What is IFS Parts Mapping

Ever feel like you’re being pulled apart in different directions? A part of you wants to exercise, but another part is worried you’re just using exercise to punish yourself.

Or maybe a part of you wants to show compassion to others, but then another part is worried you’re opening yourself up to vulnerability.

It’s easy to feel stuck when you’re in-between what feels like two different strategies. It’s overwhelming when both or more parts are wanting different things in the moment. Thankfully, parts mapping can help with that.

So what is IFS parts mapping? Internal Family Systems (IFS) parts mapping is an exercise you can do (with a therapist or by yourself) to flesh out the relationships of parts in your system.

This exercise can help you understand how parts interact with each other: what triggers certain protectors, and which exiles they’re exactly trying to protect?

How does IFS parts mapping work?

In Internal Family Systems therapy, parts mapping is like creating a GPS for your inner world. Imagine your mind as a complex neighborhood, with different characters living in various houses. These characters represent different parts of you, each with its own personality, emotions, and motivations.

Parts mapping is a helpful tool in the process of exploring and understanding these internal parts, like giving each one a name and understanding its role in your life. It's a bit like making a family tree, but instead of relatives, you're mapping out your internal family.

By creating this map, you can gain clarity on their inner dynamics and how different parts interact with each other.

How parts mapping can help with IFS work

Let’s say that you discover a "critical part" that constantly berates you for not meeting their high standards, while also discovering a "vulnerable part" that feels unworthy and ashamed. Then you might also notice a “treat yourself part” that tells you it’s okay to go on a shopping spree when you’re feeling down.

You can explore the origins of these parts and understand how they developed as coping mechanisms in response to past experiences or traumas.

It usually gets easier for some people to cultivate compassion and empathy towards themselves once these parts are identified.

It’s not uncommon for people to have a hard time resonating with the concept of parts.

Useful tools like parts maps, visualization cards, or even parts archetypes can help clients who aren’t used to doing inner work experience more curiosity towards themselves.

More importantly, parts mapping can facilitate the integration of these different parts into a cohesive and balanced sense of self.

Rather than feeling fragmented or at war with yourself, you can begin to learn how to embrace all aspects of your personality with acceptance and self-compassion.

How many parts can exist in a map?

There is no set limit when it comes to your parts map.

Some people report having up to 30+ individual parts, so a map that reflects your whole system can have 30 different parts. If you’re mapping the relationships between a cluster of parts, there is usually 2-3 parts, including a Protector and an Exile.

Again, there are no objective numbers when it comes to mapping a part. If you’re just starting to map your parts, instead of attempting to map your whole system, you can begin by identifying parts one by one.

Once you have a working list, you can dig deeper into their relationships and represent that through an IFS parts map. How to get started with an IFS parts map

Sidenote: It’s best to think of parts maps as a tool that supplements your ongoing IFS work, rather than the focus of the actual IFS work. At the end of the day, the parts map is a visual tool that can help easily represent relationships of parts for you.

Some people use it to generate trailheads. Others use it to represent parts that they’ve already interacted with and fleshed out outside of mapping. There really isn’t a “wrong way” to do mapping, as cliche as that sounds.

I personally use it as both: sometimes I will start mapping to notice the parts that are active in any given situation. Other times I create a map as a resource for more Self-energy. I find that having relationships be represented like that lends more Self-energy in my system.

What shows up in an IFS Parts Map?

Your map will depend entirely on your system - there aren’t any “templates” for you to follow because your IFS parts map represents your own parts and their relationships with each other.

Parts maps represent the different IFS parts. If you’re creating a map of your whole system, you may also include the Self.

1) Core Self

At the heart of the internal system lies the Core Self, which embodies the individual's authentic essence – characterized by the IFS 8C’s, namely:

• Curiosity: Encouraging a curious and open-minded approach to exploring one's internal landscape without judgment or preconceived notions. Curiosity allows individuals to deepen their understanding of their inner world and the various parts within it.
• Compassion: Cultivating a compassionate and empathetic attitude towards oneself and one's internal parts. Compassion involves extending kindness, understanding, and acceptance towards all aspects of the self, including vulnerable and wounded parts.
• Courage: Embracing courage to face and engage with challenging emotions, memories, and experiences within the internal system. Courage empowers individuals to confront their inner struggles and embark on the journey of healing and self-discovery.
• Connectedness: Recognizing and fostering a sense of interconnectedness between all parts of the self. Connectedness acknowledges the inherent unity and interdependence of the internal system, promoting harmony and cooperation among different parts.
• Clarity: Seeking clarity and insight into the underlying beliefs, emotions, and motivations driving the behavior of internal parts. Clarity enables individuals to gain a deeper understanding of their inner dynamics and make conscious choices aligned with their values and goals.
• Creativity: Embracing creativity as a means of exploring alternative perspectives, solutions, and ways of relating to internal parts. Creativity allows individuals to experiment with new approaches to healing and integration, fostering flexibility and innovation within the internal system.
• Calmness: Cultivating a sense of inner calm and groundedness amidst the ebb and flow of internal experiences. Calmness involves practicing mindfulness and self-regulation techniques to navigate challenging emotions and situations with equanimity and presence.
• Confidence: Developing confidence in one's ability to navigate and transform the internal landscape effectively. Confidence arises from a deepening trust in oneself, the therapeutic process, and the innate capacity for healing and growth within the internal system.

The Core Self is the stable and compassionate center from which the individual can explore and interact with their other parts. The primary philosophy that IFS holds is that people innately have the Self, and that the therapeutic process involves unburdening the following parts to reveal the aforementioned qualities:

2) Protectors

Managers

These parts operate from a place of vigilance and control, managing the individual's emotions, behaviors, and interactions to maintain a sense of order and protect against potential threats.

