Clinician Spotlight: Ashley Thompson
Internal Family Systems SM (IFS) therapy, developed by Richard Schwartz Ph.D., is more than just a method — it is a paradigm-shifting approach for deeply understanding and appreciating every part of ourselves. The IFS framework encourages a gentle inquiry that allows us to understand ourselves, our families, and our world in a new and holistic way.
We are thrilled to welcome Ashley Thompson, a California Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, to our team. Ashley specializes in working with individuals who identify as Highly Sensitive Persons, perfectionists, people-pleasers, or planners, helping them navigate life’s challenges with compassion and insight. She believes therapy benefits everyone, whether addressing immediate challenges or deepening self-awareness. Ashley is passionate about Internal Family Systems (IFS), which fosters connection and compassion toward our inner parts, helping clients create balance and inner harmony
Q: Finish this sentence: "Therapy is for you when…”
Always! It can be used in an acute situation or to allow the space to explore parts of you that do not get attention.
Q: What is it about IFS that speaks to you?
I love that it is a relational model. That the goal is not exclusively pathologizing or fixating on changing what is ‘wrong’, but more so broadening our understanding of the experience by getting in touch with ourselves. Instead of getting smaller, it encourages expansion in our perspectives of ourselves and the world around us.
Q: What is your favorite analogy that you use with your clients that seems to be helpful to them?
I sometimes use a metaphor of what it’s like to ask a friend to meet us for a coffee when we are having a hard time and want some support. We typically want to be heard, to be seen, to know that that friend is getting our experience - not be met with judgment, unrequested advice or pressure to fix our problem. We often want connection first, to feel safe to feel in the presence of another. That’s our goal - to offer that experience of compassion and care to our parts, a safe space for sharing and understanding before we move towards change.
Q: What personal experiences drew you to this field?
I was volunteering as a reading tutor for children and realized that so many of the barriers to their learning were happening outside of the classroom, small traumas, or large traumas. I found myself very limited in my capacity to truly help affect change. That led me to enroll in a counseling program to pursue therapy so that I could help them with the underlying issues that were preventing these kids from being able to show up in a really present way to learn.
Q: What social issues, populations, or clinical presenting issues you’re passionate about in your work as an IFS therapist?
I enjoy working with people who have a hard time saying no, who default to people pleasing for connection and safety, who feel anxious, and those who identify as sensitive or feel emotions deeply. I enjoy creating a space for them to explore what it would be like if they could say no or if they did implement a boundary and to help them attend to the parts of them that get most impacted by that exploration.
Q: How do you stay grounded in Self energy?
Connecting back to nature, standing by the ocean, remembering how small I am in such a vast universe. Allowing myself to play- putting on music and dancing in whatever way my body wants to move, being silly, adventuring, and losing myself in a good book.
Q: What are some internal conflicts you commonly notice in your clients, and how do you help them through this?
The first thing that comes to mind is the common internal conflict of “how can I meet my own needs if I'm supposed to meet everyone else’s?” I help them by first exploring what their own needs even are- do we know what they are? Can we honor them without making a game plan for how everything is going to fit together perfectly? Can we make room for those emotions that will arise when inevitably these things don't fit perfectly?
How might you explain IFS to clients who are new to the Model?
I immediately thought of the movie Inside Out since so many people are coming in with that understanding of parts after seeing that movie! It’s the concept that we all have different parts of us, in the same way that on a Friday night we may have a part that wants to Netflix and chill and another part that feels guilty for relaxing and another part that wants to socialize. We have different parts that might have different perspectives on what's best for us at any given time. We get to know these parts to value them and to create a balance and collaboration in that internal family.
Q: Finish this sentence: The therapeutic relationship should...
feel comfortable, safe, and secure enough to be honest.
Q: And, finally, this one: When therapy is working…
clients are able to remain more grounded when feeling the full range of human emotions.
Does Ashley Thompson sound like the right therapist for your path to healing? If you are based in California, contact our Client Care Coordinator or call 503-447-3244 to schedule a consultation.
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