Internal Family Systems Worksheet: 4 Printable IFS Sheets

If you want an internal family systems worksheet to hand a client this week, this page is built to be printed. It gives you four worksheets we wrote ourselves, in plain words, with lines to fill in: a parts map, a sheet for getting to know one part with the 6 Fs, an unblending check-in, and a weekly parts journal. Print this page or save it as a PDF, and fill in the first one together in session.

Before the worksheets comes a short explanation of IFS in our own words. After them comes the part for you: which sheet fits which moment, how to use them between sessions, when to slow down or stop, what the research does and doesn't show, and how to record parts work in a progress note.

About these worksheets. Internal Family Systems (IFS) was developed by Richard C. Schwartz, PhD. "Internal Family Systems" and "IFS" are marks the IFS Institute uses for its model and its training, and the Institute's terms say that only the Institute and its affiliated International Partners may offer training in IFS. TranqBay has no connection with the IFS Institute. These worksheets aren't IFS Institute materials, they don't teach the model, and using them doesn't make anyone IFS trained. They borrow the model's basic ideas, described as accurately as we can from the Institute's own published materials, and the wording and layout are our own.

Every client and example in this article is invented. Any resemblance to a real person is a coincidence.

How to print this page or save it as a PDF

IFS in brief: Self, parts and the 6 Fs

Schwartz trained as a structural and strategic family therapist. About four decades ago, while working with clients at serious risk of harming themselves or others, he began working with the positive intentions behind their most harmful thoughts and behaviors, and applied family systems ideas to the patterns among a person's inner experiences (Brenner, Schwartz and Becker, 2023). He founded The Center for Self Leadership as a training organization in 2000, and it was renamed the IFS Institute in 2019 (IFS Institute). The main clinical text is Internal Family Systems Therapy, 2nd edition, by Schwartz and Martha Sweezy (Guilford Press, 2019); No Bad Parts is his book for a general audience.

Here is the model in brief, as the Institute's model outline and its Level 1 learning objectives describe it.

The mind is naturally multiple. IFS assumes everyone has many parts, sub-personalities with their own feelings, beliefs and jobs, and treats this as normal rather than a sign of illness. Every part is assumed to have a positive intention for the person, even when what it does causes harm.

Self. At the core, everyone has a Self that can lead the inner system. The Institute lists eight qualities of Self energy, often called the 8 Cs: curiosity, calmness, compassion, confidence, courage, clarity, creativity and connectedness. When a client feels open and curious toward a part, IFS reads that as Self being present.

Three common roles. Parts that show up in therapy tend to take one of three roles:

Parts that have become extreme are said to carry burdens: beliefs and feelings, such as "I'm worthless", taken on from experience rather than part of the part's nature. In IFS therapy a part can let a burden go, which the model calls unburdening.

Blending and unblending. A part is blended when its feelings and view take over: "I'm furious" instead of "a part of me is furious." Unblending is getting enough space from a part to be with it rather than inside it. The Level 1 objectives describe the aim as learning to speak for a part, not from it.

The 6 Fs. A sequence for getting to know a part, usually a protector. The Institute's Level 1 objectives list them as find, focus, flesh out, feel toward, fears and befriend. Some books put befriend before fears, and in practice the last two run together.

Protectors first. The Institute's outline says it is important to assess protective parts and work with them first, and lists approaching exiles before the system is ready among common mistakes. That rule shapes every worksheet below: they're for noticing parts and befriending protectors, not for going to exiles.

Two ways in. IFS therapists work "in-sight", with the client turning attention inward and relating to a part directly, or with "direct access", where the therapist speaks with a part. The worksheets are in-sight work on paper.

Training in IFS. Formal training comes through the IFS Institute: Level 1, then Levels 2 and 3, and certification as an IFS Certified Therapist. In the Institute's six-session format, Level 1 alone adds up to 91 continuing education hours of lecture, demonstration, practice and role play. Under the Institute's credential terms, "IFS Trained" means holding a certificate of completion for a Level 1 training. If you haven't trained, describe what you do in plain words, such as parts work, and don't use the Institute's designations, such as IFS Trained or IFS Certified Therapist, unless you hold them.

Parts mapping worksheet

Worksheet 1: My parts map

Most people already talk about parts: "Part of me wants to go, part of me wants to stay home." This sheet helps you notice the parts that show up in one situation, and how they get along. There are no right or wrong answers. A word or two is enough, and you can skip anything.

If a part feels very young, very hurt or very heavy, you don't need to explore it here. Put a mark on the "seems to carry hurt" line below, and decide with your therapist if and when to get to know it.

The moment I'm mapping

Parts I notice

Give each part a name in your own words, like "the planner", "the critic", "the one that wants to hide" or "the scroller".

What each part seems to be doing

Write the part numbers that fit each line. "Not sure" is a good answer.

How they get along

To draw your map

If this brings up more than you want right now, stop. Put your feet on the floor, look around the room and name a few things you can see. You can come back to this sheet another day, or bring it to your next session half done.

Getting to know a part: the 6 Fs worksheet

Worksheet 2: Getting to know one part (the 6 Fs)

Use this with a part you've already noticed that tries to protect you: one that plans, worries, pushes, criticizes, distracts or numbs. Don't use it on your own with a part that feels very young, very hurt or overwhelming. Save those for a session. Go slowly. You can stop at any step.

Find

Focus

Flesh it out

Feel toward

Fears

Befriend

Closing

If the part won't answer, that's an answer too. Some parts need to know you better before they talk. Write down what happened and bring it in.

