Internal Family Systems (IFS) Therapy in Fort Collins, CO | Virtual Across Colorado & Florida

Have you ever noticed how part of you desperately wants to change — and another part of you resists every attempt? Maybe part of you craves deep connection while another part keeps people at arm's length. Or perhaps part of you wants to set boundaries, while another part feels consumed by guilt every time you try.

This isn't a character flaw. This is your internal family at work.

Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy is built on a simple but revolutionary truth: we are all made up of multiple parts. And when those parts are in conflict — or carrying old wounds — it shows up in every area of our lives. At Heal, Grow, & Thrive Therapy, I specialize in IFS therapy— as an IFS Level 1 trained therapist — I work with clients in Fort Collins, CO and virtually throughout Colorado and Florida who are ready to understand their inner world and heal from the inside out.

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WHAT IS INTERNAL FAMILY SYSTEMS THERAPY?

Think of your mind as an internal family — a collection of different parts, each with their own feelings, beliefs, and ways of moving through the world.

You might have a part that is deeply self-critical, pushing you to do more and be better. A perfectionist part that keeps you working late into the night. A caregiver part that puts everyone else's needs before your own. A part that loves chocolate cake — and another part that worries about your weight and doesn't want you to eat it. Sound familiar?

These parts aren't problems to be fixed or eliminated. They developed for a reason — usually to protect you from pain. But when they're carrying old wounds or working against each other, they can keep you stuck in patterns that no longer serve you.

In IFS, we also recognize that beneath all of these parts lives your core Self — the essence of who you truly are. Your Self is calm, confident, curious, and compassionate. It's who you are when you feel most grounded and at peace. Every single person has this Self, no matter how much trauma or pain they've experienced.

The goal of IFS therapy isn't to silence or eliminate your parts. It's to help your parts reconnect with your Self — so instead of being at war with yourself, you can move through the world with greater clarity, self-compassion, and wholeness.

HOW IFS IS DIFFERENT FROM TRADITIONAL TALK THERAPY?

If you've been in therapy before, you may have spent a lot of time talking about your patterns, understanding where they came from, and gaining insight into your behavior. And while insight is valuable, it often isn't enough to create lasting change.

That's because traditional talk therapy primarily works with the thinking mind. IFS goes deeper.

In IFS, we work directly with the parts of you that are holding pain, fear, and protective strategies — many of which formed long before you had words for your experiences. Rather than talking about your trauma, we work with the parts that are still living in it.

This is why so many clients come to me having done years of traditional therapy and still feel stuck. They understand their patterns. They just can't seem to change them. IFS offers a path forward — not through more understanding, but through genuine healing at the level where the wounds actually live.

HOW IFS THERAPY WORKS

IFS therapy is a gentle, collaborative process. There is no pushing or forcing — we move at the pace your system is ready for. Here's what the process generally looks like:

Getting to know your parts

We begin by mapping your internal system — identifying the parts that show up most often in your life. Your inner critic. Your people-pleaser. The part that shuts down when conflict arises. The part that's always bracing for something to go wrong. We approach each part with curiosity rather than judgment.

Understanding what your parts are protecting

Every part has a positive intention, even when its strategies create problems. Your inner critic thinks it's protecting you from failure or rejection. Your people-pleaser learned that taking care of others kept you safe. In IFS, we get to know what each part is carrying — and what it's afraid would happen if it stopped doing its job.

Building a relationship between your parts and your Self

As you develop a compassionate relationship with your parts, something shifts. The protective parts begin to trust that your Self can handle things. They don't have to work so hard. And the wounded parts — the ones carrying old pain and shame — finally get the care and attention they've been waiting for.

Unburdening

When parts feel truly seen and understood, they can release the burdens they've been carrying — often since childhood. This is where lasting change happens. Not just intellectually understanding your patterns, but actually feeling them shift at a deep level.

HOW I INTEGRATE IFS WITH EMDR AND SOMATIC THERAPY

One of the things that sets my approach apart is the way I weave IFS, EMDR, and somatic therapy together into a truly integrated healing experience.

IFS + EMDR

I incorporate IFS into the early stages of EMDR therapy to make sure all parts of you are ready before we begin processing traumatic memories. This is important — if a protective part isn't on board, it can block the EMDR process or make it feel overwhelming. By working with your parts first and getting their consent, we create safety for the deeper work ahead. The result is EMDR that tends to go more smoothly, more deeply, and with more lasting results.

IFS + Somatic Therapy

Sometimes our parts don't speak in words — they speak through the body. A tightness in the chest. A knot in the stomach. A sudden urge to shut down or flee. I incorporate somatic awareness into both IFS and EMDR, helping you tune into how your parts communicate through physical sensation. This body-based approach is especially powerful for clients who struggle to access emotions cognitively, or who have trauma stored in the nervous system that talk-based approaches haven't been able to reach.

This integrated approach — IFS, EMDR, and somatic therapy working together — is what allows for the kind of deep, lasting transformation that my clients come seeking.

WHAT IFS THERAPY HELPS WITH

IFS is a powerful approach for a wide range of concerns, particularly those rooted in relational trauma and early attachment wounds. I work with clients in Fort Collins and virtually across Colorado and Florida on:

Complex Trauma & PTSD — healing the parts that got stuck in survival mode
Relational & Attachment Trauma — understanding the parts that shape how you connect with others
Anxiety — working with the worried, hypervigilant parts that are trying to keep you safe
Depression — reaching the parts that have gone into hiding or given up hope
Narcissistic Abuse Recovery — rebuilding the parts of yourself that were lost in a toxic relationship
Co-Parenting & Divorce Recovery — helping different parts of you find stability and move forward
Inner Critic & Self-Criticism — transforming your harshest internal voice into an ally
People-Pleasing & Boundary Difficulties — understanding the parts that learned to put everyone else first
ADHD — working with the parts of a neurodivergent system with compassion and curiosity

WHO IS IFS THERAPY FOR?

