Bethany Russell IFS Therapist

10/31/2025

If traditional talk therapy left you feeling like you understood everything but changed nothing, you’re not alone. Many clients come to me reporting that exact thing.

You probably got really good at explaining your patterns. Maybe you can perfectly articulate your childhood wounds, your triggers, your defense mechanisms.

Hell, you might have even created your own slideshow of all this 😆

But you’re still:
* Reacting the same way
* Stuck in the same cycles
* Choosing the same types of relationships
* Managing symptoms vs. healing

Here’s what I want you to know:

You’re not treatment-resistant.
You’re not “too complex.”
You didn’t fail therapy.

You just needed a different approach.

Trauma doesn’t live in the logical part of your brain that talk therapy engages. It lives in your body, your nervous system, your unconscious protective parts (IFS).

Healing happens when we include all of you - not just the part that can analyze and explain.

What’s your experience with talk therapy?
Did it help, or did you need something more?

09/23/2025

Your resentment is showing, babe.

And it’s telling me everything about where you abandoned yourself to keep someone else comfortable.

Here’s what nobody told you about boundaries: The people who lose their s**t when you set them? They were already taking things that weren’t theirs.

Your peace. Your energy. Your choices. Your f*cking sovereignty.

They got comfortable with unlimited access to you. They mistook your trauma response for generosity. They called your self-abandonment “love.”

And now? Now you’re changing the rules. And they’re MAD mad.

Good. Let them be uncomfortable. Let them call you difficult. Let them say you’ve changed.

You HAVE changed. You stopped making yourself easy to consume.

Your boundaries aren’t the problem. The fact that you needed to state them is.

A healthy person hears your boundary and says “thank you for telling me how to love you well.”

Everyone else? They were already on borrowed time.

Tag someone who needs to hear this. Better yet - send it to yourself 6 months ago.

💊 Drop a “🔥” if this hit different.



09/19/2025

Somehow, I’ve worked with *many* women who were “the other woman.”
Married women who found themselves in affairs.
Single women with married men (or women).

And what I’ve learned is this: affairs don’t live in black + white.
They live in the gray.

Sometimes the affair kept her marriage intact.
Sometimes it cracked open old wounds of not being chosen.
Sometimes it revealed longings she didn’t even know she carried.
And sometimes, that relationship became an expander — showing her elements of love, care, and connection she hadn’t believed were possible.

It’s rarely just about sex.
It’s rarely about not loving her spouse.
It’s often about something deeper: a nervous system searching for relief, or parts of her longing to finally breathe.

What I’ve seen again and again is that affairs carry nuance most people never talk about.

They’re messy. They’re layered. They change everyone involved.

And the truth is: no one walks away the same.

Comment with 🔥 if you’re ready for Part 2.

& if this hit, save it. If you know someone who needs the nuance, send it.

✨ Note: This isn’t about condoning, romanticizing, or condemning affairs. It’s about naming the nuanced and messy truths I’ve witnessed again and again.

I know the heart-stabbing pain and confusion of betrayal, too. If this stirred something in you, your response makes sense and I hold space for those parts as well. 🖤

09/16/2025

Straight from my notes app 🖤 Which one do you need tattooed on your forehead right now?



09/07/2025

If traditional talk therapy left you feeling like you understood everything but changed nothing, you're not alone. Many clients come to me reporting that exact thing.

You probably got really good at explaining your patterns. Maybe you can perfectly articulate your childhood wounds, your triggers, your defense mechanisms. Hell, you might have even created your own slideshow of all this 😆

But you're still:
* Reacting the same way
* Stuck in the same cycles
* Choosing the same types of relationships
* Managing symptoms vs. healing

Here's what I want you to know: You're not treatment-resistant. You're not "too complex." You didn't fail therapy.

You just needed a different approach.

Trauma doesn't live in the logical part of your brain that talk therapy engages. It lives in your body, your nervous system, your unconscious protective parts (IFS).

Healing happens when we include all of you - not just the part that can analyze and explain.

What's your experience with talk therapy?

Did it help, or did you need something more?

07/27/2025

New blog post: IFS Therapy for Trauma - Why Parts Work Changes Everything. If you've ever felt like you're two different people (calm & grounded vs. reactive & triggered), this is for you.

Discover why IFS therapy transforms trauma healing by working with your parts, not against them. Licensed therapist Bethany Russell explains how Internal Family Systems helps trauma survivors when traditional therapy falls short. Learn about ritual-integrated IFS therapy that honors your Self vs. pr