Unblending check-in worksheet

Worksheet 3: Unblending check-in

Sometimes a part takes over so fully that its feelings seem like all of you. "I'm furious" or "I'm useless" feels like the whole truth. Unblending means getting a little space from the part, so you can be with it instead of inside it. This takes three to five minutes. Keep your eyes open if you prefer.

Right now

Say it as a part

Notice the part

Ask for a little room

Check again

If you start to feel numb, far away, or as if the room isn't real, stop and use the grounding steps you and your therapist planned.

Weekly parts journal

Worksheet 4: My parts this week

Once a day, or whenever a part shows up strongly, write a line or two. Short is fine. You don't need to work with the part; just notice it. Bring this journal to your next session.

At the end of the week

If a part pushes you toward hurting yourself, or you feel unsafe, call or text 988 (the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in the US) or call 911, and tell your therapist.

End of the worksheets. The rest of this page is for therapists.

Which IFS worksheet to use when

How to use these worksheets between sessions

Cautions: exiles, trauma and when to pause

Exiles belong in session, with a trained clinician. The worksheets steer clear of exiles on purpose. Getting protectors' permission, checking that an exile won't overwhelm the client, and witnessing and unburdening it are central to IFS trauma work, and they take up a large part of Level 1 training. They aren't for paper, and they aren't for a client alone at home.

Not a self-help substitute for trauma treatment. For a client with PTSD, complex trauma or a history of abuse, these sheets can support treatment with a clinician trained in trauma work. They are not the treatment. If a client is using parts books or worksheets on their own to work through trauma, slow it down and talk with them about pacing and support.

Firefighters still need a risk assessment. "Every part has a positive intention" doesn't replace a safety plan. If a client's firefighters include self-harm, suicidal urges, heavy drinking, purging or other dangerous behavior, assess risk, make or update a safety plan and document it, as you would for any client. Our DAP notes examples include a risk note written in full.

Dissociation. Parts language can land very differently for a client with a dissociative disorder, whose self-states may be far more separate than everyday parts. If you suspect dissociative identity disorder or another dissociative disorder, get consultation from a clinician trained in dissociation before using parts worksheets, and put stabilization first.

Images aren't memories. Don't treat an image or a story a part offers as a recovered memory, and never suggest that a part is hiding abuse. In a 2026 survey of a representative UK sample of 1,507 adults, recovered memories of previously unknown abuse during therapy were most often reported with primal therapy, IFS and psychodynamic therapy (Patihis, 2026). A survey of client reports can't show that a therapy creates false memories, but it is a good reason to follow the client's lead, stay curious and leave interpretation out.

Voices and psychosis. If a client hears voices or has other psychotic symptoms, using parts language with those experiences needs specialist consultation and a clear treatment plan. Don't hand them these sheets to work through alone.

Scope. Use the worksheets within your training and your license's scope of practice, and get consultation from an IFS-trained colleague if you're new to parts work.

Pause the worksheet, or stop the parts work for today, when:

How to pause: ground first (feet on the floor, eyes open, name things in the room), orient (where they are, the date, who is with them), thank the parts that came up, and say you'll come back to it together. Check that the client is steady before they leave, and plan a check-in call if you're concerned. Risk always comes first. In the US, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline takes calls and texts.

What the research says about IFS, and where it's thin

IFS has grown in popularity faster than its evidence. The studies so far are small, several have no comparison group, and many include the model's developer or clinicians trained and affiliated with the IFS Institute among their authors. Here's what has been published:

In short: IFS has early, encouraging results. In one small randomized study for depression it showed no significant difference from CBT or interpersonal therapy, and in one for PTSD an IFS group program showed none from an active control. Studies this size can't show that two treatments are equally good, and IFS does not yet have the large, independent randomized studies that support first-line PTSD treatments. Say so honestly when you describe your approach in informed consent, track outcomes with measures such as the PHQ-9 and GAD-7, and change course when a client isn't improving.

How to note parts work in a progress note

"Worked with parts" tells a reviewer almost nothing. Write the note so a clinician who doesn't practice IFS can follow it: name the intervention, describe each part in plain clinical terms next to the client's own name for it, and tie the work to a symptom and a treatment goal.

What to record:

Phrases you can adapt:

An example in DAP format. Invented client: a 34-year-old graphic designer we'll call Priya, in her eighth video session of IFS-informed therapy for depression and harsh self-criticism. Goal 1: reduce depressive symptoms (PHQ-9 below 10). Goal 2: reduce self-critical rumination after feedback at work.

The same content fits other formats. In a BIRP note, the parts work goes under Intervention and the ratings and the client's reactions under Response. In a SOAP note, the journal review is Subjective and what you observed during unblending is Objective. For wording, our progress notes cheat sheet lists intervention, response and plan words that pair well with parts language, plus risk wording you can adapt.

Completed worksheets and the record. If you keep a completed worksheet, or a photo of one, treat it as part of the clinical record under your record-keeping policy. Many therapists summarize the sheet in the note and hand the paper back, so the client keeps their own map.

How this works in TranqBay

TranqBay is practice software for therapists in private practice: a practice website, online booking, video sessions and session notes in one place. Here's where parts work fits.

At practice.tranqbay.health you can look through the practice website designs, including the sections where you'd describe your approach and training, and see the booking page a client would use.

Frequently asked questions about IFS worksheets

Before your next session

Print the parts map, fill it in with one client for a moment from their week, and ask which part they'd like to get to know first. Then go at the pace their protectors allow.

If you want booking, video sessions and session notes in one place, see how TranqBay works for private practice: you can look at a practice website design where you'd describe your approach, and the booking page your clients would use. If you're deciding whether to join, this page explains how joining TranqBay works.

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