Internal Family Systems (IFS) Therapy for the Inner Critic in Tampa, FL
in Tampa · Virtual throughout Florida, North Carolina & vermont
The critic in your head isn't the whole story. It's just one part talking the loudest
You know the voice.
The one that critiques everything before you've even finished doing it. The one that replays the conversation from three days ago and finds four new things you should have said differently. The one that says yes when every other part of you wants to say no (and then makes you pay for it later).
And knowing exactly where that voice came from hasn't made it any quieter.
I know. Mine hasn't fully gone quiet either - I've just stopped letting it drive. You don't need to already call it an "inner critic," or know the words "people-pleasing" or "parts work." If any of this sounds familiar, that's enough.
If what you're carrying feels more stored in your body than in your head - tension, shutdown, a nervous system that won't settle - Brainspotting Therapy might be the better place to start.
You are not broken, and you are not "too much." One part of you might just be running the whole show, and it's exhausted.
If this is your life right now
You’re not here because you lack insight. You’re here because
You can trace exactly where the critical voice came from, and it still won't shut up
You say yes when you mean no (and resent it for days afterward)
You rehearse conversations in your head long after they're over, editing what you "should" have said
You feel like you have to earn rest, love, or belonging before you're allowed to have it
Part of you wants to set a boundary, and another part panics at the thought of disappointing someone
You're "the together one" for everyone else, and exhausted underneath it all
You over-apologize, over-explain, or make yourself smaller in rooms where you don't need to
You logically know your worth isn't tied to your productivity - it just doesn't feel that way
What IFS Therapy Actually Is (& What It Isn’t)
Internal Family Systems (IFS) is built on one idea: you're not one single voice in your head - you're made up of different parts, each with its own job, its own fears, and its own way of trying to protect you.
The critic that won't let up. The part that says yes before you've even thought about what you want. The part that goes quiet and disappears in conflict. None of them are the "bad" version of you. In IFS, we work from the belief that there are no bad parts, and that every one of them developed to protect you from something, even when the way they do it doesn't feel great anymore.
Underneath all of those parts is what IFS calls Self - the calm, curious, grounded version of you that's still there, even when it's hard to feel it. IFS isn't about silencing your inner critic or firing your people-pleasing part. It's about understanding what they're actually trying to do for you (so they don't have to work so damn hard).
This isn't about analyzing your childhood from a distance. It's about noticing which part is talking right now - in this moment, in this session - and getting curious about it together.
IFS Therapy Can Look Like:
✔ Noticing which part just took over - the critic, the pleaser, the part that goes numb - as it happens, not just talking about it after the fact
✔ Getting curious about a part instead of fighting it or trying to “think” your way past it
✔ Understanding what a part is protecting you from, even when its way of doing that might feel exhausting or unwanted
✔ Building enough trust with a part that it can finally ease up, instead of working overtime
✔ Real shifts in how loud the critic is day to day - not just a better explanation for why it's there
IFS vs Talk Therapy
This isn't either/or. Traditional talk therapy is often where you build the understanding — the why, the pattern, the history of how the inner critic or the people-pleasing got built in the first place.
IFS is where that understanding turns into an actual relationship with the part that's still running the show. You don't need to abandon the insight you already have. You need a way to use it — so the critic doesn't just get quieter in your head, but actually loosens its grip on your life.
Here’s what we’ll do together
What IFS Therapy in Tampa, FL Looks Like
Building greater compassion for all of your parts, whether that seems possible now or not
We usually start with whichever part is running the show most right now - often the critic, or the part that can't say no. We get curious about it together: what does it actually sound like, and what is it afraid would happen if it stopped?
Brainspotting layers in differently
Parts don't just live in your thoughts - they show up in your body too: the tight jaw when the critic activates, the stomach drop right before you say yes to something you might not want to do. I use Brainspotting alongside IFS to help with greater connection to parts - letting you feel and understand them in your body, not just in your head.
We get to know your system first
First sessions are about mapping what's actually going on in there - which parts show up most, what they're protecting, and what they're afraid would happen without them - not diving straight into trying to "fixing" anything.
We build trust with parts, not try to silence them
Once we know what we're working with, we get curious about that part instead of arguing with it. Most protective parts can step back. once they trust that you actually hear them and their worries.
