📚 No Bad Parts Book Club - Weeks Two & Three

22 hours ago
8 min read

No Bad Parts: Week 2 & 3 [Catch-Up Week]

Well... here I am posting late again. 😂

The good news is that my timing actually worked out pretty well this month, because we just wrapped up our break/catch-up week yesterday (June 21), so if you're behind on the reading, you're in excellent company.

A quick reminder of where we're at:

📚 June 8–14: Chapters 3–6 (49–106)

☀️ 💤 June 15–21: Break/Catch-Up Week

And today (June 22) officially kicks off:

📚 June 22–28: Chapters 7–9 (107–158)... more on that at the end of this week's round up!

First things first...

Is anyone else finding this book sort of boring? 🥱

I have been having a REALLY hard time picking this up and reading it because... it's just very dry.

Which is unfortunate because I actually believe in parts work and use parts work regularly with clients.

But yikes.

This book is making me work for it. 😂

Anyone else still reading along with me?

If you are with me... lets dig in! Or if you want to read these blogs as a summary for you, that works too!

Chapter 3: Why Parts Blend

The exercises were OK.

That's about all I've got. 😅

Nothing particularly stood out to me, and I continue to find the guided exercises much less engaging in book form than I do when parts work happens in an actual therapy session.

Maybe that's just me.

Curious if anyone has found the exercises meaningful so far?

Chapter 4: More on Systems

This quote jumped out at me:

"When I first encountered systems thinking in 1976, I was thrilled to find an alternative approach to life that answered many of the questions I had about the failings I was recognizing in psychiatry..." (p.60)

The short version is that Schwartz is describing how systems thinking helped him move away from viewing people as the problem and toward understanding the larger contexts that shape symptoms and behaviour.

And honestly...

Part of me was reading this and rolling my eyes a little.

Not because I disagree.

But because the idea that context matters still seems weirdly radical in many mental health spaces.

We're talking about a field that, historically and currently, often focuses on "what's wrong with the individual" while paying far less attention to the systems surrounding them.

Family systems.
School systems.
Healthcare systems.
Economic systems.
Social systems.
Cultural systems.
The impacts of oppression.
The impacts of trauma.
The impacts of living in a body that society constantly judges.

We've come a long way.

And we still have a loooong way to go.

One thing that stood out to me as a miss here was the absence of any meaningful discussion of racism.

If we're going to talk about systems, let's talk about systems.

Random observation...

👏 Notice there is no mention of BMI when discussing internal health systems? 👏

Interesting.

Why?

Because BMI is not actually a measure of health.

Yessssss. 👏👏👏

This section is worth reading/re-reading and highlighting:

"there is another important kind of feedback loop in all living systems that is necessary for their survival. Organisms need to maintain homeostasis (steady state) in various vital processes..." (p65)

He goes on to describe things like body temperature, blood sugar, oxygen levels, and blood pressure being regulated through balancing feedback loops that help maintain homeostasis.

As someone who spends a lot of time thinking and talking about eating disorders, nutrition, and bodies...

I appreciated seeing actual physiological systems discussed here.

I also appreciated that the examples were concrete and observable.

At this point in the book, I found myself wishing he would go even deeper into the idea of systems beyond the individual.

Because while he's talking more about systems now, it still feels somewhat narrow and simplified to me.

Like we're approaching the conversation... but not fully stepping into it.

One thing I keep thinking about...

The more I read these exercises, the more I wonder who they work best for.

Specifically, I find myself wondering how accessible this approach is for neurodivergent folks.

The exercises seem to assume a person can:

✔ Notice internal experiences

✔ Identify emotions

✔ Identify thoughts

✔ Stay focused on one internal experience long enough to explore it

✔ Then identify a specific "part"

For many people, that's already a LOT.

For someone with ADHD, significant trauma, alexithymia, dissociation, limited interoceptive awareness, or who is simply new to this type of work...

That's a massive big leap.

I keep finding myself wishing there was more scaffolding.

More structure.

More examples.

More guidance around:

"What exactly am I focusing on right now?"

"What part of this experience should I be paying attention to?"

"How do I know if I'm talking to a part versus just having a thought?"

Without that support, I could see a lot of brains (including my own) just bouncing around trying to figure out what they're supposed to be doing.

Honestly, the more I read, the more I find myself thinking that parts work (like most healing modalities) is probably best learned in relationship with another person rather than from a book. Such as:

A therapist.
A trained practitioner.
A group.
Someone who can help guide the process when things get muddy.

Chapter 5: Mapping Our Inner Systems

OK, so this is the chapter where we finally get into some of the more familiar IFS language:

Exiles
Managers
Firefighters

If you've heard people talk about IFS before, these are probably the terms you've encountered.

And honestly... it felt a bit like finally.

While I found some of the language and concepts useful, this chapter also started to feel a little preachy to me.

Which felt somewhat ironic given Schwartz's criticism of certain religious and spiritual approaches that bypass trauma rather than working with it directly.

That said, there were definitely pieces I appreciated.

