Internal Family System’s Theory is a therapeutic model that looks at each person as parts. An example of this is how a person may behave differently at school/work than at home. That does not mean they are not being themself. It simply means that a different part is in the driver’s seat.
Everyone has protective, wounded, and self-parts. The goal in IFS is to work with the protective parts to allow space for the self to heal the wounded parts. In IFS no parts are bad. They all have good intentions, even if the impact of their behaviors have been negative. Once the wounded parts have been healed, the protectors can stop acting in extremes and stop causing harm.
I utilize IFS as part of an IFS EMDR Protocol. This integrates IFS principals with EMDR as a structured intervention.