Internal Family Systems Model - Course Details
Internal Family Systems Level 1 - this course is now full
We are considering running another Level 1 course subject to there being enough interest. If you are interested in this course (no obligation) please register your interest.
Internal Family SystemsSM is at the forefront of a movement toward a more collaborative therapeutic approach that relies on clients’ intuitive wisdom. IFSSM is one of the fastest growing psychotherapeutic models in the field today, offering a clear, non-pathologising, and empowering view of human cognitive and emotional life. IFS provides a dynamic therapeutic approach that allows both therapist and client to enter a transformational relationship in which healing occurs.
Dates
Level 1
27 - 31 October 2011 (trainer - Cece Sykes)
Level 2
29 March - 2 April 2012 (trainer - Dick Schwartz)
2 - 6 June 2012 (trainer - To Be Confirmed)
Register for Level 2
The Internal Family Systems Model
Richard C. Schwartz, PhD, LMFT, has been developing the IFS model over the past 25 years, with IFS now practiced by thousands of licensed therapists and other professionals throughout the United States and internationally. Mental health care professionals and others trained in the IFS model easily integrate it into a wide variety of practices using the unique methods IFS offers to create safe environments for clients to become Self-transforming. Internal Family Systems therapy is a simple yet sophisticated integration of psychology, spirituality, and intra-psychic and family systems theory that:
- works with couples, families, groups, and children
- effectively heals trauma
- is a client-led approach that respects each client’s pace and goals
- establishes a productive, trusting and collaborative partnership between therapist and client
- brings therapist and client into contact with the beauty and joy that lies beneath protectiveness
- helps therapists remain centered and open-hearted
The Training Program
In addition to thoroughly learning IFS theory and technique, the Internal Family Systems Level 1 Training Program invites participants to explore their own inner worlds in a safe, nurturing context. Participants will:
- understand the conceptual base of the IFS model
- apply basic IFS techniques to various clinical populations
- take advantage of the opportunities IFS offers for personal development
Learning Objectives: For a complete listing of learning objectives for each session, please contact The Institute for Continuing Education.
Format
Level 1
Format includes lecture, discussion, demonstration, video review, experiential exercise, and small group supervision and practice. Three 5-day sessions over the course of about a year total 15 of training.
Level 2
The curriculum for Level 2 is presented in a format similar to that of the Level 1 training and includes didactic, video, large group experiential and small group practice elements. Level 2 focuses on different content area over 2 sets of five days (10 days in total) that will expand your knowledge of and facility with IFS, and will help you to continue your personal growth. Level 2 trainings are taught by several IFS lead trainers, exposing participants to different styles and expertise. The training serves to:
- Form a connected and safe training group; assess where each student is with the model and identify and address common stuck points with it; build new skills and increase ability to hold Self energy.
- Focus on how to work with multi-person systems, with a particular focus on treating couples, while also extrapolating to families, groups, and companies. This includes new content and a new outline for couples' treatment with clear steps that will be practiced.
- Focus on the challenges of treating clients who have experienced childhood trauma or have extremely protective systems, including new content and videos as well as extensive practice time.
- Emphasize the importance of the therapeutic relationship and explore spiritual aspects of the model.
Certification of Completion
A Certificate of Completion is awarded, and a participant must complete the vast majority of training offered in order to be eligible to earn a certificate. Participants are not certified unless they successfully complete the new IFS certification process.
- Form a connected and safe training group; assess where each student is with the model and identify and address common stuck points with it; build new skills and increase ability to hold Self energy.
- Focus on how to work with multi-person systems, with a particular focus on treating couples, while also extrapolating to families, groups, and companies. This includes new content and a new outline for couples' treatment with clear steps that will be practiced.
- Focus on the challenges of treating clients who have experienced childhood trauma or have extremely protective systems, including new content and videos as well as extensive practice time.
- Emphasize the importance of the therapeutic relationship and explore spiritual aspects of the model.
The Trainers
Dick Schwartz earned his Ph.D. in Marriage and Family Therapy from Purdue University, after which he began a long association with the Institute for Juvenile Research at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and more recently at The Family Institute at Northwestern University, attaining the status of Associate Professor at both institutions. He is co-author, with Michael Nichols, of Family Therapy: Concepts and Methods, the most widely used family therapy text in the United States.
