Teaching IFS as a Practice

Jay Earley, PhD 

I have been teaching IFS classes to the general public, in which people learn IFS as a practice—a method for self-help and peer counseling. These classes have been quite successful in that people have learned the model and been able to use it in working on themselves and with each other in pairs. For students in my classes, IFS becomes a psychological practice which they can use on their own in an ongoing way as a means of personal growth.

My goal is to spread the use of the IFS model beyond the therapy setting to the general population, to make this powerful modality widely available and ultimately to bring IFS principles and values more into our culture. The world’s spiritual traditions have long recognized that compassion, love, truth, connectedness, and depth are at the heart of our existence. IFS brings these spiritual qualities directly into the process of psychological healing and therefore helps to engender them in all who use it. To bring IFS to a wider population is to help awaken our society to our spiritual nature.

I started teaching these classes in the fall of 2005 and by now I have taught seven classes. This article describes what I have learned about how to make the classes work and what people have gained from them. I am still learning much about how to improve the classes, so this article is only a report on my current understanding.

Students

The kind of people drawn to my classes tend to be interested in personal and spiritual growth and not just in resolving particular issues that might bring someone to therapy. They tend to be sophisticated psychologically; most of the them have been in therapy and have participated in other forms of personal and spiritual growth. Since I am a long-time student of the Diamond Approach, which is a spiritual path with a psychological orientation, a good number of Diamond Approach students have taken my classes.

Some of the students in my classes are clients in IFS therapy. The classes are helpful to IFS clients because they provide a greater understanding and facility with the model. This helps clients to be more effective during therapy sessions and also to work better with themselves (or a partner) between sessions. I have had a few of my clients in the classes as well as clients of other IFS therapists, though most of the students have not been IFS clients.

Curriculum

In the classes I teach the following:

1. The basic IFS concepts and how to understand one’s psyche using the IFS model.
2. How to become aware of parts as they are activated in life and how to work with them.
3. How to guide oneself through a complete IFS session.
4. How to work with another student in the class in peer counseling, where one person works on themselves and the other provides listening and some facilitation.

Students learn the complete IFS process, including unburdening exiles. This is feasible for two reasons: (1) The classes are ongoing and therefore support people through difficulties that come up, and (2) I screen people beforehand to make sure that no one joins a class who can’t safely engage in this process on their own.

The classes present a step-by-step guide to the IFS process that participants can follow until they have learned the model well enough to work in a more intuitive fashion. The steps are taught in a gradual manner, with roughly one step per class.  For example, after an initial introductory class, the second class teaches how to access a part, the third class teaches how to unblend from a protector, the fourth class how to check for being in Self with respect to a protector and how to unblend from any concerned parts. And so on. It takes 12 weekly classes to teach the basics of the IFS process. In these classes I usually demonstrate only what I have taught so far (or a little bit more), and students also practice each step in turn.

I provide students with an IFS Practice Manual that gives information about each step and each new concept that I teach. I also provide a Help Sheet, which summarizes the steps in a simple way so students can refer to it during a session. This has been quite helpful in learning the model.

Structure of Classes

Each class starts out with an opening meditation, followed by a check-in, where people share what happened with the homework or any other IFS work done since the previous class. The gives people a chance to share their experience and be heard, to learn from each other, to ask me questions that have come up, and to get help with difficulties they are having.

Then I introduce the content for the class, which is usually one step in the IFS process. I often demonstrate the concept by doing part of a session (or sometimes a complete session) with someone in the class. Many classes include practice sessions, where people work with each other in pairs or triads. Some classes also include group exercises similar to those used in IFS Basic Trainings. At the end of each class I give homework for students to deepen their understanding of what was taught in that class and to develop their ability to practice on their own and with partners.

I offer individual IFS sessions to students as an adjunct to the class to provide them with a fuller experience of IFS to support their learning.

Because students are doing vulnerable work in pairs and in front of the group, it is important to develop group connectedness so that people feel safe enough to be fully open in their work. I have evolved a number of group exercises and processes that facilitate this connection among class members. This includes a process where people speak for parts that have responses to the group and to the various aspects of the class. Because people are sharing their emotional responses to the group, this tends to significantly enhance group cohesiveness.