We work the modality that fits the moment
Some sessions, that means chatting with a part and understanding what it's protecting. Other sessions, it means using Brainspotting to help something settle in your body that talking alone hasn't touched. We follow what's actually in front of us, not a fixed script.
We always leave time to land
Checking in on how you're feeling and making sure you leave grounded matters just as much as the processing itself.
Understanding where the inner critic came from was never going to be enough on its own.
You don't have to keep white-knuckling your way past a voice that won't quit, or keep saying yes while resenting it later. If you're in Tampa (or anywhere in Florida, North Carolina, or Vermont) and ready to actually change your relationship with the parts running your life, I'd love to talk.
I offer a free 15-minute consultation to see if we'd be a good fit.
A little about me
Hey, I'm Keri - And I've Literally Been You
I didn't come to this work as an outside expert. I spent years being "the together one" - saying yes when I meant no, running my own internal critic on a loop, and mistaking that exhaustion for just being “responsible.” Parts work is what helped me actually notice which part of me was talking, instead of assuming it was just "who I am."
IFS is one of the modalities I use the most, both in my own life and in the room with clients - because it doesn't ask you to fight the parts of you that feel loudest or most exhausting. It asks you to get curious about them instead. I've also written more about the body-based side of this work on my Brainspotting Therapy page, if that's the layer you're looking for.
I'm a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with a private practice in Tampa, FL, Level 1 trained in IFS, and I work from an integrative lens - blending parts work and Brainspotting depending on what your system needs in the room. My approach is warm and direct, not clinical-office-blank-wall energy.
I see clients in person at my Carrollwood, Tampa office and virtually throughout Florida, North Carolina, and Vermont.
- Keri Baker, LCSW · IFS Therapist in Tampa
You're tired of understanding why the inner critic is there and ready to actually change your relationship with it
You say yes more often than you mean it, and you're ready to figure out why
You're the "strong one" or the "together one" for everyone else and quietly exhausted underneath it
You want a therapist who won't ask you to just "think positive" or silence the critical voice
You're curious about IFS or Brainspotting but aren't sure which one fits - or want both
You're ready to feel different around the parts of you that feel loudest, not just understand them better
This work could be a good fit if:
Also a great fit if: You're not sure this counts as a "big enough" problem for therapy. You don't need a trauma story to have an inner critic worth working with. If a part of you is running your life and you're tired of it, that's enough to start.
Questions?
FAQs
-
Anyone! IFS does not need to be targeted at any kind of specific symptom or diagnosis. If you want to find a way to be more in touch with your internal world, taking a parts approach can be helpful. We also don’t have to do parts work in a way that doesn’t resonate for you. Our goal together will be seeing what is most helpful, what language makes the most sense to you, and what you need to be able to gain a deeper understanding of your own needs.
-
It depends on how long the part's been running the show and how many parts are involved. Some shifts happen in a handful of sessions. Deeper, longstanding patterns - especially people-pleasing built over decades - usually take longer, and that's normal.
-
Absolutely! I do not think that there is only one type of modality that resonates for everyone. I love integrating other modalities into our work together, especially if you find them to be helpful. Some of the other modalities I use are Brainspotting, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Motivational Interviewing, and Intuitive Eating.
-
Yes. IFS isn't only for big-T trauma. It's just as useful for an inner critic, chronic people-pleasing, or the exhausted "together one" part that never gets to rest. You don't need a defining event to benefit from this work.
-
Every part of you (even the critical one, even the one that says yes when you mean no) developed to protect you from something. IFS doesn't ask you to get rid of these parts. It helps you understand what they're protecting you from, so they don't have to work so hard.
-
Talk therapy often builds the understanding, such as the why, the pattern, the history. IFS gives you a way to actually build a relationship with the part that's still running the show, so the understanding turns into a real shift, not just a better explanation.
-
Yes, and I use both often! Parts show up in your body as much as your thoughts - Brainspotting helps something settle physically that IFS alone hasn't fully reached, and vice versa.
-
Yes. I see virtual clients throughout Florida, North Carolina, and Vermont, and IFS translates well on screen.
Your inner critic doesn't need a better argument against it. It needs a different kind of relationship.
If you're ready to stop fighting the parts of you that feel loudest, I'm here.
Accepting new clients · Tampa in-person & virtual throughout Florida, North Carolina & Vermont
IFS Therapy in Tampa, FL
Services are also offered virtually throughout Florida, North Carolina and Vermont