Because of my work with LGBTQIA+ folks and other folks with social stigma, I mostly do Internal family systems. It's not family therapy, but comes from the idea that we all have parts that are like a family in some ways. Sometimes, we have parts we don't like so much and push to the side, like anger, hurt or anxiety. We push them away and they act out, like scape goats in families often do. Sometimes we have parts that are at odds with each other, for example a part that says we should work more or all the time and a part that says we need to relax more. Then, neither gets what they want. IFS comes from the idea, that if we understand and care for those parts- we can work with them more. A lot of times just starting to connect more can calm them down. In addition to parts, our parts also have burdens. For example, the part that says we need to work all the time may come from work, school or other life situation where we had to work all the time. We can use our imagination to go to the time care for the part and see if it's ready to give up beliefs it was burdened with before joining in the present. This can feel weird, but, for me and many clients, it is more helpful than arguing with the part.
