Clinically reviewed by Chris Berger, M.A., LPC, NCC, founder of Foundations Counseling. Last reviewed June 2026.
EMDR and IFS are two of the most talked about therapies for trauma, and they work in very different ways. EMDR, developed by Francine Shapiro in the late 1980s, helps the brain reprocess specific painful memories so they lose their charge. IFS, developed by Richard Schwartz in the 1980s, works with the different parts of you that adapted to survive what happened. Both can help with trauma, and many therapists use them together. This guide explains how each approach works, who developed it, what the evidence shows, who each is best for, and how to decide, including the more established research behind EMDR and the growing evidence base for IFS.
At a glance
| Approach | What it targets | How it works | Evidence base for trauma | Typical length | Best fit for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EMDR | Specific traumatic memories | Brief focus on a memory paired with bilateral stimulation (eye movements, taps, tones) across an eight phase protocol | Strong. Recommended for PTSD by the APA, WHO, and the VA and DoD | Often 6 to 12 sessions for a focused memory | Single event trauma, PTSD, a clear memory that still feels raw |
| IFS | The inner parts shaped by trauma and your core Self | Builds a relationship with protective and wounded parts so they can unburden, led by a calm core Self | Growing. Listed on the federal NREPP registry, with pilot studies in complex trauma | Varies, often longer and open ended | Complex or childhood trauma, harsh self criticism, feeling at war inside |
| Trauma focused CBT / CPT | Trauma related thoughts and beliefs | Structured skills, cognitive restructuring, and processing of the trauma narrative | Strong. APA recommended first line treatments for PTSD | Often 8 to 16 sessions | People who want a structured, highly researched, skills based approach |
| Somatic Experiencing | The body's stored stress response | Tracks body sensations to discharge trauma held in the nervous system | Emerging. Smaller but growing research base | Varies | People who feel trauma mostly in the body, or who find memory focused work too activating |
| Blended EMDR and IFS | Both memories and parts | IFS to stabilize and prepare parts, EMDR to reprocess the memory, in one integrated course | Practice based, drawing on the evidence for each method | Varies | Complex trauma where a single method feels incomplete |
Why trauma needs a specific kind of therapy
Trauma is not just a bad memory. It changes how the brain and body store an experience, which is why ordinary talk therapy, as helpful as it is for many things, often does not fully resolve it. Three patterns explain why trauma focused approaches like EMDR and IFS exist.
The memory is stored differently. When something overwhelming happens, the brain can fail to file the memory away as finished. It stays raw and easily triggered, as if the event were still happening. EMDR was built specifically to help the brain complete that filing, which is why it targets the memory itself rather than just talking about it.
The body holds the response. Trauma lives in the nervous system, not only in thoughts. People describe a racing heart, a frozen feeling, or a startle response that fires before any conscious thought. Body based work, and the bilateral stimulation in EMDR, both speak to this physical layer.
Parts of you adapted to survive. To get through what happened, the mind often splits off the pain and builds protectors around it, an inner critic, a part that numbs out, a part that stays hypervigilant. IFS was built to work with exactly these parts, helping them release the roles they took on. This is why complex and childhood trauma, where many parts formed over years, is often where IFS shines.
Understanding which of these layers is loudest for you is the first clue to which approach may fit best.
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The approaches
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
EMDR is a structured, eight phase therapy developed by psychologist Francine Shapiro in the late 1980s. While you briefly bring a distressing memory to mind, your therapist guides you through bilateral stimulation, usually side to side eye movements, taps, or tones. Across repeated sets, the memory tends to lose its emotional intensity while the facts remain.
EMDR has the strongest research backing of any trauma therapy in this comparison. It is recommended for PTSD by the American Psychological Association, named a psychotherapy of choice by the World Health Organization, and placed in the highest recommendation category by the Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense. It does not require a detailed retelling of the trauma, long exposure, or homework.
The trade off is that EMDR is most precise when there is a specific memory or event to target. For diffuse, lifelong relational patterns, some people find it needs to be paired with other work. A minority find the memory focus intense, which is why the preparation phase and a trained therapist matter.
