Recruiting

Internal Family Systems

Sponsor:

Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care

Code:

NCT07342907

Conditions

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Interventions

Internal family systems therapy

Study Details

Brief summary:

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) involves intense emotional ups and downs, unstable relationships, impulsivity, and a poor sense of self. These challenges often lead to addiction, self-harm, and frequent use of healthcare services. While certain treatments already in practice - such as dialectical behavior therapy - can help, they don't work for everyone or address all aspects of the disorder. This study plans to explore internal family systems (IFS) therapy, a method that views the mind as made up of different "parts" - each with its own thoughts and feelings. IFS helps people build understanding and compassion toward these parts and connect with a calmer, more centered "Self." This may be especially useful for those with BPD, who often feel fragmented and extremely critical of themselves and others. This will be the first study to examine internal family systems therapy for BPD. The participants (15 in total) will receive up to 50 individual sessions over 15 months. Changes in symptoms and overall mental health will be measured at four points during the study. People with lived experience of BPD will help shape the research to ensure it is relevant, respectful, and useful for others facing similar challenges.

Conditions

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)

Study ID

NCT07342907

Start date

Feb, 2026

Status verified date

Jan, 2026

Completion date

Dec, 2028

Anticipated

Primary completion date

Dec, 2027

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Resident of Ontario, Canada;
  • Sufficient fluency in English to provide informed consent, participate in therapy sessions, and complete self-reported assessments;
  • Diagnosis of borderline personality disorder confirmed by a healthcare professional authorized to establish such a diagnosis in Ontario;
  • Willingness and ability (including financial means) to participate in the 50-session, 12-15-month intervention and the study assessments;
  • Capacity and willingness to provide written informed consent.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Current manic or psychotic symptoms regardless of diagnosis;
  • Substance dependence severe enough to interfere with meaningful level of engagement in the study intervention.
  • Cognitive impairment or neurological disorders that would preclude informed consent or meaningful participation in the study intervention.
  • Concurrent participation in any another form of psychotherapy.

Study Design

Enrollment

15 participants

Anticipated

Intervention Model

Single group

Primary purpose

Treatment

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

experimental: Intervention recipients

Participants will engage in internal family systems therapy in the individual format. This form of psychotherapy conceptualizes the mind as a system of subpersonalities ('parts') organized around a compassionate, stable core Self. The approach promotes internal harmony through increasing awareness, acceptance, and cooperation among these parts and the Self. Participants will receive weekly, up to 50, one-hour IFS therapy sessions in the private mental health care setting over approximately 12 to 15 months. Treatment will be delivered by two licensed mental health professionals trained in the IFS model. Participants will pay a significantly subsidized session fee to reduce financial burden of participation in the intervention.

Interventions

Internal family systems therapy

The internal family systems model was developed by Richard C. Schwartz in the 1980s. This psychotherapy is based on the assumption that the human mind is naturally multiple and consists of interacting sub-personalities ("parts"), including protective and vulnerable parts, shaped by development and adversity. All parts are assumed to have positive intentions, even when their effects are maladaptive; therapy therefore aims to transform rather than eliminate them. Internal family systems therapy further posits the existence of a core Self in every person, characterized by qualities such as compassion, clarity, and calm, which is inherently intact in each individual and capable of leading the internal system. Therapeutic change involves increasing the leadership skills of the core Self, building trusting relationships among parts and the core Self, and unburdening vulnerable parts so they can assume more adaptive roles, supporting improved emotion regulation and well-being.

Primary outcome measure

  • Severity of borderline personality disorder symptomatology - disorder-specific mental distress [ Time Frame: Change in scores between baseline and intervention end (approx. 12-15 months) ]
  • Severity of borderline personality disorder symptomatology - dysfunctional behaviors [ Time Frame: Change in scores between baseline and intervention end (approx. 12-15 months) ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Barna Konkoly-Thege, PhD

705-549-3181bkonkoly-thege@waypointcentre.ca

Stephanie Munten-Chisholm, MSc

705-549-3181smunten@waypointcentre.ca

Locations

Provincewide across Ontario (intervention can be delivered virtually)

Recruiting

Tiny, Ontario, Canada

Contacts

Barna Konkoly-Thege, PhD

705-549-3181bkonkoly-thege@waypointcentre.ca

Stephanie Munten-Chisholm, MSc

smunten@waypointcentre.ca

Principal Investigator:

Barna Konkoly Thege, PhD

More Information

Sponsor

Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care

Last update posted

Jan 16, 2026

Last verified

Jan, 2026

Keywords

  • borderline personality disorder
  • psychotherapy
  • effectiveness
  • internal family systems therapy

Trial information was received from ClinicalTrials.gov and was last updated on 2026-09-28. This information was provided to ClinicalTrials.gov by Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care on 2026-01-16. Recruitment status is synced daily from ClinicalTrials.gov and may not reflect the sponsor's current status. Confirm during your call.