So far I have been describing the structure for a weekly class meeting, which is typically 2 hours and 15 minutes. It takes 12 weeks to teach the basics, and I break this down into two 6-week classes, so people aren’t required to make too much of a commitment at the beginning. In the first 6 weeks (Level 1), students learn the basic concepts and how to work with protectors. In the second 6 weeks (Level 2), they learn how to work with exiles and unburdening. I also teach a Level 3 class which includes important concepts such as polarization, firefighters, intimate relationships, following up with exiles, etc. I am planning on a Level 4 class and probably more beyond that.

In addition to the weekly structure, I am also experimenting with weekend classes, where I cover the Level 1 material in two Saturdays a month apart, or in one full weekend.

Peer Counseling

The skills needed to facilitate a partner in peer counseling are similar to what is needed to do a session on yourself. They are quite different from the skills a therapist needs. The students are only being taught how to work with a fellow student who already knows the model as well as they do. They are not being taught all the capacities that a therapist must have to do IFS sessions with people who don’t know the model, who may not be interested in learning it, who may be in crisis, or who may have serious trauma. Students simply need to be a helper for a peer who already knows how to do a session on themselves.

Therefore I set up the peer counseling so that the person who is working on themselves is always in charge of the session and responsible for what happens. This is appropriate given that they are also learning to use the model by themselves, and it relieves partners of feeling responsibility that might push them to over-facilitate.

At the beginning I have partners listen silently unless the person who is working asks for help. They can give feedback afterwards but otherwise they must remain silent. This can be frustrating, but it helps to establish who is in charge. I gradually allow the partners to facilitate more as the classes proceed. In class 4, I teach them listening skills and how to reflect back what the person is feeling. In later classes, I allow them to facilitate in additional ways. This has worked well. It fosters self-responsibility for the work and yet allows the partners to be helpful when the person who is working gets stuck or needs guidance.

Telephone Classes

Some of the classes are offered by teleconference, where everyone is on the phone at the same time. This allows people to take the classes from their own homes, and it permits people from many parts of the world to participate. I have had people from all over the U.S., Canada, England, and Holland in these classes. You can hear each person almost as well as in a regular phone call. I encourage students to use headsets in order to be comfortable with a couple of hours on the phone. There are free teleconference services that are quite effective, so that each student only has to pay for a long-distance phone call.

We can do almost everything by phone that can be done in person in a class, including demonstration sessions and practice in pairs. To do practice in pairs, people leave the conference call and make individual phone calls. They then return at a specified time to the conference call to share what happened. People also do homework practice in pairs with each other by phone. I have evolved a few additional procedures to enhance connection over the phone. The telephone classes are surprisingly effective despite the lack of face-to-face contact.

Screening

In the written material on the classes and in the introductory sessions I explain the issue of safety and let prospective students know that a few people may not be able to safely take the classes because they need the support of individual IFS therapy with a professional. I ask all prospective students to fill out a questionnaire which contains some intake questions that might indicate risk in these classes. This results in a few people screening themselves out. If necessary I will screen out someone who I think can’t safely take a class.

Community

My intention is that members of the classes can continue meeting afterwards, not only to support each other in their IFS work but also to build community among themselves. I hope this will enhance connection in their lives and also influence the larger culture.

IFS provides a model for personal growth that includes an understanding of interpersonal relationships and systems dynamics in groups, which can aid us in creating healthy community. We will also draw on methods for decision making, conflict resolution, group connection, and other processes in evolving our community structure. The first IFS Class is now beginning to experiment with community meetings.

I believe that building community around IFS can help our society evolve in a healthy way. Our world going through a major historic transition, from rationality, control, individualism, and materialism to the next stage in our evolution. This involves a shift from an attitude of power-over to one of openness, inclusiveness, and dialogue. It involves the widespread adoption of processes for inner awareness and spiritual development. In the past we had community that was conformist and intolerant of differences. Now we have a culture that appreciates individuality and diversity but is lacking community. The next stage will mean creating conscious community that supports individuality and diversity. IFS-based community can contribute to a better world in all these ways.

Teaching Skills

The skills needed to teach these IFS classes are similar to those of an IFS trainer. In addition to being a good IFS therapist, you need to understand group process, so you can sense where a group is at any time and what might be needed. You must be able to demonstrate IFS sessions in front of the class with a variety of people. You need to be good at working with groups and leading group exercises. You must be able to teach concepts clearly to a non-professional audience and handle detailed questions about the model.

For those who are interested, I encourage you to experiment with teaching IFS classes. I have found them very rewarding.