When I reflect on my life so far, I can see that it has been 50-50. 50% good. And 50% not so. When I'm in the 50% that is good - I'm happy, I'm grateful, life feels easy (I do have a little wanting for that percentage to be higher!). But when I'm in the 50% that is challenging and uncertain and things are not going my way... I was not OK, and I was not OK with being not OK. I would try to escape by engaging in unhealthy coping behaviors with unpleasant consequences (over-eating, over-shopping, over-social mediaing). I would go down the rabbit hole of “I am not good enough” and "I am broken." To "prove" that I was not so, I would double-down on my efforts to be perfect, but no matter what I did, those feelings of shame and guilt persisted.

Over the years I sought help, on and off. Books that told me to change my thoughts and take positive actions worked... until they didn't. Therapists that delved into my past had me feeling impatient and wondering what is the point of all this "awareness." When I found IFS therapy, it just clicked, and quickly. I was finally able to heal and transform, and learn how to relate to myself in a loving and respectful way. I was, and still am, in awe of how IFS therapy manages to be both deeply piercing and gently compassionate.

It is deeply meaningful and rewarding to me to integrate Internal Family Systems into my day-to-day life; with it I experience more compassion, more courage, more clarity, and greater connection than I ever thought I was capable of.

I continue to do my own IFS psychotherapy alongside ongoing IFS professional development and supervision.