IFS therapy tends to be a particularly good fit for clients who:

Have already done traditional talk therapy but still feel stuck in the same patterns
Understand their issues intellectually but can't seem to change them
Feel like they're at war with themselves — wanting one thing but doing another
Struggle with a harsh inner critic or chronic self-doubt
Are ready to go beyond symptom management and do deeper healing work
Want an approach that honors the whole person — mind, body, and spirit
Are curious about their inner world and open to exploring it with compassion

If you've ever said "I know I shouldn't feel this way, but I can't help it" — IFS was made for you.

IFS THERAPY IN FORT COLLINS & VIRTUALLY ACROSS COLORADO AND FLORIDA

I offer IFS therapy in-person in Fort Collins, Colorado and via secure, HIPAA-compliant teletherapy throughout Colorado and Florida.

Teletherapy means you can access specialized IFS therapy from the comfort of your own home — wherever you are in Colorado or Florida. Many clients actually find that doing IFS work from their own safe space deepens the process, allowing them to access parts of themselves they might not reach in a traditional office setting.

Serving:

Fort Collins and Northern Colorado (in-person and virtual)
Denver, Boulder, Colorado Springs, and throughout Colorado (virtual)
Throughout Florida (virtual)

THERAPY INTENSIVES: ACCELERATED IFS HEALING

For clients ready to go deeper and faster, I offer therapy intensives — extended 2-3 hour sessions that create space for uninterrupted, concentrated healing work.

IFS is particularly well-suited to intensive formats because working with parts takes time. In a traditional 50-minute session, we often just begin to reach a protective part before we have to wrap up. In a 2-3 hour intensive, we have the space to go all the way — meeting protective parts, building trust with them, reaching the wounded parts underneath, and beginning the unburdening process — all in one session.

Intensive formats include:

Concentrated: 3-hour sessions over 2-3 consecutive days — ideal for processing specific traumas or relationship patterns
Extended: 3-hour weekly sessions over several months — ideal for complex developmental trauma
Hybrid: A custom combination designed around your goals, schedule, and how you heal best

INVESTMENT & RATES

55-minute session: $150
90-minute session: $250
Intensives: Priced based on format and length — we'll discuss during your consultation

I am an out-of-network provider, which means I don't bill insurance directly. I provide superbills you can submit to your insurance company for potential out-of-network reimbursement. You can also use HSA or FSA funds for all therapy services.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT IFS THERAPY

What does an IFS session actually look like? IFS sessions are conversational but go deeper than traditional talk therapy. You might close your eyes and tune inward, noticing what comes up in your body or mind as we explore a particular part. I'll guide you with questions — asking what you notice, what a part looks like, what it's feeling, what it wants you to know. It's gentle, curious, and collaborative. Nothing is forced.

Do I have to believe in "parts" for IFS to work? Not at all. Many clients come in skeptical and find that the parts framework just... fits. It matches their lived experience in a way that other approaches haven't. You don't need to believe anything — just be willing to be curious.

Is IFS the same as inner child work? They overlap but are different. Inner child work typically focuses on one younger aspect of yourself. IFS recognizes a whole system of parts — protectors, managers, firefighters, and exiles — and works with the entire internal family, not just one wounded child part.

How is IFS different from CBT? Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) works primarily with thoughts and behaviors — identifying unhelpful thinking patterns and changing them. IFS works at a deeper level, addressing the parts that generate those thoughts and the wounds they're carrying. Many clients find that CBT gave them tools for managing symptoms, while IFS helps them actually heal the roots.

How long does IFS therapy take? This varies depending on your history and goals. Some clients experience meaningful shifts in 3-6 months. Others doing deeper developmental trauma work may engage for a year or more.

During your free consultation we'll talk through realistic timelines based on what you're working on.

Can IFS be done via teletherapy? Yes — IFS translates beautifully to teletherapy. The therapeutic relationship is the foundation, and that connection comes through clearly on video. Many clients actually prefer doing IFS via teletherapy because they're in their own safe, comfortable space.

Do you combine IFS with other approaches? Yes — this is one of the hallmarks of my practice. I integrate IFS with EMDR and somatic therapy to create a comprehensive, whole-person approach to healing. We'll use whichever combination of modalities best serves your healing at any given point in our work together.

BEGIN YOUR IFS HEALING JOURNEY

If you're ready to meet your parts, reconnect with your Self, and experience the kind of healing that goes beyond insight into genuine transformation, I'd love to connect.

I offer a free 30-minute consultation for new clients. During our call we'll talk about what you're working through, whether IFS is the right fit for you, and what working together would look like.

📞 Call or text: 970-370-9975

📧 Email: kristen@healgrowthrivetherapyandcoaching.com

🌐 Schedule online: https://kristen-goltz.clientsecure.me/

Heal, Grow, & Thrive Therapy

Kristen Goltz, LMFT

Fort Collins, CO

Serving Fort Collins and all of Colorado & Florida via secure teletherapy

Specializing in Internal Family Systems (IFS), EMDR, and somatic therapy for relational trauma, complex PTSD, and attachment wounds. In-person in Fort Collins, CO and virtual throughout Colorado and Florida.