Mapping Parts: Internal Family Systems

This exercise is helpful if you have a pressing issue going on in your life or are struggling to unbend certain emotions and thoughts to make an informed decision. Mapping parts is another way to separate from the voices inside to gain clarity in your life.

Mapping Parts:

1.     Identify your parts: Focus on emotional parts, sensations, thoughts, impulses, belief

2.     Draw parts: Feel part in your body and observe it. Once you have enough of a sense of the part you can dry draw it in front of you (e.g. image, scribbles etc.).

3.     Stay focused on this part you just drew and observe if another part or trail head emerges (e.g. could be a contradictory voice/part to the part you just drew). Now focus on this part in your body and draw it out on the page

4.     Now sit with this second part and complete question 3 again until you have mapped all your parts you’ve noticed live inside of you.

Reflection: Discovering Your Cloves Inside

In internal family systems we use the garlic bulb as a metaphor that is mapped into multiple cloves, each which has a handful of different parts that are related to each other, and maybe are all stuck in one place in the past. As you work with each clove, you will understand the burdens/fears it carries. The goal is to unburden these parts with a voice of compassion and “adult self” logic to relieve these parts of their past traumas and encourage an integrated system.

Reflection Questions: Turning to the Outside

1.     After mapping your parts, hold the page far away from you and look at the 4 or 5 parts you drew with little perspective. How do the parts relate to each other? Do some protect others? Do some fight with each other? Is there some kind of alliance between parts? As you start to form answers, make a note on your drawing to represent them.

2.     Now look at the parts and notice how you feel about them. Think about what this system needs from you. Finally, take a second to focus inside again and thank these parts for revealing themselves to you and let them know this isn’t the last time you will be talking to them. Then shift your attention back to the outside again.