Best fit for: People with single event trauma or PTSD, or a clear memory that still feels raw, who want the most research backed option.
IFS (Internal Family Systems)
IFS is a non pathologizing approach developed by Richard Schwartz, PhD, in the 1980s, while he was working with clients who described warring inner voices. It views the mind as a system of parts, protectors and wounded exiles, organized around a calm, wise core Self. The work helps parts feel understood and release the extreme roles they took on to survive, led by the client's own Self rather than by the therapist.
IFS has a growing evidence base. It was accepted onto the federal National Registry of Evidence Based Programs and Practices, and pilot studies have shown promise for PTSD among survivors of multiple childhood traumas, including symptoms that other trauma treatments often leave untouched, such as dissociation and self perception. The IFS Institute, founded by Schwartz, sets training standards.
The trade off is that IFS has a younger and smaller research base than EMDR, and is less established for single incident PTSD specifically. The open ended, relational nature of the work can also take longer.
Best fit for: People with complex or childhood trauma, harsh inner self criticism, or the sense that different parts of them are in conflict.
Trauma focused CBT and CPT
Trauma focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Cognitive Processing Therapy are structured, skills based approaches that the APA recommends as first line treatments for PTSD, alongside EMDR. They work by building coping skills, examining the beliefs trauma left behind, and processing the trauma narrative directly.
Their strength is a deep research base and a clear, predictable structure, often 8 to 16 sessions. The trade off is that they involve more homework and, in some forms, more direct engagement with the trauma story than EMDR or IFS, which some people find harder at the start.
Best fit for: People who want a structured, highly researched, skills based path and do not mind between session practice.
Somatic Experiencing and body based approaches
Somatic Experiencing, developed by Peter Levine, and related body based methods work from the body up, tracking physical sensations to help the nervous system discharge trauma it has been holding. The evidence base is emerging and smaller than EMDR's or CBT's, but interest is growing, especially for people who feel their trauma mostly in the body.
Best fit for: People who experience trauma primarily as physical activation, or who find memory focused talk work too overwhelming to start with.
Where to find EMDR and IFS in Northern Colorado
If you are looking for either approach in person rather than through an app, Foundations Counseling provides both. Trauma specialization includes EMDR with EMDRIA affiliated counselors and IFS, along with trauma informed CBT, across four offices in Fort Collins, Loveland, and Windsor. Foundations is private pay and focused on talk therapy, not medication, at $200 per session with a free first consultation and out of network reimbursement documentation provided. The trade off is cost, since out of network sessions run more per visit than in network options. Many trauma therapists, including some at Foundations, integrate EMDR and IFS in one course of care.
Best fit for: People in Northern Colorado who want in person EMDR or IFS, value record privacy, and prioritize quick scheduling and a counselor match they can change at no cost.
How to choose between EMDR and IFS
There is no single right answer, and a good consultation will help you decide. Three questions cut through most of it.
1. Is your trauma tied to specific events or memories? If your distress traces to identifiable events, a car accident, an assault, a combat experience, a medical event, EMDR is often the most direct route, and it carries the strongest research support for PTSD. This is the clearest case for starting with EMDR.
2. Is it more about lifelong patterns and how you relate to yourself? If the trauma is woven through years of childhood experience, shows up as a harsh inner critic, or feels like parts of you are at war, IFS is often the better starting point. It is built for the relational and parts layer that single memory work can miss.
3. How much does the strength of the evidence matter to you? If you want the most established, research backed option, EMDR or trauma focused CBT will fit best. If you are drawn to a gentler, parts based approach and are comfortable with a younger evidence base, IFS is a reasonable choice. Many people do not choose just one. A therapist trained in both can blend them, using IFS to build safety and EMDR to reprocess, which is increasingly common for complex trauma.
The most important factor is not the acronym. It is finding a properly trained trauma therapist you trust, who can match the method to you rather than the other way around.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the main difference between EMDR and IFS for trauma?
EMDR targets specific traumatic memories and uses bilateral stimulation to help the brain reprocess them so they lose their charge. IFS works with the inner parts that formed to protect you, helping them release the roles they took on, led by your core Self. EMDR is often faster for a clear memory or event. IFS is often a better fit for complex, lifelong patterns. They are not mutually exclusive, and many therapists combine them.
