IFS therapy · Internal Family Systems · Hermosa Beach, Pasadena & online
IFS Therapy in Los Angeles for the Parts of You That Won’t Let Up
The part that over-prepares. The part that scrolls at midnight. The part that goes quiet when it matters. Internal Family Systems treats them as protectors, not problems.
Lisa Chen, LMFT · IFS Level 2 · EMDR trained
Hermosa Beach, Pasadena or online in California · Published fees
In IFS, the Perfectionist, the Inner Critic and the Worrier are parts. When one takes over, so that its words feel like yours, that’s called blending. Therapy helps you notice each part and give it room, so you can hear it without believing or becoming it.
What changes
What changes with IFS therapy?
You stop being the part and start noticing it. Each protector gets heard, finds out what it’s guarding, and eases up on its own, so the calm, clear part of you can lead.
Twelve parts around one Self. One part takes over, then Self comes back.
ManagersFirefightersExilesSelf
Meet the protectors
The one that over-prepares, the one that criticizes, the one that checks out. What is each trying to do for you?
Build trust with them
Parts step back when they feel heard, not when they’re told to. You notice a part instead of being it.
Reach what they protect
Once the protectors agree, the younger part underneath gets heard and can let go of what it’s been holding.
Lead from Self
Nothing gets removed. The parts are still there, and so are you, calm enough to lead them.
No special equipment and no jargon to learn first. Sessions are 50 minutes, and you stay in charge of the pace. When a specific memory still carries a charge, EMDR can help.
Your IFS therapist
Lisa Chen, LMFT
Lisa founded Lisa Chen & Associates Therapy and trains and supervises its associates with Clinical Director Bob Northcutt, LMFT. Before becoming a therapist she worked in corporate finance and on Wall Street, and much of her IFS work is with people who are driven but exhausted. She sees clients at the Hermosa Beach office, 2615 Pacific Coast Hwy, and online across California.
- IFS, Level 2Internal Family Systems
- EMDR trainedFor the memories the parts protect
- IFIO training staffIFS for couples
IFS-informed therapists here, in Hermosa Beach, Pasadena and online: Chandra Breslow · Laura Malandrino · Rebekah Richin · Payton Rund · Jessica Slavin
IFS therapy questions
What is IFS therapy?
Internal Family Systems therapy sees the mind as made of parts, such as a part that over-prepares or a part that shuts down. Each part has a protective job. Therapy builds a calm, curious relationship with them, led by Self, so they stop running the show and the hurt they guard can heal.
What are the six steps of IFS?
IFS uses six steps, often called the 6 Fs. You Find a part, Focus on it, Flesh it out, notice how you Feel toward it, beFriend it, and ask what it Fears. Each step builds trust, so the part can relax its protective job and you can lead from Self.
What are managers, firefighters and exiles?
Most parts fall into three groups. Managers keep the hurt from showing by staying ahead of it: the Inner Critic, the Perfectionist, the Worrier. Firefighters put a feeling out fast when it breaks through: the Scroller, the TV Binger, the All-Nighter. Exiles carry the old hurt, usually from when you were young, and most of the other parts are protecting them. Self is not a part. It’s who you are underneath them, and the one who can lead them.
What is the controversy with IFS therapy?
IFS has become very popular faster than its research base has grown. Studies are encouraging, but there are fewer than for CBT or EMDR, and some clinicians question the idea of parts as literal. We use IFS as a practical map, alongside other methods, and we tell you what we’re doing and why.
Who is IFS a good fit for?
IFS suits people who feel pulled in two directions, such as driven but exhausted, or calm at work and reactive at home. It can also help when other approaches felt too surface-level. It isn’t a replacement for crisis care, and we’d talk through whether it fits at your free consult.
How is IFS different from EMDR or talk therapy?
Talk therapy often works on thoughts and events. EMDR works on specific memories. IFS works on the protective parts that formed around them, and the relationship between those parts. They combine well. Our clinicians often use IFS to build trust inside first, then EMDR when a specific memory still carries a charge.
Can IFS be used for couples?
Yes. For couples, the version is Intimacy from the Inside Out (IFIO), where each partner learns to notice the parts that show up in the conflict instead of fighting through them. Lisa Chen is on the IFIO training staff and offers it weekly or as an intensive. See our IFIO page for details.
Alongside IFS: EMDR · Psychodynamic therapy · IFS for couples · How we treat
Often comes with parts-based struggles: Perfectionism · Anxiety · High achievers · Imposter syndrome · Trauma · Your inner protectors