Therapy Modalities
IFS: Internal Family Systems
I use IFS to help my clients get to know the inner parts of themselves.
When I was using only talk therapy, I noticed how much shame my clients carried: from perfectionism, feeling overwhelmed in the workplace, or not understanding why they showed up in their relationships in certain ways.
I found it was essential to find an approach that truly helped my clients access deeper healing and embody their emotions in a way that allowed them to experience self-compassion and a deeper understanding of themselves.
A Transformative Therapy Modality
IFS has been transformative for so many of my clients. As a therapist who has gone through my own therapy, I understand how important it is for clients to explore how their past influences the way their parts show up in the present. I help them access gratitude for those parts, recognize when those parts serve as superpowers, and support them in finding new ways of being in the world.
Slowing Down, Noticing Your Body
Internal Family Systems allows us to slow down and notice how the different parts of us show up in our bodies. It helps us understand how those parts developed their roles, extend gratitude toward them, and connect with our inner child-the parts of us that embrace play and connection. These capacities can become harder to access due to life’s challenges, such as demanding jobs, caregiving responsibilities, or anxiety in relationships.
Through an IFS lens, I help my clients access their inner wisdom, view emotions as information, and reconnect with the part of themselves that has never changed: their core self.
When we access our core self, we can embrace authenticity and the “Eight Cs” created by Dick Schwartz, the founder of IFS:
calm
clarity
creativity
compassion
confidence
courage
connectedness
curiosity
IFS allows me to connect with my clients on a more authentic level. It helps us cultivate playfulness, perspective, presence, persistence, and patience in our sessions. When my clients access these qualities in therapy, they begin to bring them into their relationships—with themselves, others, and the world around them.
My goal is to use this method to help clients reconnect with the parts of themselves that may have been lost along the way and to support them in becoming more aligned with their most authentic selves.
Counseling in Connecticut
Therapy with Jessica
Jessica Attas is a therapist in Connecticut who specializes in working with trauma therapy in adults and young adults, using an EMDR and IFS lens. Additionally, she sees couples in any stage of relationship.
