IFS is revolutionising the way we think of ourselves. The ideas of multiplicity of mind, parts and Self are, perhaps, the most common of the model, but what about the idea of “trailhead”?

Dick Schwartz, the founder of IFS, uses the word “trailhead” in many of his writings, and, I must admit, it took me a while to come to terms with what we mean by it.

Initially I thought that my difficulty was due to English being a second language for me, and that I am more familiar with British English rather than American English. So I started from the word itself.

Trailhead is the place where a trail (= a path through a countryside, mountain, or forest area) starts (source Cambridge Dictionary)

Having lived mainly in urban areas, the idea was quite new to me. If anybody is familiar with the sea currents of the Mediterranean, at times you might feel a sudden cold current of water... if you follow it, you usually get to a water source that gets mixed with the sea water.

What the trailhead and the sea current have in common is that they are natural pathways that exist and can to be followed to find something that is not visible at first.

Trailheads as the basic elements of our experience

This idea is rather powerful in IFS because the first "things" that we encounter when we focus our attention inside (and there is no doing IFS without brining our attention consciously to our inner world) are trailheads. Let me give you an example. I am currently typing this article on my phone. If I bring my attention inwards, I notice some pain in my right shoulder, a little bit tension in my forehead and a sensation of heat.

We might be quick at saying that there are three "parts" here, using language like "tension-in-the-forehead part", "shoulder-pain part", and "heat part". While there is generally no harm in using this language, but my pedantic managers consider it inaccurate, and they are correct.

These three experiences I am having are not technically parts, but trailheads. These trailheads might, or might not, come from a part (or more than one part). If we use the image of the trailhead, the experience I am having is the beginning of the path. If I follow the path I might find what is generating it, but I don't know from the outset.

Notice that "not knowing" straightaway is a quality rather than something to be worried about. Not knowing what our experiences mean or where they are coming from is the fertile ground from which gentle and open-hearted enquiry can start through curiosity (one of the major aspects of Self energy - see my collection of articles on Self here). If I stay open and curious, I can focus on each of these three trailheads and see where they lead me.

My inner IFS journey

The first one is the shoulder pain. I remember a strange movement I made an hour ago and I am pretty sure that this is just some physical pain. There is no part behind this trailhead that is trying to tell me something. This trailhead doesn't lead to any part.

The second one is the heat. It is currently hot and humid here by the Mediterranean sea and it makes perfect sense to consider the heat as a physiological reaction to the high temperatures around me. There is no part that is trying to tell me something I don't know in this case. Parts can, indeed, use physical heat or cold reactions to make themselves known. For example when we are so embarrassed that we sweat even if it is freezing cold.

The third one is the tension in my forehead. If I focus on it, I quickly hear a voice saying "be careful with this article, make sure you don't write anything inaccurate and that your spelling is good". There might be a physiological element to this, but this trailhead is definitely leading me to make contact with a part that has a message for me. As I get to know this part a bit better, I recognise a common manager of mine that wants to do things well. Calling him "forehead-tension" wouldn't make him justice. This manager oversees many aspects of my written communication and has had to step up his game because of my dyslexia and the high probability of me making spelling mistakes.

Parts are not their trailheads

This leads to another important aspect of a trailhead. The moment I hear the message of this part and I interact with him to the point that he feels heard and understood by me, as well as appreciated, he relaxes. The forehead tension goes away because the part has no more need to call for my attention.

Please notice that the trailhead has disappeared but the part remains.

This calls for a little diversion. Many people ask me "what happens to Parts" after you work with them and you don't feel them any more? This question shows that the person has confused a part with its way of communicating.

Think of my shoulder pain. If the pain goes away, does my shoulder go away too? Obviously not. The same happens to parts. Our parts exist even when they have nothing to tell us. Trailheads only exist as a way for a part to got to our attention. The disappearance of a trailhead means that the part has stopped communicating in that particular way, but not that the part has gone.

Like shoulders and organs... parts don't go away. As a matter of fact, when we don't feel organs it's usually because they are well and in harmony, and don't need anything from us.

What are the types of trailheads?

Dick Schwartz identifies the following four types

1. Physical sensations

2. Emotions

3. Thoughts

4. Impulses

If you have ever followed any IFS meditation by Dick Schwartz, you might have noticed that one of these fours elements of experience is the starting point of any IFS session (either on your own or with a therapist/buddy/practitioner).

As I said at the beginning, IFS is quite a revolutionary way of thinking of ourselves and our personality. Are you ready to embrace the idea that your emotions, thoughts, impulses and physical sensations might be trailheads through which your parts communicate with you? Don’t worry if the idea sounds strange at first. It took me a long time to accept it, and, now that I see my life through the lens of IFS, things have changed for the better.

I hope you enjoyed this article. Please share it as it helps to grow the public of my free IFS blog.