Books
'Parts Work: An Illustrated Guide to Your Inner Life' - Tom Holmes: a great introduction to IFS
'No Bad Parts: Healing Trauma & Restoring Wholeness with the Internal Family Systems Model' - Dick Schwartz: the founder of Internal Family Systems
'The Self-Led Internal Family Systems Workbook' - Tanis Jo Allen
'Living from My Centred Self: An IFS Wisdom Journal' - Elaine Casquarelli & Karin Lubin: 4 separate workbooks
'Bring Yourself to Love' - Mona Barbara: for couples
Meditation
"True Meditation: Discover the Freedom of Pure Awareness" - Adyashanti: although this is not explicitly parts oriented it is one of the best meditation guides I have come across and it can greatly support your therapeutic process.
Research
A compilation of research into the efficacy of IFS can be found at the IFS Institute website here.
Medication
'Harm Reduction Guide to Coming Off Psychiatric Drugs': if you are considering coming off psychiatric medication this guide (here) is an excellent read. It is also worth reading if you are considering going onto psychiatric medication, to help inform you about the process of coming off them so that you can take that into account whilst making your decision.
If we are working together I would recommend letting me know about any decision you are considering to either go onto, or come off, psychiatric medication.
Other Resources
Inner Active Cards - Sharon Sargent Eckstein: a boxed set of illustrated cards that each depict a 'part' or sub-personality. Whilst everyone's parts are unique and appear to each of us in their own way, these images may be used to help you recognise and connect to your own unique parts.
Emergency Services
Unfortunately, as a therapist in private practice I am unable to offer an emergency service. However, if you are experiencing a mental health crisis and feel the need for immediate emergency support you have a number of options listed below. This kind of distress may involve:
- a psychotic episode which means a serious loss of your usual sense of reality and can include hearing voices and hallucinations
- suicidal behaviour or intent
- other behaviour that is likely to endanger yourself or others
- being at serious risk of harm from someone else
The following services are available for anyone in the UK: - Call NHS 111 and choose the 'mental health' option. This is for when you need help or medical treatment quickly but its not a life-threatening emergency.
- Call 999 emergency services if you are in a life-threatening situation (yours or someone else's). Alternatively, you can go to Accident and Emergency at your local hospital if you have serious concern for your immediate safety. A & E staff will provide immediate support.
- Call 116 123 to talk to Samaritans.
Additionally, you can search for local in-person crisis support, as well as further phone and online based crisis support, at the Hub of Hope website HERE.
The Safely Held Spaces website is great for finding support "for people experiencing extreme mental and emotional distress and altered states, often called psychosis, and for the people supporting them". They focus on organisations that take a compassionate, non-pathologising and often more holistic perspective in their approach to supporting people in such states of distress. You can find them HERE.