client needs in a given week.
Book a free first session with one of our therapists or join the waitlist if you are outside Ontario. There is no obligation to continue after the first session.
