I believe that, unfortunately, conventional therapy has largely failed us, as evidenced by more mental health issues than ever before in history. I believe the main reason being is because consciousness transformation can only come from the level of the heart and not the mind. Constantly ruminating about past negative experiences, over-intellectualizing and analyzing everything about ourselves may provide a mental ‘ah-ha’ moment from time to time and make us expert at knowing what happened to us and why we’ve become who we are today, but it doesn’t lead to tangible change of consciousness. IFS helps us to get to the root of the deep-seated trauma stored in the body by actively empowering the self to compassionately acknowledge and release their burdens, rather than managing or fixing them. This is true integration of the body-mind-soul that leads to healing and profound and lasting change, and not just a temporary relief of symptoms and behaviors by means of the mind.

Although we will briefly recall past memories to understand and develop relationships with our different parts that are dominating our current lives and creating dysfunction, we will focus on unearthing and empowering our true self as the present day leader of our reality, stepping into our highest self to consciously create the future we desire. We will develop a deep intuitive knowing, learning to trust the images, symbols and memories that are revealed by our parts which are trying to communicate with us.

I believe that just like all relationships, relationships with our parts and cultivating a strong sense of self takes quality time and consistency. For this reason, I strongly recommend weekly sessions to start parts work.

With that said, I can also appreciate how busy life gets and needing to take a week off from time to time to make room for sickness, travel, life, etc is completely understandable.

This means at a minimum we can meet 3x a month.

If you commit to 3 months, I expect us to complete our 12 sessions within about 4 months. If you commit to 6 month, I expect us to complete our 24 sessions within about 7-8 months.

As your parts begin to trust you more and more, they will begin to reveal memories, which may or may not always be clearly confirmed as literal past reality, but can be best understood as emotionally truthful representations of past experiences. These memories, whether entirely accurate in detail or not, serve as symbolic expressions of the parts' experiences, feelings, and perceptions. They convey the emotional essence and significant messages that these parts want to communicate about their experiences.

The focus in IFS is not necessarily on the factual accuracy of these memories, but on the emotional truths they contain and the roles they have played in shaping the parts' protective behaviors and beliefs. By engaging with these memories through the compassionate perspective of the Self, individuals can validate the parts' experiences and understand their needs, leading to healing and integration. This process allows for a deeper exploration of how these parts have influenced one's life and decisions, recognizing that the emotional content of these memories is a crucial aspect of personal history and psychological makeup.

Typically you will arrive to an IFS session with something on your mind. Perhaps you are feeling conflicted about a certain decision to make, or you feel anxious about your work, or you are dealing with a strain in a relationship. Whatever it is, through the IFS lens, this simply means that one or more parts of you needs attention, and we will use this as the trail post to go inward.

We will first ground and center through practicing somatic tools to become embodied and present. I will then gently and lovingly guide you to approach and meet whatever part is most in need with curiosity and warmth, sometimes meeting several parts in one session. This will feel like a interactive guided meditation where you will be lucid, clear and conscious. l’ll help you ‘unblend,’ or distinguish, your core self from these parts and develop a compassionate relationship based off of unconditional love and acceptance for your parts, rather than one of judgment, disdain or suppression which is what we often unconsciously do.

By fostering a dialogue between you, the true self, and your different parts, you’ll learn to understand the needs, desires, fears and sincerely good intentions of your parts, leading them to trust you in ‘unburdening’ their pain, shame and conditioning allowing you to be the leader of the internal system and for them to naturally heal and transform and step into their healthy empowered roles. This self-led discovery and integration process dramatically reduces internal conflicts and cultivates greater self-coherence and emotional wellbeing, empowering you as the true self to live a more balanced, peaceful and joyful life.

It is not uncommon for a protector part to play the role of a skeptic and doubt and question anything that’s being communicated by other parts, especially memories that arise, which is totally understandable and even expected. Witnessing and validating this part for the playing the skeptic is vital in developing a relationship with it, so they don’t feel threatened and can begin to put down their guard and become vulnerable with you too. It is also extremely valuable for those of us with severely harsh inner critics that we’ve become “blended” with, which is usually the biggest obstacle and saboteur in our self-healing endeavors, for you the self to begin to develop the internal spaciousness and awareness to distinguish yourself from this skeptical part and trust your deeper intuitive knowing and strength to be the true leader of your internal system.

I know first hand how challenging it is to find the self-compassion necessary to do the real, impactful inner work of healing and growth when we’ve become so conditioned and habituated to the limiting and false beliefs, fears and shame we’ve carried for a lifetime.

You can find safety and courage doing this vulnerable work with me, knowing that you set the agenda, the pace, and how deep and far we go. My job is to hold a safe, compassionate, and confidential space for your exploration. I facilitate by listening deeply, asking powerful questions that help you feel into what is true for you, and trusting my intuition to mirror your authentic self so you can realize who you truly are.

You can expect to find compassion for yourself and others, release burdens of pain, shame and conditioning, gradually dissolve reactive habits, and feel a genuine sense of alignment with your true nature.