Our approach
The science behind the work
Mind Renew is grounded in three evidence-based frameworks: Internal Family Systems, Compassion-Focused Therapy, and Polyvagal Theory. Each has a distinct scientific foundation. Together, they address the architecture of the internal world, the emotional climate within it, and the physiological conditions required for healing.
Internal Family Systems
The mind as a system of parts
Internal Family Systems was developed by Dr Richard Schwartz in the 1980s. It begins with the observation that the mind is not a single unified entity but a system of sub-personalities, each with its own feelings, beliefs, and roles. Some parts protect. Some carry old wounds. Some have been managing the system for so long they have forgotten there is another way.
At the centre of the system is the Self. It is a stable, compassionate core that is never damaged by experience, only obscured by it. The work of IFS is to help the Self lead: to approach each part with curiosity rather than judgment, to understand what it is carrying, and to give it what it actually needs.
IFS is listed on the SAMHSA National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs. Randomised controlled trials have demonstrated significant reductions in PTSD symptoms, depression, and physical pain. Research published in the Journal of Rheumatology showed clinically significant improvements in patients with rheumatoid arthritis after IFS treatment.
Compassion-Focused Therapy
Compassion as a clinical practice
Compassion-Focused Therapy was developed by Professor Paul Gilbert. It draws on evolutionary psychology, neuroscience, and Buddhist contemplative traditions to address one of the most common and most clinically significant patterns in psychological distress: chronic shame and self-criticism.
Compassion in this context is not empathy. Empathy is the capacity to feel what another person feels. Compassion is the capacity to recognise suffering in oneself or others and to respond with the motivation to alleviate it. Neuroimaging research by Tania Singer at the Max Planck Institute has mapped this distinction in the brain. Empathy activates pain circuits. Compassion activates care and approach circuits. The clinical implications are significant.
CFT understands compassion as extending beyond the individual, to relationships, to communities, and to the broader world. This understanding informs both the clinical work and the values of Mind Renew.
Polyvagal Theory
Safety as a precondition for healing
Polyvagal Theory was developed by Dr Stephen Porges. It describes how the autonomic nervous system continuously scans the environment for cues of safety or threat. Porges calls this process neuroception. It adjusts our physiological state accordingly. These states determine what is possible in any given moment: connection, mobilisation, or shutdown.
Healing requires access to a ventral vagal state. This is the physiological condition associated with safety, social engagement, and regulated emotion. Without it, the deeper work of IFS and CFT is not accessible. The nervous system will not allow approach toward what it perceives as threatening, regardless of cognitive intention.
A Polyvagal-informed approach means attending to nervous system state throughout the therapeutic process. This includes pacing the work, building capacity for safety, and understanding physiological responses as meaningful information rather than problems to overcome.
The integration
How the three frameworks work together
Polyvagal Theory establishes the physiological foundation. A regulated nervous system makes approach possible. IFS provides the map: a way of understanding the internal system and working with its parts directly. CFT provides the climate: the quality of attention and care that makes the work safe enough to go deep.
Polyvagal Theory
Establishes physiological safety. Without a regulated nervous system, the deeper work is not accessible.
Internal Family Systems
Provides the map. Understanding the parts, their roles, and the Self that can lead the system.
Compassion-Focused Therapy
Provides the climate. Meeting every part — including the harshest inner critic — with genuine compassion.
Clinical formation
Clinical training and formation
These frameworks are only as rigorous as the training behind them. The following organisations and clinicians have directly shaped the practice at Mind Renew.
Academic partnership
The scientific lineage
Where this work comes from
Work with a therapist trained in this approach
Every therapist on Mind Renew is trained in IFS and Compassion-Focused Therapy. Browse profiles and book a free intake where available.
Find a therapist
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