Family Systems Theory

Over the past two decades, Internal Family Systems (IFS) has transformed the practice of psychotherapy. With Introduction to Internal Family Systems, the creator of IFS presents the ideal layperson’s guide for understanding this empowering, effective, and non-pathologizing approach to self-discovery and healing. Here, Dr. Schwartz shares evidence, case studies, and self-care tools.

Dr. Schwartz’s Internal Family Systems (IFS) model has been transforming psychology for decades. With No Bad Parts, you’ll learn why IFS has been so effective in areas such as trauma recovery, addiction therapy, and depression treatment - and how this new understanding of consciousness has the potential to radically change our lives.

In this breakthrough book, clinical psychologist Lindsay Gibson exposes the destructive nature of parents who are emotionally immature or unavailable. You will see how these parents create a sense of neglect and discover ways to heal from the pain and confusion caused by your childhood. By freeing yourself from your parents' emotional immaturity, you can recover your true nature, control how you react to them, and avoid disappointment. Finally, you'll learn how to create positive new relationships so you can build a better life.

Trauma is a fact of life. Veterans and their families deal with the painful aftermath of combat; one in five Americans has been molested; one in four grew up with alcoholics; one in three couples have engaged in physical violence. Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, one of the world’s foremost experts on trauma, has spent more than three decades working with survivors. In The Body Keeps the Score, he uses recent scientific advances to show how trauma literally reshapes both body and brain, compromising sufferers’ capacities for pleasure, engagement, self-control, and trust.

Who causes you stress? a member of the family, parent, or the society? They are unchangeable. However, you can alter yourself. If you read this book, you'll: Know the principles that guide how families work. Learn how to accept responsibility only for yourself. Find out how to maintain a calm presence in your family, workplace, and church. In the book, Each chapter takes a convoluted subject, family frameworks hypothesis, and makes it straightforward. It will show you how your upbringing influences your thoughts and actions, as well as how awareness and intentionality can help you discover ...

A self-guided workbook to lead yourself through the IFS process and create inner harmony and peace, as endorsed by Dr. Richard C. Schwartz, founder of Internal Family Systems Transform the way you relate to yourself and your mental health struggles with this clear and structured guide to Internal Family Systems (IFS), an evidence-based approach to parts work therapy. The IFS model views every person as having an “internal family” of parts or subpersonalities, each with their own set of thoughts, feelings, and roles. Some parts hold pain from the past, while others work to prevent that ...

What Part of You Wants to Transform Others? This book shares specific strategies for parts work, ego state theory, and internal family systems (IFS). If you have a counseling or psychotherapy background, you will recognize the idea of parts work, ego state theory, and IFS as being a component of some of the work you have already done. You will be able to increase your skills, so when you have a client in your office, you can use the concepts from this book to directly impact them. In addition to the idea of parts work being a core of psychotherapy, it has also long been a core technique in ...

This book is a concise and accessible guide designed to support your preparation for the Marriage and Family Therapy licensure exam. Covering essential content areas aligned with current test frameworks, it breaks down foundational concepts in systems theory, clinical assessment, case conceptualization, and evidence-based treatment planning. It also explores critical topics such as human development, cultural competence, legal and ethical responsibilities, and crisis intervention. Rather than providing exhaustive detail on every exam objective, this book serves as a focused supplement to ...

Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations. Yet he spends his life willingly, knowing that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children. But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity reached the surface generations ago. Vast cities and sprawling parks spread across the planet.

Our brains do their best to help us out, but every so often they can be real assholes - having meltdowns, getting addicted to things, or shutting down completely at the worst possible moments. Your brain knows it's not good to do these things, but it can't help it sometimes - especially if it's obsessing about trauma it can't overcome. That's where this life-changing book comes in. With humor, patience, science, and lots of good-ole swearing, Dr. Faith explains what's going on in your skull, and talks you through the process of retraining your brain to respond appropriately....

At its heart, polyvagal theory describes how the brain's unconscious sense of safety or danger impacts our emotions and behaviors. In this powerful book, pediatrician and neonatologist Marilyn R. Sanders and child psychiatrist George S. Thompson offer both a meditation on caregiving and a call to action. By attending to the lessons of polyvagal theory—that adult caregivers must be aware of children's unconscious processing of sensory information—the authors show how professionals can play a critical role in establishing a sense of safety even in the face of dangerous situations.