Approved for 5.5 EMDRIA Credits

The play therapy and Internal Family Systems approach helps child clients as well as targeting childlike parts in adults develop insight and understanding regarding their thoughts, feelings and behaviors. This allows restoring trust in the client’s inner system, assisting them in developing a stronger sense of who they are in the world, the ability to heal wounds, release negative beliefs and relieving their protective systems from extreme roles. Utilizing play therapy and IFS offers a new lens to conceptualize a child’s life experiences. IFS is non-pathologizing and focuses on building a relationship with parts along with honoring the parts. By entering play and IFS into the 8 phases of EMDR this allows therapists to slow the process down to empower the child and increase the effectiveness of EMDR.

The Internal Family System (IFS) model believes that everyone has sub-personalities which are called parts. Parts are categorized by managers and firefighters which are considered “the protective system”. IFS trained or informed therapists works with the protective system to gain access to exiles which are traumatized parts within the system, to unburden their beliefs. When working with children utilizing IFS the goal is to build a relationship with the protective system to help target behaviors and decrease the impact of trauma preventing exile parts. Integrating play therapy and the therapeutic powers of play increases the work we do with children by allowing them to speak their natural language, which is play. When integrating play, IFS and EMDR can give a therapist access to the internal system for a deeper level of healing.

Presenter: Carmen Jimenez-Pride, LCSW

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