Steadfast Companions
Internal Family Systems and Complex Psychology
Quadrant, Vol 51 no. 2 (2022)
Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy is a fast-growing therapeutic modality. Although its creator, Richard Schwartz, developed the technique before encountering any of Jung’s work,
IFS and depth psychology are certainly cousins. Both acknowledge the existence of a psyche housing multiple, autonomous parts,
insisting that the presence of internal figures is a function of a normally functioning self. Both suggest methods of inner dialogue for working with these subpersonalities.
This article, then, considers what depth psychologists can learn from IFS, particularly asking, If subpersonalities can change and grow, what are our responsibilities to these inner figures?
Quadrant, Vol 51 no. 2
Sneak Thief
Knopf Books for Young Readers, a division of Random House (2018)
A story of an at-risk ‘tween,’ this novel for readers grades 4-7, tells the tale of young ‘Hush’ Cantrell, who discovers that she can remove others’ pain. A meditation on the path of the wounded healer, Hush’s story also considers the nature of friendship, family, and the Divine. Sneak Thief
Genuine Sweet
Clarion Books / Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (2015)
This middle-grade novel tells the story of a girl who discovers that she has the power to grant anyone’s wishes —
except her own. Set in a magical, rural Southern town, the book asks questions about community, mothering, and the nature of the numinous.
Winner of a 2016 Bank Street Best Children’s Books
award.
Genuine Sweet