If Internal Family Systems therapy has one foundational practice, it’s the 6 Fs. This step-by-step process is how IFS therapists guide clients into genuine relationship with their parts — and it’s the heart of any productive IFS session.
Whether you’re working with a therapist or exploring IFS on your own using IFS App — which guides you through exactly this process — understanding the 6 Fs is essential for anyone serious about IFS work.
The 6 Fs: An Overview
Developed by Dr. Richard Schwartz (author of No Bad Parts), the 6 Fs provide a reliable path from noticing a part to genuinely befriending it — the prerequisite for deeper healing with Exiles.
F1: Find
Locate the part — notice a feeling, thought, or body sensation and recognise it belongs to a part of you. Where do you feel it in your body? What shape, temperature, weight?
F2: Focus
Turn your full, curious attention toward the part. Not analysing from outside — turning toward it, with presence.
F3: Flesh Out
Get to know the part more fully. What does it look like? How old does it seem? What role has it been playing? How long has it been doing this job?
F4: Feel Toward
Check: how do you feel toward this part right now? Irritated? Scared? Numb? If another part is reacting, acknowledge it and ask it to give you some space. You’re aiming for at least a degree of curiosity or openness.
F5: BeFriend
From Self, actively begin to befriend the part. Let it know you see it. Thank it for its work. Acknowledge its struggle. Be genuinely present with it. Many parts have never been approached with compassion — when they are, something profound shifts.
F6: Fears
Explore what the part fears. What is it afraid would happen if it stopped doing its job? What is it protecting you from? This is where the deepest insight comes — discovering the Exile beneath the Protector.
Practice the 6 Fs with IFS App
One of the most powerful features of IFS App is its guided 6 Fs sessions. Rather than trying to remember which F comes next, the app holds the structure while you focus entirely on the inner experience. It prompts you at each stage and gives you space to go at your own pace — exactly as a therapist would.
👉 Try guided 6 Fs sessions at ifsapp.co.uk — Free, no account required.
📚 No Bad Parts by Dr. Richard C. Schwartz — for the deeper theory behind the 6 Fs.
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