Jennifer O'Sullivan
@jenniferosullivan.bsky.social
Inner Wayfinding with Parts Work & Time-Tested Mind-Body Practices
💫 Certified Internal Family Systems (IFS) Practitioner
💫 Embodied Awareness~ Yoga & Mindfulness
💫 Currently Pursuing: Positive Psychology & Coaching GDip
www.sati.yoga
💫 Certified Internal Family Systems (IFS) Practitioner
💫 Embodied Awareness~ Yoga & Mindfulness
💫 Currently Pursuing: Positive Psychology & Coaching GDip
www.sati.yoga
I don’t like the term firefighter either. I prefer “reactors” but probably bc a lot of mine are fighters. Not in a “douse a fire (aka big emotion) with drugs and distractions” kinda way but in “who can I punch in the face right now” way. I also have a lot of reactive “sense makers” who ruminate.
May 22, 2025 at 2:56 PM
I don’t like the term firefighter either. I prefer “reactors” but probably bc a lot of mine are fighters. Not in a “douse a fire (aka big emotion) with drugs and distractions” kinda way but in “who can I punch in the face right now” way. I also have a lot of reactive “sense makers” who ruminate.
Agree! I try to avoid these terms and org chart. This is the problem with this paradigm emerging from therapy world. It’s only ever framed in deficit terms. I have “managers” and “firefighters” that are cooperative and that surprises some of my colleagues.
May 20, 2025 at 3:03 PM
Agree! I try to avoid these terms and org chart. This is the problem with this paradigm emerging from therapy world. It’s only ever framed in deficit terms. I have “managers” and “firefighters” that are cooperative and that surprises some of my colleagues.
They do tend to cluster around these dev stages but not always. I think a challenge for IFS ppl is that not all “burdens”/beliefs are event-based. IFS folks are only starting to think in terms of systemic influences, which is a wider thing going on in western-influenced psychology.
May 20, 2025 at 2:59 PM
They do tend to cluster around these dev stages but not always. I think a challenge for IFS ppl is that not all “burdens”/beliefs are event-based. IFS folks are only starting to think in terms of systemic influences, which is a wider thing going on in western-influenced psychology.
One doesn’t have to do the visualization to “do” parts work. One of my trainers said he reckoned ~30% of ppl can’t/don’t. I mostly don’t “see” parts, instead sense them in other ways or they are cognitive constructs. I just know a “part” is a line of thinking that isn’t fully endorsed, also by me.
May 20, 2025 at 2:54 PM
One doesn’t have to do the visualization to “do” parts work. One of my trainers said he reckoned ~30% of ppl can’t/don’t. I mostly don’t “see” parts, instead sense them in other ways or they are cognitive constructs. I just know a “part” is a line of thinking that isn’t fully endorsed, also by me.
Disclaimer: I didn’t read this article but I’m IFS trained. Not a therapist, good at conceptualizing things and I don’t tow the party line.
Answer to your Q. It’s both and either. Overall, it’s the former. If ppl can’t sign on to at least the concepts, IFS won’t work for them.
Answer to your Q. It’s both and either. Overall, it’s the former. If ppl can’t sign on to at least the concepts, IFS won’t work for them.
May 20, 2025 at 2:49 PM
Disclaimer: I didn’t read this article but I’m IFS trained. Not a therapist, good at conceptualizing things and I don’t tow the party line.
Answer to your Q. It’s both and either. Overall, it’s the former. If ppl can’t sign on to at least the concepts, IFS won’t work for them.
Answer to your Q. It’s both and either. Overall, it’s the former. If ppl can’t sign on to at least the concepts, IFS won’t work for them.
Ok, actually 3/2...
Having parts does not mean you need treatment (with IFS or anything else) b/c having parts, by itself, is not a problem. Parts, as a metaphor, is a way of relating to the mind and exploring its patterns inc perspectives, believes, motivations, preferences, fears, concerns...
Having parts does not mean you need treatment (with IFS or anything else) b/c having parts, by itself, is not a problem. Parts, as a metaphor, is a way of relating to the mind and exploring its patterns inc perspectives, believes, motivations, preferences, fears, concerns...
April 24, 2025 at 7:19 PM
Ok, actually 3/2...
Having parts does not mean you need treatment (with IFS or anything else) b/c having parts, by itself, is not a problem. Parts, as a metaphor, is a way of relating to the mind and exploring its patterns inc perspectives, believes, motivations, preferences, fears, concerns...
Having parts does not mean you need treatment (with IFS or anything else) b/c having parts, by itself, is not a problem. Parts, as a metaphor, is a way of relating to the mind and exploring its patterns inc perspectives, believes, motivations, preferences, fears, concerns...
Everyone has parts, not everyone has DID.
You can use IFS to treat DID. But IFS cannot be treated b/c it is not a diagnosis, it is a method.
You can use IFS to treat DID. But IFS cannot be treated b/c it is not a diagnosis, it is a method.
April 24, 2025 at 7:15 PM
Everyone has parts, not everyone has DID.
You can use IFS to treat DID. But IFS cannot be treated b/c it is not a diagnosis, it is a method.
You can use IFS to treat DID. But IFS cannot be treated b/c it is not a diagnosis, it is a method.
I think there's a semantic quibble here: IFS is a methodology, DID is a diagnosis. The underlying theory of IFS, called multiplicity of mind, is a broader concept in psychology that does overlap with DID. DID is when parts become completely unintegrated/separated due to trauma. 1/2
April 24, 2025 at 7:13 PM
I think there's a semantic quibble here: IFS is a methodology, DID is a diagnosis. The underlying theory of IFS, called multiplicity of mind, is a broader concept in psychology that does overlap with DID. DID is when parts become completely unintegrated/separated due to trauma. 1/2