Parts Work Therapy: Image of several hands placed from other side on a log. Some hands wear jewelry or nail polish. The far end of the log shows branches and green leaves.

Parts Work Therapy in New York

When you can’t figure out why you seem to keep falling into actions and patterns you don’t like.

When you feel conflicted because you are torn between different ideas and choices.

When things that seemed to help before are no longer helping.

Parts work therapy, using the IFS framework, lets us meet ourselves with curiosity and compassion, helping us move towards making choices that feel more grounded and healthy.

Let’s work together in exploring the many parts that make up you, to help you life the life that feels right for you.

Hi, my name is Kate, and I’m a parts work therapist in NYC.

Kate, a parts work therapist, sits facing the camera. She is a white woman, with glasses and long curly hair. She is smiling directly at the camera, with framed photos hanging on the wall behind her.

Hi, my name is Kate, and I’m a parts work therapist.

You may be feeling like there are parts of yourself that bring up shame. You may be feeling like you keep repeating patterns you don’t like, and you don’t know why. You may be feeling like your past experiences are holding you back from living the life you want. I understand, and I’m here to help.

I help people understand themselves and make changes in a shame free space.

If you’re ready to start feeling better, schedule a complimentary consultation with me today.

My Approach to Parts Work Therapy in NYC

Have you ever found yourself saying, “part of me wants to do that, but another part doesn’t”? By using parts work in therapy, we allow space for both of those parts. The goal is to give space to explore those different parts of ourselves with curiosity and compassion. Ultimately, this helps us find a way to move from a place that feels authentic.

Parts work therapy: the back of a person with long hair is sitting in sand, facing away from the camera. They are wearing all white, and have their arms raised above their head. A trail of sand moves out from the person's hands, creating arcs.

One of the reasons I love parts work therapy, which is based in the work of IFS (Internal Family Systems) therapy, is that it operates from a place that is free from shame.

I believe that people are motivated to act in ways that try to protect themselves, even if that attempted protection might land us in a place where we’re unhappy. There is power in looking at how the parts of ourselves are trying to be protective. By understanding how they are trying to protect us, and what they are trying to protect us from, we can start to make more conscious choices that are right for us.

What does that look like in therapy space? In our sessions, we can explore the different parts of you through words, feelings or arts. The goal is to explore the parts of ourselves coming from a place of compassion and curiosity. No part is inherently bad. And if it feels that way, then we can get curious about why it feels that way.

We’ll spend some time looking at how various parts of us want to help, and explore if they are helping the way we want them to. And with that knowledge, we can look at patterns to change and decide if and how to change them.

The aim of this work is to create a space of curiosity and compassion, free from shame. This allows us to look at patterns and behaviors in a different way. This allows us to uncover what it feels like to operate from a place where you feel centered and grounded. This moves us to living a life that feels authentic to each of us.

My aim as a parts work therapist is to create a space that feels safe enough to identify and work with all parts of you. I want you to know that each part of you will be met with curiosity and compassion, letting you move forward from a centered space.

Frequently Asked Questions

Parts Work Therapy in NYC

 

  • Parts work comes from Internal Family Systems Therapy, or IFS. That said, it is easy to see threads of it in various forms of therapy; for example, I felt it related to psychodrama in my studies of that approach.

    Internal Family Systems (IFS) is an approach that operates from the idea that each of us has several parts inside of us, each trying to help us in some way. IFS encourages people to approach these parts with curiosity and compassion, in order to understand and make changes in our lives.

    The term parts work simply refers to the various parts of ourselves.

  • IFS, or Internal Family Systems therapy, is used to address trauma and behaviors in people’s lives. The therapy works to explore the parts of ourselves, and to look at what hurts we are trying to protect ourselves from.

    The aim of IFS therapy is to understand these parts, and to begin to operate from what they term the eight Cs. The eight Cs are confidence, calmness, creativity, clarity, courage, compassion and connectedness. Part of the work is exploring that space where we are able to live more in emotional spaces that incorporate the eight Cs.

    IFS also explores what role each part of us plays. Some parts act as managers, jumping into action to protect us. Some parts are exiles, which are the parts that are in pain or fear (often, but not exclusively, from childhood). Some parts are firefighters, which try to distract us from or shut down our hurt and pain. And when we are connected to the eight Cs, we are operating from the self.

    IFS therapy helps disentangle the parts to help us move from a more connected, grounded place.

  • In therapy, when we’re talking about a part, it simply means a piece of our feelings, wishes, or personality. An example could be as simple as: part of me wants Italian food for dinner, and another part of me wants Thai.

    All of these parts are valid, and can be met with curiosity and compassion. Tension may be created when two or more parts of ourselves are in conflict. Therapy can provide a space to meet those parts, to give space to them, and to find what works best for each one of us.

  • Working with parts can include naming and giving voice to the various parts within us. By giving voice to the parts, and getting curious about them, we can start to shift how we operate.

    Meeting the hurt parts of ourselves with compassion can be a step towards releasing them from the hurt.

    In a therapy session, it may mean having a conversation with certain parts of ourselves, or making art about it. We can explore what that part needs and wants, and in that space there is the potential to move towards healing.