INTERNAL FAMILY SYSTEMS · PARTS WORK
IFS Therapy
in North Carolina
Understand the different parts of yourself.
You may have one part of you that wants to make a change while another keeps pulling you toward something familiar. One part may feel confident while another is anxious. One may want connection while another wants distance.
IFS-informed therapy offers a way to become curious about these different reactions and understand what they may be trying to protect, prevent, or accomplish.
Virtual IFS-informed therapy throughout North Carolina · In-person therapy in Burlington, NC coming soon
Fees & session detailsWHAT IS INTERNAL FAMILY SYSTEMS?
Every part of you makes sense in context.
Internal Family Systems is a psychotherapy model that understands the mind as naturally containing different parts. These parts can carry different emotions, beliefs, fears, roles, and ways of responding to the world.
Even reactions that now feel frustrating or self-defeating may have developed for an understandable reason. IFS focuses less on getting rid of a reaction and more on becoming curious about why it is there, what it is trying to do, and whether it still needs to work quite so hard.
PARTS CAN SHOW UP IN MANY WAYS
You may recognize some of these.
Parts are not diagnoses or fixed identities. They are a way of describing different reactions, strategies, emotions, and inner experiences that can become more noticeable in certain situations.
REASONS PEOPLE EXPLORE IFS
Some of the patterns we might work with.
IFS can be one way of understanding patterns that feel confusing, conflicting, or difficult to change.
Anxiety & overthinking
Understanding parts that anticipate problems, second-guess decisions, seek certainty, or stay on alert.
Self-criticism & perfectionism
Exploring parts that push, judge, compare, or believe you need to perform in order to be okay.
Relationships & emotional reactions
Becoming more aware of what happens inside during conflict, closeness, rejection, defensiveness, anger, or withdrawal.
Feeling stuck
Understanding why one part of you wants change while another resists, avoids, procrastinates, or pulls you in a different direction.
Shame & difficult experiences
Exploring protective reactions and painful beliefs that may have developed around experiences of rejection, loss, criticism, or overwhelm.
WHAT IFS THERAPY CAN LOOK LIKE
Getting curious about what is happening inside.
You do not need to arrive already knowing your parts or knowing exactly how to describe what is happening internally. Therapy can begin with something happening in your life right now—a conflict, decision, difficult emotion, or recurring reaction.
You and Mike might slow the situation down and notice what different parts of you think, feel, fear, or want to do. The goal is not to force a particular internal experience, but to understand what is happening with more curiosity and create more room to choose how you respond.
IFS THERAPY WITH MIKE
A collaborative approach to parts work.
Mike incorporates an IFS-informed perspective into individual therapy to help clients understand conflicting emotions, protective reactions, recurring patterns, and the different parts of themselves that may be asking for attention.
Rather than telling you what a part means, Mike can help you slow down, become curious about your own experience, and explore what different parts may be trying to communicate or accomplish.
Internal Family Systems (IFS)
Currently completing Level 1 IFS training through Central
Connecticut State University (CCSU).
Standard individual therapy sessions are 50–55 minutes. Private-pay rate: $165 per session.
See fees, insurance & session detailsTWO WAYS TO WORK WITH IFS
Standard sessions or more extended time.
Individual therapy
IFS-informed work can be incorporated into Mike’s regular 50–55 minute individual therapy sessions over time, alongside other therapeutic approaches depending on your needs and goals.
Learn about individual therapyIFS Intensives
IFS Intensives provide a longer block of time—approximately three hours—to explore a specific concern or internal process. They are available to adults as a separate service after an initial consultation.
Learn about IFS IntensivesCOMMON QUESTIONS
Questions about IFS therapy
Do I need to know my “parts” before starting?
No. You do not need to arrive with a map of your parts or even know whether parts language feels natural to you. Therapy can begin with whatever is happening in your life and build from there.
Are “parts” diagnoses or separate personalities?
No. In IFS, parts are a way of describing different reactions, emotions, beliefs, and strategies within a person. Having different or conflicting parts does not mean you have separate personalities.
Is IFS only for trauma?
No. IFS can be used with trauma-related experiences, but people may also use IFS-informed therapy to explore anxiety, self-criticism, relationships, emotional reactions, life transitions, and patterns that feel difficult to change.
Can I do IFS-informed therapy online in North Carolina?
Yes. Mike offers virtual IFS-informed therapy to eligible clients throughout North Carolina. In-person therapy in Burlington, NC is coming soon.
What is the difference between regular therapy and an IFS Intensive?
Regular therapy takes place within Mike’s standard 50–55 minute sessions and may incorporate IFS-informed work over time.
An IFS Intensive provides approximately three hours for a more extended exploration of a specific concern or internal process during one session.
Virtual IFS-informed therapy throughout North Carolina · In-person therapy in Burlington, NC coming soon