The session with Mona stood out to me.

One thing I hear from clients fairly regularly is:

"Why do I get so sleepy as soon as therapy starts?"

People are often surprised or even frustrated by it.

They worry they're bored, disengaged, or somehow "doing therapy wrong."

I appreciated the discussion of sleepiness as a protective response.

Whether we frame it through IFS language ("a part" stepping in) or through a nervous system lens, sometimes becoming sleepy is actually a way our system tries to keep us safe when we're approaching something vulnerable, emotional, or overwhelming.

I thought that was one of the more practical and relatable examples in the chapter.

PART TWO: Self Leadership

Chapter 6: Healing & Transformation

LAST Chapter for this/last week...

Instantly starting this chapter...

Bored again. 😩

OOOF.

It is taking a lot for this book to even quasi hold my focus.

Is it just me?!

I believe in parts work.

I use parts work with clients.

I really do think there is useful stuff here.

But the way this book is written is just... dryyyyyy & overly preachy old white cis man vibes.

A useful refresher, though

He re-lists the four core goals of IFS, and I did appreciate having them all in one place:

To liberate parts from the roles they have been forced into and help them return to their more natural states
To restore trust in the Self
To reharmonize the inner system
To become Self-led

That part was helpful.

I also appreciated the framing that healing is not about getting rid of parts.

It is about helping the parts that are carrying intense fear, shame, pain, or protective roles feel less alone and less responsible for running the whole show.

The “Eight Cs”

This is also where we get the well-known IFS “Eight Cs” of Self energy:

✨ Curiosity

✨ Calm

✨ Confidence

✨ Compassion

✨ Creativity

✨ Clarity

✨ Courage

✨ Connectedness

I actually think this is one of the more accessible pieces of IFS.

Not because I think anyone needs to be embodying all eight at once—absolutely not—but because it gives people a way to notice:

“Am I approaching myself with curiosity right now?”

“Do I have even 2% more compassion for this reaction than I did five minutes ago?”

“Is there any calm or clarity available here?”

That feels a little more concrete to me than some of the other language in the book.

The Path exercise

And then...

Back to exercises as the main event. 😅

This chapter includes The Path exercise, which is meant to help someone access more Self energy by asking their thoughts/parts to wait at the base of a path while they continue forward.

I can see how this could be useful for some people.

AND.

The whole “empty your mind,” “ask your thoughts to step back,” “become pure awareness” thing feels very difficult to access for anyone with a really loud, busy, fast-moving mind.

For an ADHD brain especially, I can imagine the experience being more like:

“Okay, everyone go wait at the base of the path—”

“Wait, which part is talking?”

“Am I supposed to picture a path?”

“Why am I thinking about an email I forgot to send?”

“Is that a part?”

“Now I am thinking about whether I am doing this wrong.” 😂

I think the book could do a much better job of normalizing how difficult this might feel.

There is a lot being asked of someone here:

Notice your internal experience Identify what might be a “part”
Ask it to step back
Notice whether it can
Track what happens in your body and mind
Stay focused long enough to explore it

That is a LOT of executive functioning, interoception, and internal awareness.

Also, to his credit: he does say that if parts are not willing to step back, that is not something to force.

The invitation is to get curious about why they do not feel safe enough to let go.

I appreciated that piece.

Still... I think this would be much more accessible with actual support, structure, examples, and a real person helping someone slow down and figure out what the heck they are noticing.

One thing that did perk me up...

He starts talking about psychotherapy augmented by psychedelic medicines.

And I perked up a bit. 👀

Yay!

More of this in the field, please.

More research.

More thoughtful, ethical, accessible options for healing.

More outcomes that help us understand which approaches support which people, and how to make these modalities safer and more available within appropriate therapeutic care.

I also appreciated that he is talking about this in the context of psychotherapy and support—not as a simplistic “take this and heal your trauma” solution.

The idea that certain medicines might help protective parts soften enough for people to access more compassion, safety, connection, or emotional openness is something I fundamentally agree with.

And also: very different from expecting someone to sit alone with a book, tell their brain to stop thinking, and somehow access “pure awareness.” 😅

My Chapter 6 takeaway:

There are useful concepts here.

The four goals of IFS? Helpful.

The Eight Cs? Helpful.

The reminder that healing is not about eliminating parts? Very helpful.

But I remain unconvinced that this book is the most accessible way for most people—especially neurodivergent people, highly anxious people, people with trauma histories, or people who struggle with interoception—to actually learn and apply IFS on their own.

Curious what others thought:

📚 Did anyone else find themselves getting distracted, confused, annoyed, or lost during the exercises?

📚 Or am I simply being personally victimized by this book’s writing style? 😂

That's where I'm at so far!

Please tell me I'm not the only one struggling a bit with this book. 😅

COMING UP THIS WEEK

📚 Week 4: June 22–28

Chapters 7–9 (107–158)

I'm hoping things pick up a bit from here, because so far this book and I are in a bit of a slow-burn relationship.

Looking forward to hearing everyone's thoughts as we head into this next week of reading!