Which is better for PTSD, EMDR or IFS?
For diagnosed PTSD, EMDR has the stronger evidence base. It is recommended for PTSD by the American Psychological Association, the World Health Organization, and the VA and DoD. IFS has a growing evidence base and shows real promise, particularly for complex and childhood trauma, but it is less established for single incident PTSD specifically. For many people the best answer is EMDR first, or a blend of the two.
Is IFS evidence based the way EMDR is?
IFS is evidence based in that it was accepted onto the federal National Registry of Evidence Based Programs and Practices and has a growing body of research, including pilot studies in trauma. Its research base is younger and smaller than EMDR's, which carries endorsements from major health authorities for PTSD. Both are legitimate. EMDR is more established, and IFS is promising and especially valued for complex trauma.
Can you combine EMDR and IFS?
Yes, and many trauma therapists do. A common pattern is to use IFS first to build inner safety and get protective parts on board, then use EMDR to reprocess the specific memories an exiled part is carrying. Combining them requires a clinician trained in both methods. For complex trauma, this blended approach can be more effective than either method alone.
Which one is gentler or less intense?
It depends on the person. IFS is often described as gentler because it does not ask you to focus directly on the worst moment, it works with your relationship to the parts that hold it. EMDR does ask you to briefly hold a memory in mind, though it does not require detailed retelling or long exposure. A skilled therapist paces either approach to keep you steady, and the preparation phase in EMDR exists for exactly this reason.
How long does each therapy take?
EMDR is often delivered weekly, and a single memory is generally processed within one to three sessions, with focused work frequently completed in roughly 6 to 12 sessions. IFS tends to be more open ended and can run longer, since it works with multiple parts over time. Complex trauma extends both. Your therapist will set a pace with you and adjust as you go.
What is parts work in IFS?
Parts work is the heart of IFS. It treats the mind as a natural system of subpersonalities, protectors that manage daily life, reactive parts that jump in during crisis, and wounded exiles that carry pain. Rather than trying to eliminate any of them, IFS helps you approach each part with curiosity and compassion from your core Self, so the parts can release the burdens and extreme roles they took on.
Does EMDR require talking about the trauma in detail?
No. One reason people often find EMDR more bearable than some other trauma therapies is that it does not require a detailed retelling of the event, extended exposure, or homework between sessions. You briefly bring the memory to mind while following the bilateral stimulation, and much of the processing happens internally.
Which is better for childhood or complex trauma?
Complex and childhood trauma, where many protective parts formed over years, is often where IFS is especially helpful, because it is built for that layered, relational picture. EMDR is still valuable for reprocessing specific memories within that history. For complex trauma, a blend of the two, or IFS to stabilize before EMDR reprocessing, is a common and effective plan.
How do I find an EMDR or IFS therapist near me, and does training matter?
Training matters a great deal for both. For EMDR, look for a therapist trained through an EMDRIA approved program, ideally EMDRIA Certified. For IFS, look for training through the IFS Institute, which offers tiered levels. Both organizations maintain directories. In Northern Colorado, Foundations Counseling provides in person EMDR with EMDRIA affiliated counselors and IFS across Fort Collins, Loveland, and Windsor.
Are EMDR and IFS covered by insurance?
Whether therapy is covered depends on the practice and your plan, not on the method itself. Both EMDR and IFS can be delivered at in network or out of network practices. Out of network and private pay practices, including Foundations, do not file an insurance claim or put a diagnosis on your insurance record, and many provide documentation you can submit for out of network reimbursement.
About this guide
Written by: Foundations Counseling editorial team
Clinically reviewed by: Chris Berger, M.A., LPC, NCC
Last updated: June 19, 2026
Methodology: Claims about each modality reflect published guidance and research from the American Psychological Association, the World Health Organization, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the EMDR Institute, the EMDR International Association (EMDRIA), and the IFS Institute, plus peer reviewed studies, and were reviewed by a licensed clinician. Descriptions of evidence strength reflect the state of the research as of the date above and may change as new studies are published.
