Who can benefit from Internal Family Systems Therapy for anxiety? | Anxiety Therapy San Francisco
San Francisco anxiety therapists specialize in a wide variety of therapeutic approaches to treat anxiety. Let’s talk about one modality that I’ve seen benefit many of my clients.
In my practice, I use Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy to support clients with anxiety. IFS views the human psyche as a complex system of interacting “parts.” Each of these parts has its own perspective, beliefs, feelings, memories, and motivations.
Our mission in therapy is to get to know these parts, build a relationship with them, and create internal harmony. If this intrigues you, read on to see who might best benefit from an IFS-informed approach to therapy for anxiety.
You will benefit most from IFS therapy for anxiety if you are willing to try new things.
An IFS therapist will invite you to “go inside” and have a dialogue with parts of yourself. IFS involves guided meditations and tuning into one’s body sensations. For some people, this process makes sense and they can experience this with ease. For others, this style of self-inquiry and turning inward may feel foreign and will take some time to get used to. People who get the most out of working with me are willing to experiment with new ideas and behaviors in our sessions.
IFS is a good fit for curious folks who are okay with not trying to get rid of anxiety, but rather develop a relationship with it.
I get it—this may seem counterintuitive. Why would I pay attention to the thing I don’t want to feel? Won’t it just exacerbate the anxiety?
In actuality, if you foster a relationship with your anxiety, that part can relax and your symptoms start to shrink. When we want to stop or banish a feeling we’re having, we’re not allowing the underlying hurt or fear to be expressed, which prevents it from healing. It simply remains under the surface until it’s activated, and it can feel hopeless to constantly manage the anxiety.
IFS can benefit people who are interested in strengthening their relationships and breaking the cycle of intergenerational anxiety.
Some anxiety is unavoidable. Our brain is wired to enter fight or flight mode to protect us from danger, and some of us are biologically predisposed to anxiety. And frankly, how could you not be anxious from simply existing in our often overwhelming capitalistic, racist, and discriminatory society?
Anxiety can also be absorbed through your caregiving environment growing up. Anxiety is contagious, and it blocks the parts of the brain that allow us to relationally attune to others.
IFS involves parenting the anxious part of ourselves—being with it as if it’s another person. By offering the anxious part reassurance and compassion and communicating that you care, you're nurturing that part of yourself and meeting its needs. If we can be with ourselves in this way, we’re better able to be there for others.
IFS can benefit people who are interested in not seeing themselves as sick or defective, but rather as merely having an anxious part playing an extreme role.
I really appreciate how the IFS process depathologizes mental health issues and guides clients into beautiful and deep internal work to make change. In IFS therapy, you’ll work on releasing your anxious part from the burden of the role it was thrust into (often in childhood). Once free from this role, this part can transform to free up space in your mind and body and take on new and valuable jobs other than being anxious.
A free therapy consultation in San Francisco
I hope this provides you with clarity about who might benefit from IFS-informed therapy in San Francisco. I care about helping people find a therapist and the right approach that will feel effective for them, so feel welcome to call me at (415) 851-5125 for a free 15-minute phone consultation. If you are looking for help with anxiety, you can read more about how I can help here. My specialties include anxiety, self-esteem, and relationship issues.