Managers often strive to prevent vulnerable Exiles from emerging and experiencing distressing emotions or memories.

Common Manager archetypes:

• Perfectionist: Strives for flawlessness, rigid standards, often anxious about making mistakes, seeks control and order.
• Controller: Seeks to manage situations and emotions, can be controlling and rigid, struggles with vulnerability.
• Caretaker: Nurturing and protective, tends to prioritize others' needs over own, struggles with setting boundaries.
• Intellectualizer: Analyzes emotions from a logical perspective, avoids experiencing feelings directly, seeks understanding through intellect.
• Planner: Organizes and strategizes to avoid chaos, plans excessively to prevent potential negative outcomes.
• Achiever: Pursues success and accomplishments, driven by external validation, fears failure and criticism intensely.
• People-Pleaser: Seeks approval and validation from others, prioritizes harmony, struggles with assertiveness and authenticity.
• Guardian: Protects vulnerable parts from perceived threats, vigilant and defensive, may become aggressive in defense.
• Rationalizer: Justifies actions and beliefs to avoid facing uncomfortable truths, minimizes emotional significance.

Firefighters

When overwhelming emotions or traumatic memories threaten to surface, Firefighters react impulsively to extinguish the emotional fire by engaging in distracting or numbing behaviors

While their intentions are to provide immediate relief, Firefighters may inadvertently perpetuate harmful patterns of avoidance and dissociation.

Common Firefighter archetypes:

• Substance User: Uses substances or behaviors to numb emotions, seeks relief from distress through external sources.
• Distractor: Engages in compulsive activities or behaviors to avoid emotional discomfort, often leads to avoidance.
• Self-Harm: Inflicts physical pain to distract from emotional pain, serves as a coping mechanism for distress. May also hold suicidal ideation.
• Anger Outburst: Reacts explosively to overwhelming emotions, uses anger as a protective shield against vulnerability.
• Impulsive Spender: Compulsively spends money to alleviate emotional distress, seeks temporary relief through material possessions.
• Workaholic: Obsessively focuses on work or tasks to avoid emotional discomfort, uses busyness as a distraction.
• Comfort Eater: Consumes large quantities of food to cope with stress or emotions, seeks comfort through eating.
• Sleep Avoider: Resists or avoids sleep to avoid nightmares or distressing dreams, uses insomnia as a coping mechanism. May also avoid sleep with the belief that they only get “me time” at night.
• Adrenaline Seeker: Engages in risky or dangerous activities without regard for consequences, seeks adrenaline rush for distraction.

3) Exiles

These are the wounded and vulnerable younger parts of the self that carry unresolved emotional pain, trauma, or distressing memories.

Exiles are often marginalized or suppressed by Protectors within the internal system to shield the individual from experiencing overwhelming emotions.

Common exile experiences:

• Abandoned: Feels rejected or abandoned, seeks connection and belonging, struggles with feelings of worthlessness.
• Shamebearer: Carries deep shame and self-blame, feels unworthy and defective, seeks validation and acceptance.
• Fearful: Overwhelmed by anxiety and fear, seeks safety and security, struggles with feelings of powerlessness.
• Grieving: Holds unresolved grief and loss, experiences sadness and longing, seeks comfort and closure.
• Rejected: Feels unlovable and unwanted, seeks acceptance and validation, struggles with feelings of abandonment.
• Isolated: Feels disconnected and alone, seeks connection and belonging, struggles with feelings of isolation.
• Inferior: Feels inadequate and inferior, seeks validation and approval, struggles with low self-esteem.
• Betrayed: Feels betrayed and mistrustful, seeks safety and loyalty, struggles with feelings of betrayal.

My inner system looks a bit different: what else could show up?

Some parts may exhibit the same burdened characteristics of Exiles but don’t necessarily belong to that person’s system. Robert Falconer’s work touches more on two other parts that show up in some people’s systems: the Unattached Burdens and the Guide.
Again, every internal family system is different. Your map is unique to you and your experiences.

Examples of IFS Parts Maps

Here are some examples of different IFS parts maps to give you an idea of how you can use this tool in your IFS work:

1) Internal critic VS Doting part

Represents a map of a person who is experiencing some strong Managers around work. It's possible to have two different Managers protect the same Exile, and have those Managers be polarized with each other.

This map also shows how the Fierce Internal Critic part has the same strategies or behaviors as another Manager that tends to be controlling of the person's behavior, the Strict Dietitian part.

2) Rigid Protectors

Parts can be named after their characteristics, feelings, and behaviors instead. This map shows an interaction between three parts, where both Protectors are working towards protecting the Vulnerable 5 YO Exile.

3) Exploratory trailhead

Parts mapping can be used to explore your experiences, even without your complete understanding of the parts' roles and their relationships with each other. Here is an example of a map just detailing what the person is noticing whenever her dog barks.

Can clients do parts mapping on their own?

Yes, IFS parts mapping can be done on your own or in collaboration with a therapist. While Dick Schwartz typically advises clients not to work with Exiles on their own, Jay Earley has a series of exercises that encourage people to work through their Protectors as well as their Exiles.

Keep in mind that parts mapping doesn’t have to absolutely accurate. There isn’t one way to map parts, and the exercise on its own is a great foundational skill for the rest of your IFS work.

How do I start making my own IFS parts map?

• Here’s a guide on how to get started
• Alternatively, here’s a visual demo to help you get started.