Internal Family Systems

Domain III · Humanistic, existential & experiential · Richard C. Schwartz · 1980 · Chicago

What it is

Internal Family Systems (IFS) was developed by Richard C. Schwartz, a family therapist with a PhD in marriage and family therapy from Purdue, from the 1980s onward. He worked at the Institute for Juvenile Research (University of Illinois Chicago) and the Family Institute at Northwestern. He founded…

Format

• IFS is not a fixed-session protocol. The Institute teaches a "flow of the model" rather than a session-by-session manual. Session counts are not set in the sources used. In ordinary outpatient practice, assume weekly 50–60 minute individual sessions, open-ended, with intensives as an optional extra…
• Phase A: Orientation and contracting. Goals: assess, build alliance and safety, and introduce parts language. Contents: history and risk assessment; introduce IFS concepts and vocabulary in plain words; optionally map the client's parts on paper or with objects ("sculpting"/"mapping"). Move on when…

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• Version followed: the IFS Institute's Level 1 training curriculum (learning objectives dated 10 June 2024), with the 6 Fs as written by IFS Institute trainer Frank Anderson (PESI), and the published texts Schwartz & Sweezy (2020) and Anderson, Sweezy & Schwartz (2017) for the order of the healing steps. The step-by-step order of exile work below is marked where it depends on the two books.

Evidence status, as the guide reports it

• Scope note: the evidence base is small. Published trials include an RCT in rheumatoid arthritis (Shadick et al., 2013; 79 participants) and pilots in depression (Haddock et al., 2016) and PTSD (Hodgdon et al., 2022). This guide covers practice only. Risks are flagged where they apply, and a Harm…

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Does it involve any substance, plant preparation, remedy or supplement? Has your doctor or prescriber been told, especially about any medication you take?
• Does it involve intense or unusual breathing? Have you been told about the medical conditions for which that is not advised?
• Does it involve fasting, a special diet or 'detox'? Have you discussed this with your doctor?
• Is it a group, retreat or community? How do they respond if someone wants to leave or raises a concern?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• a visible change in affect and posture.
• the part softening, or the client's body relaxing.
• a protector that now trusts you more after repair.
• reluctance; usually a fear or a protector to address first.
• several parts competing. Choose one, and ask the others to wait.

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.