Friends of the Collective Spotlight: Shelly Johnson, LMHC CIFST (she/her)
Meet Shelly, an LMHC from Des Moines, Iowa, and our next IFS-TC Friend of the month! Shelly runs Compassionate Hearts Therapy, where she passionately uses the Internal Family Systems (IFS) model with her clients, specializing in areas like depression, anxiety, addiction, and trauma. Introduced to IFS during graduate school in Chicago, she fell in love with the model's elegant approach to unpacking feelings.
Shelly's creativity shines through her IFS-inspired resource, "The Parts Inside of Me," a book that visually represents her inner world, encouraging readers to explore their own internal landscape. The book has been praised for its ability to spark curiosity about one's inner system and we’re proud to call her this month’s friend of the collective.
Tell us briefly about yourself and how you discovered the IFS model.
I am a licensed mental health therapist from Des Moines, Iowa. I run a small private practice called Compassionate Hearts Therapy. I am very passionate about my work and use the model almost exclusively with my clients. I discovered the IFS model while in graduate school in Chicago several years ago and after reading Dick’s initial Internal Family Systems Therapy book published by Guilford Press, I immediately fell in love. I started off as a client with the late beloved Derek Scott who highly encouraged me to get trained in the model back in 2016. I haven’t looked back since and am fully certified with IFSI. I had the distinct pleasure of completing 2 years of IFS consultation with Michi Rose.
Please describe your work as an IFS therapist/practitioner and how long you have been working in the Model.
As a mental health therapist, I specialize primarily in working with depression, anxiety, addiction, co-dependency, relational conflict, grief and loss, ptsd and trauma, chronic pain, spirituality, sexuality, and ocd. I have been working with using the model clinically since 2019.
Is there something in particular about working with the IFS Model that excited you?
YES!! The concept of doing the inner healing and attachment work was profound to me. For most of my life, before discovering IFS, feelings were all mixed together and IFS gives you such an elegant way of unpacking everything in a way that makes internal and intuitive sense to people! I have seen more movement using this model with clients than a lot of other modalities and I like to have fun using it with my clients!
Tell us about the IFS-inspired resource you've created.
I wrote The Parts Inside of Me book in my head to and from my drives to Chicago for PA’ing for Level 1. It was my way of unblending and externalizing my parts in a visual way so I could be in more relation with them.
What inspired you to create your products/services?
It was somewhat spiritual in how it creatively flowed out of me; my illustrator was phenomenal and had such talent in making it come to life! It’s a glimpse of my inner world and a neat illustrated book to inspire people to start creatively sensing into their own inner landscape; that was my goal in writing it!
Who would benefit most from your IFS resources and how can people access your product/service?
It is offered through the Institute and on Amazon, Barnes & Nobles, Walmart, and other online distributors.
Please describe any future plans or next steps for your service/product that you would like to share.
The book was meant to be a gentle nudge of inspiration for people to begin thinking about who the key players were in their own internal family. I do have other creative projects in mind.
I have also done presentations at IFS events, co-facilitated for IFS retreats, and am invited to be an IFS field expert on a panel at an Iowa mental health conference in May 2024. I have also had the joy and privilege of PA’ing for level 1 trainees in person and online.
We'd love to hear a success story or positive feedback you've received from someone who has experienced your IFS resource.
I have been fortunate to have several and I’m often told that it’s a nice short and sweet primer for getting curious about one’s own internal family. I think the most touching stories to me are the ones in which an adult has read it and been moved by it or where an adult has read it to their child or where a therapist has read it to a younger person and asked them what their parts look like. It’s a playful resource in that way!
What is your favorite IFS-aligned quote, poem, song, book, TV show or movie?
“Let me fall if I must fall. The one I am becoming will catch me.” ~ Baal Shem Tov
Anything else you want readers to know?
I encourage readers to just let their imagination run loose while reading the book! The inner psych is vast and fascinating to explore.
How can people learn more about your offerings and stay in touch?
I would love to hear from others!
Compassionate Hearts Therapy
www.chtherapy.care
E: shelly@chtherapy.care
We’re so pleased to be able to offer this resource and see our IFS community connected in a new way. Visit the Friends of the Collective page to browse the current profiles or submit your own! For the full step-by-step guide to creating your entry & advertising on our site, start by downloading this PDF.
