Somatic IFS

Domain IV · Body-oriented psychotherapy · Susan McConnell · 2020 · Chicago, USA

What it is

Somatic IFS is not a separate therapy but a somatic extension of Richard Schwartz's Internal Family Systems (IFS) model, developed by Susan McConnell, a Senior Trainer of the IFS Institute who has taught IFS since 1997 and practises in Chicago; her background includes physical therapy work,…

Format

• Structure: practices, not phases. Somatic IFS has no separate phase model. The five practices are described as non-linear and usable in any order, woven into the ordinary IFS sequence. McConnell describes using them alongside the IFS steps (in the transcript summary: finding, focusing, fleshing…
• Integration / embodied Self: noticing and consolidating changes in voice, posture, colour, eye contact and spine; other parts may shift on their own; supporting the client to keep healing after sessions end.

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• Prerequisite: the practices are layered onto IFS, so the clinician needs IFS training first; IFS Institute and affiliated Somatic IFS introductions require IFS Level 1, the IFSI Online Circle or an equivalent introduction, and the introductory workshops state they are not the full Somatic IFS training.

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Is there physical contact? Was it explained beforehand, and do you feel free to say no or stop at any point?
• 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

• if no touch feels safe, honour that.
• see Section 5 for overwhelm and dissociation.
• pain, injury, dizziness; offer a seated option.
• regression without Self present; keep the adult anchored.
• protectors returning after a large shift (see Section 5).

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.