Dr. Schwartz developed Internal Family Systems in response to clients' descriptions of experiencing various parts–many extreme–within themselves. He noticed that when these parts felt safe and had their concerns addressed, they were less disruptive and would accede to the wise leadership of what Dr. Schwartz came to call the "Self." In developing IFS, he recognized that, as in systemic family theory, parts take on characteristic roles that help define the inner world of the client. The coordinating Self, which embodies qualities of confidence, openness, and compassion, acts as a center around which the various parts constellate. Because IFS locates the source of healing within the client, the therapist is freed to focus on guiding the client's access to his or her true Self and supporting the client in harnessing its wisdom. This approach makes IFS a non- pathologising, hopeful framework within which to practice psychotherapy. It provides an alternative understanding of psychic functioning and healing that allows for innovative techniques in relieving clients' symptoms and suffering.
In 2000, Dick Schwartz founded The Center for Self Leadership in Oak Park, Illinois. CSL offers three levels of national and international workshops for both professionals and the general public, an annual conference, publications, and video resources of Dr. Schwartz's work through its website. Dr. Schwartz is a featured speaker for many national psychotherapy organizations and a fellow of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, and he serves on the editorial boards of four professional journals. He has published four books and over fifty articles about IFS.
Cece Sykes, LCSW, is an Internal Family Systems (IFS) Lead Trainer with over twenty five years of clinical experience with individuals, couples and families. Her practices includes working with the effects of trauma and addiction as well as a special interest in how various spiritual practices intersect with therapy. Cece has taught IFS around the country and has lectured frequently on these and other related topics. She is currently in private practice in the Chicago area.
To Apply
Who should apply: Both therapists and non-therapists are invited to apply. For example:
- Mental and medical health care practitioners in the healing arts and sciences
- Counsellors
- Business and academic professionals
- Masters or doctoral students
- Dance and art therapists
- Bodyworkers
- Hakomi Practitioners
- Those from the professional public seeking personal and spiritual growth Anyone seeking a community of like-minded professionals
Texts
You are required to read two textbooks before the training begins:
Schwartz, RC (1995) Internal Family Systems Therapy, New York: Guilford Press, (800) 365-7006, ISBN 1-57230-272-0; Goulding, RA and Schwartz, RC (2002). Available through Amazon.co.uk or other bookstores.
The Mosaic Mind: Empowering the Tormented Selves of Child Abuse Survivors, Oak Park IL: Trailheads Publications, The Center for Self Leadership, ISBN 0-9721480-1-9. Available at The Center for Self Leadership website store.
Additional Reading: Schwartz, RC (2001) Introduction to the Internal Family Systems Model, Oak Park IL: Trailheads Publications, The Center for Self Leadership, ISBN 0-97211480-0-0. Available at The Center for Self Leadership website store.
It is strongly recommended that all students read Introduction to the Internal Family Systems Model prior to the first class weekend. It is required reading for students with no prior experience with the IFS model. Class content is designed around the assumption that the reading is completed. For further reading and study, a selected bibliography is available on CSL website.
Tution Fees
Participants will need to commit to all training sessions. Course tuition will be around £1500 - 1700. Room and board are not included. A deposit will be charged upon acceptance. Flexible payment plans will be available for the balance. Contact Ginny for more information.
The deposit is non refundable and the full fee is still payable in the event of withdrawal from the training
Special Needs / Assistance
Please let Ginny or Nicola know if you have any special needs and we will do our best to accommodate you.Directions/Parking
The course are held at Broomhill Methodist Church.
Please request a set of directions and parking information if needed. The entrance to the venue is by the back entrance on Ashgate Road. There is some parking at the venue but cars can also be safely left on nearby Sale Hill.
Meals
Snacks and drinks are provided at the venue. Participants also have the use of a small kitchen. There are many affordable and pleasant cafes/restaurants close to the venue in Broomhill.
Accommodation
The courses are non-residential so please look at our list of Accommodation close to the venue
To reserve a place apply here. For further information please e-mail Ginny Bennett or call her on 0114 2353636.