Internal Family Systems therapy, one part at a time
Part of you wants to rest. Another part keeps pushing. One part is furious, and another is ashamed of being furious. IFS treats that inner crowd as normal. We get to know the parts of you that cause trouble, and they tend to relax once they feel understood. In Denver, Boulder and online across Colorado.
A mind made of parts
You already talk this way. “Part of me wants to go, and part of me really doesn’t.” IFS takes that seriously.
Internal Family Systems was developed by Richard Schwartz, a family therapist who noticed his clients describing their inner lives as a cast of characters. Each part has its own feelings, beliefs and job, and each one is trying to help in its own way, even the ones that seem to make things worse.
IFS is especially useful when insight alone hasn’t changed anything. You may know exactly why you people please or why the inner critic is so loud. Parts work gives you a way to talk with the part doing it, instead of arguing with yourself.
Protectors, exiles and Self
IFS describes three kinds of inner players. Protectors stand guard on the outside, exiles hold the hurt they’re guarding, and Self sits underneath everything.
Protectors
Parts that keep you functioning and keep old pain out of view.
Exiles
Younger parts holding old hurt, shame or fear.
Self
Calm, curious and compassionate. Always there underneath.
- Managers
- Protectors that plan ahead. The planner, the critic, the caretaker, the perfectionist. They try to make sure you never feel the old pain again, mostly by staying in control.
- Firefighters
- Protectors that rush in when pain breaks through anyway: a show until 2am, a drink, a sudden fight, going numb. Their methods can cause trouble. What they want is relief.
- Exiles
- Usually younger parts carrying hurt from earlier experiences. The protectors work hard to keep them out of sight, which is part of why they never get the chance to heal.
- Self
- The calm, curious core every person has, even when it’s been crowded out for years. Therapy helps you meet your parts from here.
What an IFS session looks like
Start with what’s bothering you
A reaction that felt too big, a pattern you keep repeating, or a feeling that won’t go away.
Find the part
Notice where it shows up: a tight chest, a familiar voice, an image, an urge to leave the room.
Get curious about it
Ask what it’s worried would happen if it stopped doing its job. The answers are often surprisingly concrete.
Let it step back
When a protector trusts that you can handle things, it makes a little room. You don’t force it.
Meet what it protects
Only when the protectors agree, you get to know the exile underneath, and it can let go of what it’s been carrying.
“In plain English, we look at the parts of you running the show, the stories you were handed about who you’re supposed to be, and the family patterns you’d rather not repeat.”
Becca Moravec, LPC, LMFT · Read her bio →
Every part, even the one you like least, took on its job for a reason.
The idea behind Richard Schwartz’s book No Bad PartsWhere parts work helps most
IFS can help almost anyone who feels pulled in different directions inside. People often come to us for:
- A harsh inner critic that’s never satisfied, no matter how much you do
- People pleasing and perfectionism, parts that learned early that being good or easy kept you safe
- Anxiety and overthinking, protectors working overtime to see every problem coming
- Trauma, reaching younger hurt parts gently, without forcing you to relive everything
- Self-sabotage, when one part wants change and another keeps blocking it
- Relationship patterns, the parts that take over when you’re hurt, scared or angry with someone you love
Parts work fits naturally with trauma therapy, EMDR and the Enneagram, and we often combine them.
- Sessions50 minutes
- Fees$150 to $200
- WhereDenver, Boulder & online
- CliniciansBecca, Kelsey, Mark & Kelli
IFS therapy in Denver and online in Colorado
Becca Moravec uses IFS throughout her work and sees clients in person in Denver and online. Kelsey Bennett is completing her IFS Level 1 training and sees clients in Boulder, Denver and online. Mark Whitney brings parts work together with the Enneagram and works online anywhere in Colorado. Kelli Ruhl pairs parts work with somatic work and sees clients in Denver and online.
Individual sessions are $150 with Kelsey or Kelli, $180 with Mark and $200 with Becca. We’re out of network and provide superbills. Parts work translates well to video, and some people find it easier to turn inward from their own space. If you want a gentle introduction first, start with our plain-English guide to IFS.
IFS questions, answered plainly
No. Having parts is a normal part of being human. It’s the same thing you mean when you say part of me wants to go and part of me doesn’t. IFS just takes those parts seriously.
Usually we start with something that’s bothering you, notice the part that’s reacting, and get curious about it: what it’s worried about and what it’s trying to do for you. It’s gentle and often surprisingly concrete.
IFS has a growing research base. In 2015 it was added to the federal registry of evidence-based programs for improving general functioning and well-being, and many therapists use it because it fits trauma work so well.
In regular talk therapy you mostly talk about your feelings. In IFS you also talk with the parts that hold them, which can make it easier to change a pattern you already understand intellectually.
It depends on what you bring in. Some people feel a shift in their relationship with a loud inner critic within a few months. Work with trauma and older wounds usually takes longer, because protectors need time to trust the process.
Yes. Parts work translates well to video sessions, and we offer it anywhere in Colorado. Many clients find it easier to turn inward from their own space.
Who to See for This
Get to know yourself from the inside
A free 15-minute consultation is a good first step. We’ll help you find the right therapist for parts work.
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